The 2001 season was a magical one for UMBC Head Baseball Coach John Jancuska. He recorded career-win number 500 on March 27 against Coppin State, and his Retrievers captured the Northeast Conference crown, culminating in the school's second Division I NCAA Tournament appearance.
"It was great for our program to get back to the NCAA Tournament and the kids deserve all the credit," says Jancuska. "I'm just thankful that I've had the opportunity to be here long enough to win 500 games at UMBC. It's going to sound modest but I don't coach for records. I was in the right place at the right time. That's a blessing in my life, to have the opportunity and the passion to do something for this long. Five hundred is just a matter of time. What I enjoy most is having the opportunity to have a positive impact on my student-athletes. There is so much to be learned."
When Jancuska took over the UMBC baseball program in 1978 at the age of 23, it was a fledgling, up-and-down program which had moderate success but lacked direction. Jancuska, a two-year starter and co-captain of his senior squad as a player at Delaware, changed all that and put UMBC on the baseball map.
The Retrievers have enjoyed great success under Jancuska, winning 520 games in Jancuska's 24 years. Before entering the Divison I ranks, he turned UMBC into a Division II power, leading the Retrievers to regional appearances in 1978, 1979 and 1986. In 1992, he guided UMBC to a 37-13 mark and their first ever appearance in the NCAA Division I Tournament. "Seeing our name on ESPN when we got an at-large bid, that was pretty emotional," says Jancuska, whose team gave top-ranked Miami all they could handle in a 3-1 loss, before being eliminated by Delaware in 10 innings, 6-5.
Jancuska, a 1975 graduate of the University of Delaware, was named the 1992 East Coast Conference and 1993 Big South Conference Coach of the Year, and in 2000 was the Northeast Conference Coach of the Year after UMBC won the regular-season championship. The State of Maryland also named Jancuska their Coach of the Year in 1993, and he was honored by the Base-Hit Foundation as a "Legend of Maryland Baseball" last spring. In addition, he has coached 38 All-Region, five All-America, and four Academic All-Americans during his tenure.
Furthermore, 16 of Jancuska's pupils have gone on to play professionally. Currently, two of his former players are still active, including Jay Witasick, a reliever for the San Francisco Giants, and Wayne Franklin, a reliever in the Houston Astros organization. "UMBC and Coach Jancuska was the foundation to my baseball career," says Witasick. "I was fortunate to end up there," he adds.
"Coming to UMBC and playing for Coach Jancuska was a fantastic experience for me," Franklin says. "It was sort of a stepping stone for my career into the pros."
The 2002 season promises to be another outstanding campaign for Jancuska. With seven starting position players returning, UMBC will have an excellent opportunity to repeat as NEC champions. Four Retrievers were selected by Baseball America as pre-season All-Conference players, including catcher Scott Kosmicky, shortstop Jared Boyd, first baseman Jeff Fraley, and designated hitter Greg Deboy. In addition, Kosmicky was named a pre-season All-American by Collegiate Baseball.
"The strength of this team will be the leadership among the returning veterans in our line-up," Jancuska explains. "Seven of our nine offensive starters are back and we expect them to have terrific seasons. If our pitchers can give us quality innings, we should be challenging for another NEC championship."
