Gerry Szabo Named Head Softball Coach

DOVER, Del. -  Wesley College Director of Sports & Recreation Mike Drass announced Gerry Szabo will be the Wolverines new head coach.  Szabo replaces Tracey Short, who will continue her duties as Wesley's head field hockey coach and Senior Women's Administrator.

Both Short and Szabo will assume their new duties immediately.

Szabo also serves as the head coach of the Wesley College volleyball team.

No stranger to the First State, Szabo is a Delaware native and had a successful run in softball as the head coach at Goldey-Beacom from 1990-2001.  He led his initial team there to a 49-11 record and the NAIA District 19 Championship.  His teams never had a losing season and won seven NAIA district titles.  Szabo was named NAIA Northeast Independent College Softball Coach of the Year three times (1995, 1997, 2000).

Most recently, Szabo had stints at a pair of NCAA Division II institutions, Glenville State University and Salem International University, both of the West Virginia Intercollegiate Athletic Conference.  In 2008, he guided an SIU softball squad to a fourth place finish in the WVIAC after the team was chosen 13th in the preseason poll.  Previously, at Glenville State, Szabo was charged with starting the school's softball program.

In addition to his success on the softball diamond, Szabo has also seen a great deal of success as a head volleyball coach winning over 600 matches.  In his first season at Wesley, he led the team to 11 wins, tying the school in the program's third varsity season.

Prior to his time in the WVIAC, Szabo racked up over 300 collegiate volleyball wins in the First State. From 1976-82, he posted a 259-31 mark as the head coach at Wilmington College. Szabo was also the first head coach at Goldey-Beacom, going 43-26 during the program's first two seasons.  In between was a 10-year run at Cabrini in which he posted a 268-41 record with seven conference championships.

He graduated from the University of Delaware with a degree in Education and owns a master's degree from LaSalle University.

Short will continue to guide the field hockey program and assume more administrative duties as the SWA.  In 14 seasons, she has led the team to 183 victories, three NCAA tournament appearances and three conference titles.  She is also the winningest softball coach in school history, coaching a total of 11 seasons in two different runs as head coach.  Short led the Wolverines to their only softball conference title in 1999.  A graduate of Salisbury University, she is a member of the Sea Gulls' athletic hall of fame.