Larry Lee By Head Coach Cal-Poly San Luis Obispo

The success Larry Lee enjoyed in 16 seasons as head baseball coach at Cuesta College has carried over to Cal Poly. The Mustangs have posted four straight winning seasons -- 38-23-1 in 2004, breaking the school record for wins in a season as a member of Division I, followed by 36 more wins and a second-place tie in the Big West Conference, a 29-27 mark in 2006 and 32-24 in 2007. Lee begins his sixth season at Cal Poly with an even higher goal -- an appearance in the NCAA playoffs. After serving as head baseball coach at Cuesta College for 16 seasons, Lee was hired on July 22, 2002 to guide the Mustang program. Lee's first season finished a notch below the .500 mark at 27-28-1, but the 2004 squad jumped to a 28-12-1 start and finished 15 games above the .500 level, posting its second straight fourth-place finish in the highly competitive Big West Conference. In 2005, the Mustangs posted a 36-20 record and just missed the NCAA playoffs despite their second-place conference finish, wins over Cal State Fullerton and Long Beach State and a final RPI of No. 58. The 2006 squad jumped to a 9-2 start and settled for a 29-27 mark, winning 11 of 17 three-game series. Last year Cal Poly won 19 of its final 27 games en route to a 32-24 record and finished in the upper half of the Big West for the sixth straight year. In five seasons with the Mustangs, Lee has produced 10 first-team All-Big West players and three All-Americans. A total of 25 Cal Poly players coached by Lee have signed professional baseball contracts, including 18 in the last three years. Lee led Cuesta to the California Community College State Final Four on four occasions, all in the last 11 years of his 16-year tenure. The Cougars reached the state’s Final Four in 1992, 1997, 2001 and 2002 and qualified for the Southern California Regionals each of the last six years, including a No. 1 seed in 1999 and No. 2 in 2002. Lee's overall record at Cuesta was 460-241-3, including a state-leading 44 wins in 1997. His teams qualified for the regionals 11 times in his last 13 years and Lee is No. 15 on the state's community college baseball coaches’ list for career wins. Under Lee's leadership, Cuesta claimed nine Western State Conference titles, including six in a row (1997-2002), and averaged 38 wins during that six-year stretch. His teams produced a 267-119 record in conference games. During Lee's tenure at Cuesta from 1987-2002, he produced 26 all-state players, three Southern California Players of the Year and numerous professionals. Thirteen of his 16 teams finished above the .500 mark overall, including the last seven. Lee, who led his 2002 team to a school-record 24 consecutive wins en route to a 43-9 mark and a third-place state finish, was named conference coach of the year eight times. In 11 postseason appearances, Lee's teams compiled a 34-28 win-loss record. Lee, a 1979 San Luis Obispo High School graduate, was a standout baseball and football player for the Tigers before going on to play baseball at Santa Barbara City College (1980), Orange Coast College (1981) and Pepperdine University (1982-83). Lee was a first-team All-South Coast Conference selection at Orange Coast as well as a second-team All-Southern California pick. At Pepperdine, Lee was a career .304 hitter and, as a junior, earned first-team All-Southern California Baseball Association and second-team All-District 8 honors as the Waves posted a 46-21-1 record and earned a berth in the NCAA West Regional at Fresno State. Lee hit 13 sacrifice flies for Pepperdine in 1982, tied for No. 2 in the NCAA record book for sacrifice flies in a season. He enjoyed a brief professional baseball career, playing one year for the Utica Bluesox (1983) and ending his career in the Seattle Mariners' organization. Before becoming head coach at Cuesta College in 1987, Lee served as an assistant coach for the Cougars for two seasons (1984-85) and at Cal Poly for one year (1986). Lee earned his bachelor's degree in physical education/kinesiology from Pepperdine in 1983 and a master's degree in physical education from Cal Poly in 1985 as well as an adaptive physical education credential from Cal Poly in 1988. Lee and his wife, Liz, reside in San Luis Obispo with their two children, Jenna and Brooks.

"TheSportsCoach.com is a great way for coaches, players and parents to stay updated on the latest instructional methods on an ongoing basis."

Linda Derk Head Coach,
Tampa Bay Firestix Women's Professional Softball League (WPSL)