May 21, 2001

LAS VEGAS - UNLV baseball Head Coach Rod Soesbe's contract will not be renewed effective June 30, 2001, UNLV Athletics Director Charles Cavagnaro announced on Monday.

Soesbe, who has spent 17 years with UNLV baseball, came to the school in 1985 and spent 12 seasons as the program's top assistant coach. He has spent the last five as head coach.

Soesbe coached UNLV to a 129-155 (.454) overall record in his five seasons at the helm and was 66-83 (.443) in conference play (27-33 Mountain West Conference, 39-50 Western Athletic Conference).

The 2001 Rebel baseball team finished 23-33 overall, 13-17 in league play and recorded a 1-2 mark at the MWC Tournament last week in San Diego.

"We certainly appreciate everything Rod has done for this program," Cavagnaro said. "Unfortunately we decided it was time for the program to move in a new direction. We wish Rod the best of luck in the future."

He began his coaching career as a graduate assistant for the New Mexico State baseball team in 1971. He was then a high school football and baseball coach in San Antonio and Lubbock, Texas, for six years before moving to the college ranks. He spent six years at Yavapai College from 1978 to 1983 before becoming head coach at Lee College in Baytown, Texas in 1984.

His coaching honors include state and regional junior college championships in 1978 and 1979, with second and third place finishes in each of those years. He was twice named Arizona Junior College Coach of the Year in 1978 and 1979. He was also named regional Coach of the Year for those two seasons.

Soesbe also served as an assistant coach of the 1999 USA Baseball National Team.

A search committee headed by UNLV Senior Associate Athletics Director Jerry Koloskie will be formed soon to find a new head coach for the Rebel baseball program.

SOESBE'S CAREER RECORD