Joe Sarno entered his seventh season at the helm of the Merrimack baseball program in 2009-10.
A year ago, Sarno helped Merrimack to the program's first 20-win season during his tenure in North Andover. The team's 20-27 (11-19 NE-10) record was the third straight year in which the Warriors saw an increase in the win column. Among that team, three of Sarno's recruits received 2009 All-Conference honors outfielder Jeff Bercume (1st Team), pitcher Ryan McNeil (3rd Team) and third baseman Brendan Pyburn (Third Team). Bercume also became the all-time hits leader (231) at Merrimack in 2009 when he hit a four-year high 69 hits.
In 2008, he led the Warriors to an 18-27 record behind All-Conference outfielder Jeff Bercume, pitcher Ryan O'Rourke and second baseman Brendan Pyburn. The Warriors upset #4 Franklin Pierce 7-3 on April 9th and did not lose a home game until April 17th.
He was promoted to Assistant Athletic Director at Merrimack
College in September of 2007.
In 2007, Sarno guided Merrimack to a 16-26 record in the
competitive Northeast-10 Conference.
The Warriors had an 11-win improvement from the 2005 season and
won four of their final five games, finishing 18-13 and keeping
them in contention for a Northeast-10 playoff spot until the final
week of the season. The pitching staff lowered its earned run
average by more than a run, while the hitters increased its batting
average by 48 points and scored 28 more runs. Merrimack finished
one game short of a playoff spot, capping the season with its first
doubleheader sweep of Sarno's career.
Before being hired as Merrimack's fourth baseball coach, Sarno
completed his Master's Degree in athletic administration at
Springfield College in May, 2002. While at Springfield College,
Sarno was an assistant baseball coach during the 2001 and 2002
seasons and served as a class instructor and intern in the athletic
department.
Prior to attending Springfield, Sarno was the top assistant coach
at Amherst College, where the Lord Jeffs posted two NCAA regional
appearances.
Sarno earned his bachelor's degree in kinesiology at the
University of New Hampshire in 1996. While at UNH, Sarno was a
two-year captain and MVP of the Wildcats baseball team in 1995. He
is the UNH record holder for most stolen bases in a game, season
and career, as well as hits in a season. As a senior, Sarno earned
first team all-region, all-conference honors and was a first team
All-New England selection, while hitting .416, 17th in the nation
in Division I. Sarno moved on to play independent professional
baseball for the Nashua Hawks in 1995.
Sarno and his wife, Noreen Fiore-Sarno, reside in Stoneham,
Massachusetts with their son Lucas (2) and newborn daughter,
Colette.
Entering his first year with the Merrimack baseball program, Willett comes to North Andover having filled the capacity of pitching coach at Southern New Hampshire University for the 2009 season. At Southern New Hampshire, he helped improve the pitching staff's ERA from 13th-ranked in 2008 to fourth-ranked in 2009 among Northeast-10 schools. Willett also served as a volunteer pitching coach at Rivier College in 2007.
As a player, Willett was drafted in the 21st round by the Chicago Cubs and helped the team's affiliate Boise Hawks to a Northwest League Championship in 2004. He also pitched with the Lansing Lugnuts of the Midwest Leage. The following three years, Willett pitched for the Worcester Tornadoes in the CAN-AM League. In 2005, he bolstered a 10-4 record and 3.58 ERA for the league champion Tornadoes.
Earning a degree in communications from Rhode Island in 2007, Willett was a three-year conference started for the Rams. As a junior, he posted the team's only win in the A-10 Conference tournament. He also ranks eighth all-time at URI in strikeouts and fourth all-time in shutouts.
Willett currently resides in Nashua, New Hampshire where he also
attended high school.
Joining the Merrimack baseball program for his first year in the coaching capacity, Coppinger joins Head Coach Joe Sarno's staff with experience at all positions except catching.
In 2009, Coppinger appeared in 25 games and started 17, primarily at second base due to an elbow injury that prevented him from pitching.
The Medway, Massachusetts-native tallied 15 hits and seven RBIs on the year for Merrimack to finish a three-year stint with the Warriors.
Prior to playing at Merrimack, Coppinger played a year with
Central Connecticut State University in New Britain, Connecticut.
