Baseball Southern Conference

Western Carolina Names Baseball Assistant

Cullowhee, N.C. - Western Carolina head baseball coach Todd Raleigh announced today the hiring of Eric Filipek as assistant coach. Filipek, who will coach the pitchers and be recruiting coordinator, played collegiately at UNC Asheville and replaces Chris Roberts, who took a similar position at North Carolina State last July.

Filipek spent last season at Coastal Carolina, where he was the hitting instructor and outfield coach. While with the Chanticleers, Coastal posted a 45-18 record, won the Big South Tournament Championship and earned a number two seed at the Lincoln NCAA Regional. Under Filipek's guidance, second baseman Brandon Powell, an eighth-round Major League Baseball draft pick, led the Big South with 93 hits and ranked second in the league batting (.364).

"I am excited to have Eric," Raleigh said. "He brings a lot of experience and enthusiasm to the program. He is one of the top young coaches and will be an excellent addition to our staff."

Prior to his appointment at Coastal Carolina, Filipek spent four seasons at Duke (1999-2002) as assistant head coach, hitting instructor and recruiting coordinator. His effort as a recruiting coordinator with the Blue Devils in 2001 and 2002 was recognized by "Baseball America" as the 17th-best and 18th-best in the nation, respectively.

"I want to thank Coach (Gary) Gilmore, the staff and players at Coastal Carolina for making my time there one I will never forget," Filipek said. "I've left a class program and have joined another here at Western Carolina. Under the leadership of Coach Raleigh, this program has set a mark of excellence that I will tirelessly assist in maintaining. This move was an obvious decision for me after speaking with Mr. (Jeff) Compher (WCU Director of Athletics) during the interview process. There is a commitment and plan in place to keep this program on top, which makes our goal to be the best a reality. I'm familiar with the squad in a baseball sense, but eager to spend time with the players on a personal level and begin many lasting relationships."

Although he was at Duke for four years, he had a eight-year association with Duke head coach Bill Hillier. Filipek played for Hillier for two seasons (1995-96) at UNC Asheville before served as a student assistant one season (1997) with the Bulldogs before being promoted to assistant in 1998. As UNCA's hitting instructor, Filipek helped Bulldog hitters set team records in batting, home runs, doubles, hits, RBI and runs scored in 1998. In addition, nine players batted over .300 that season. Filipek's recruiting classes at UNCA produced a Big South Conference Freshman of the Year honors and a Freshman All-American selection. During his career, Filipek has coached over 15 players that have went on to play professionally.

Filipek enjoyed an outstanding collegiate playing career at UNC Asheville. He was a two-time first team All-Big South Conference performer (1994 and '95) and concluded his career with a .324 batting average, 21 home runs and 120 RBI. Filipek hit better than .300 in three of his four seasons for the Bulldogs. His best season was in 1994 when he led UNCA in batting average (.371), home runs (7), and RBI (42). He concluded his career among the top five players in UNCA history for hitting, home runs, RBI and at-bats. A team captain as a junior and senior, Filipek was selected the UNCA athletic department's Male Athlete of the Year in 1994.

The Bellmawr, N.J., native came to UNCA after a standout career at Gloucester Catholic High School. He lettered in baseball four years and was an All-State pick as a senior when he set a New Jersey record with 62 RBI in a season. In addition, Filipek was an all-region honoree as a junior and senior, while being a three-time letterman in football and two-time letterman in basketball.

Filipek got his coaching career started in 1996 as the head coach for the Brooklawn (N.J.) Junior Legion Post 72 team, which won the Southern New Jersey championship, won the NABF Regional and placed third in the NABF World Series.

Filipek graduated from UNC Asheville in 1997 with a degree in business management and administration