Jan. 5, 2001

CLEVELAND - Cleveland State Athletics Director John Konstantinos has announced that head baseball coach Jay Murphy has signed a multi-year contract to stay on board as the Vikings' skipper. The deal will keep Murphy in the Vikings' dugout through the 2003 season.

"We are ecstatic to keep a coach of Jay's caliber here at Cleveland State," said Konstantinos. "He has taken our baseball program in the direction we had hoped and we expect big things from him in the future."

In four years at the helm, Murphy has directed CSU to an 88-127 overall mark and a 42-40 record in Midwestern Collegiate Conference action. In addition, under his tutelage, Keith Lillash and Jeff Haase became the first Vikings to ever earn All-America honors as both garnered third team accolades in 2000. Haase was drafted in the 13th round by the Cleveland Indians, joining Jim Rickon (who signed as a free agent in 1999) in the Indians organization. Prior to his arrival in Cleveland, Murphy guided George Washington to a 116-134 record and to a NCAA Regional berth in 1992.

"This is a sign of the commitment that the University has to myself and to the program," explained Murphy. "The reciprocal of that is my commitment to Cleveland State and the desire to establish the program not just in Cleveland and Ohio, but on a national level."

The Vikings completed the 2000 campaign with a 23-33 overall record and finished third in the MCC with a 10-9 mark. Cleveland State opens this season Feb. 23 at North Carolina A & T.