Baseball: Manno merits honor from IHSBCA

A little more than five months after St. Viator's baseball team recorded one of its best seasons ever, finishing fourth in the state in Class 3A, the accolades are still rolling in.

Earlier this month, Lions coach Mike Manno learned he was named he was named Coach of the Year for the northern area of the state by the Illinois High School Baseball Coaches Association. He will accept his award in January at the state coaches clinic.

The award affirms Manno's leadership during the team's historic run. St. Viator advanced to the state semifinals and won 25 games, most in the school's 55-year history. Along the way, Manno reached his 200th victory as a head coach.

"This award recognizes coaches who led their teams admirably while achieving excellence during the past season," says Brian Wujcik, vice president of the Illinois High School Baseball Coaches Association.

Manno has led the Lions as head baseball coach for 10 seasons. He is a 1994 St. Viator graduate who returned to his alma mater to begin coaching in 1998-99 as an assistant coach for soccer, basketball and baseball.

Since the 2013-14 season, Coach Manno also has been the head coach for the sophomore boys basketball team, and he serves as assistant athletic director.

"Mike leads a great staff and does a terrific job with our kids," says St. Viator athletic director Martin Jennings.

After last season, the team graduated 11 seniors, including four who play at the college level - Mike Ragauskis at Oklahoma, Jack Coney at Purdue, Kevin Napoleon at Butler and Shaun Falbo at the University of St. Thomas. Coach Manno expects to have a solid core returning for the spring of 2017.