John Ostrowski
Head Coach
(630) 829-6147
jostrowski@ben.edu

John Ostrowski, one of college baseball’s all-time winningest coaches, enters his 36th season on the bench for Benedictine University. Ostrowski has built the Benedictine baseball program into a perennial conference title contender and one of the most well respected programs in the Midwest.

As the 2008 season unfolds, Ostrowski finds himself on the brink of another coaching milestone with 799 career wins. His teams have posted a 799-630-15 (.559) record in his 35 seasons, which includes 26 campaigns with at least 20 wins. Under Ostrowski, the Eagles have racked up 15 conference titles, and have finished among the top two in the conference standings 29 times in 35 seasons. Benedictine has also made seven NCAA Tournament appearances (1980, 1989, 1991, 1993, 1995, 2000 and 2003), finishing among the final three in regional play three times (1991, 1995 and 2003).

A three-time Northern Illinois-Iowa Conference (NIIC) “Coach of the Year” honoree (2001, 2003 and 2004), Ostrowski’s 799 career wins ranks him sixth among active NCAA Division III coaches, and 11th on the circuit’s all-time list. Ostrowski would also become just the ninth NCAA Division III coach to win 800 games at the same school.

Ostrowski took over the Benedictine baseball program prior to the 1973 season, and led the Eagles to NIIC titles in each of his first eight seasons. In the last of those eight championship seasons, his Eagles made their first-ever NCAA Division III Tournament appearance in 1980. After an eight-year hiatus, Benedictine returned to the NCAA’s in 1989, establishing a then school record for wins by finishing 29-11 overall.

The decade of the 1990’s was an ultra-successful period of time for Ostrowski’s teams. The Eagles averaged nearly 25 wins per season and won 64 percent of their games (248-138-4) in that 10-year period.

The 1991 club returned to the top of the NIIC standings, was third in its regional in the NCAA Tournament, and broke the school season record for wins while ending up with a 31-9-1 record. The 1995 squad reached the 30-win plateau as well, finishing 30-14 overall, and the Eagles’ pitching staff led the nation in team earned run average (2.49).

Over the past five years, Benedictine baseball has averaged more than 20 wins per season, which includes a school-record 32 victories from the 2000 NCAA squad. The Eagles won back-to-back NIIC regular-season crowns in 2004 and 2005, and made their most recent NCAA appearance in the 2003 campaign.

As expected, Ostrowski has coached a number of standout players in his three-plus decades at Benedictine. More than 35 of his players have received American Baseball Coaches Association (ABCA) All-Region honors, while the Eagles have had seven All-America honorees. Most recently, Aaron Giza was a second-team honoree in 2003 when he tied for the nation’s lead in runs batted in (71), and was a first-team selection a year later when his .917 slugging percentage led the country.

Ostrowski has received much recognition for his teams’ success on the field. A 2003 Illinois High School Baseball Coaches Association (IHSBCA) Hall of Fame inductee, he was also tabbed as the Pitch & Hit Club of Chicago’s College Coach of the Year that same season.
Ostrowski served as a student assistant for three years (1968-70) at Lewis University under the legendary Gordie Gillespie, who is college baseball’s all-time wins leader. In Ostrowski’s three seasons at Lewis, the Flyers increased their win total each year and averaged 31 wins per campaign. From there, he went to Nebraska State University (now Chadron State), where he was a graduate assistant during the 1971 campaign, and was the head varsity coach at Driscoll Catholic High School in Addison, Ill., in 1972.

In February 2007, Ostrowski was inducted into the Lewis University Athletics Hall of Fame.

Ostrowski spent many years as an assistant football coach at Benedictine, and has also held the positions of assistant athletics director and acting director of athletics during his tenure at the University.

Ostrowski earned his bachelor’s degree in sociology from Lewis in 1970, and his master’s degree from Nebraska State in 1971. He and his wife Mary have five children and reside in Palos Park.

Dave Swanson
Assistant Coach
(630) 829-6145
dswanson@ben.edu

Dave Swanson, a member of the Benedictine University Athletics Hall of Fame, is in his 27th season as an assistant coach on the Benedictine baseball staff. Swanson is also Benedictine’s director of sports events.
In the spring of 2005, Swanson received the highest honor that Benedictine gives to its employees, the Benedictine Life Award.

Swanson has been a part of the most successful period of Benedictine baseball history. The Eagles have posted winning seasons in 19 of his 27 years on the staff. Benedictine has averaged more than 22 wins per season with Swanson on staff. In addition, Swanson has been a part of six Northern Illinois-Iowa Conference (NIIC) title squads and six NCAA Division III Tournament teams.

Swanson’s tutelage with Eagles’ hitters has been quite evident in his quarter century on staff. He has mentored a number of American Baseball Coaches Association (ABCA) All-Region and All-America honorees. Included in that group is Jim Sostak, who set an NCAA all divisions record with 15 consecutive hits in a six-day stretch during the 2000 season, and two-time All-American Aaron Giza, who tied for the nation’s lead with 71 runs batted in during the 2003 campaign, and led the country with a .917 slugging percentage in 2004.

Swanson also served as an assistant football coach for many seasons and was Benedictine’s head women’s basketball coach from 1980-96, amassing more than 200 wins in his 16 years on the sidelines while earning two NIIC “Coach of the Year” citations.

Swanson, who was inducted into the school’s Athletic Hall of Fame in 1998, was a four-year standout in both football and baseball for Benedictine. On the football field, he established the school’s career interceptions record (since broken) with 12 picks, and was his team’s Defensive MVP and an All-American defensive back in 1975.

Playing for Ostrowski on the baseball diamond, he was an all-state centerfielder and a National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA) All-Scholastic Team honoree. He was a part of four NIIC title squads in as many seasons from 1973-76, during which the Eagles won 87 games. Swanson graduated as the valedictorian of his class and was tabbed as a member of the Outstanding College Athletes in America in 1976.

After graduating from Benedictine in 1976 with a degree in physical education, Swanson worked for two years as an admissions counselor with the University, then spent one year on staff at Driscoll Catholic High School in Addison, Ill. He then moved on to Indiana State University, where he spent one year as a graduate assistant in its physical education department and earned his master’s degree.

Swanson and his wife Cathy, have five children – Cathie, David, Dan, Tim and Beth – and the family resides in Wheaton, Ill. Tim is currently a senior at Benedictine and was a starting guard on the men’s basketball team, while son David is currently serving as a member of the U.S. Army stationed in Iraq. Daughter Beth attends Augustana College and runs cross country.

Lou Simios
Assistant Coach
lsimios@ben.edu

Lou Simios began working on the Benedictine University baseball staff in 2005. His primary responsibility are to work with the Eagles’ pitching staff.

Simios came to Benedictine after working with the varsity pitchers and catchers at Benet Academy (Lisle, Ill.) for five seasons. His work with that group, specifically with technical skills and mechanics, helped the program average 20 wins per season during his tenure. He also coordinated and supervised the Benet Academy pitching and catching camps.

Simios served in a variety of other coaching capacities at Benet, including four seasons as an assistant football coach. He also recently completed his third season as the school’s head freshman basketball coach.

A member of the Illinois High School Baseball Coaches Association (IHSBCA) and American Baseball Coaches Association (ABCA), Simios spent the last 10 years as an accounts representative for Financial Accounting Services, where he was responsible for the payroll accounts for 30 small businesses.

Simios earned his bachelor’s degree in education from University of St. Francis (Ill.) in 2002. He and his wife, Jennifer, have one daughter, Taylor, and reside in Minooka, Ill.

Simios served in a variety of other coaching capacities at Benet, including four seasons as an assistant football coach. He also recently completed his third season as the school’s head freshman basketball coach.

A member of the Illinois High School Baseball Coaches Association (IHSBCA) and American Baseball Coaches Association (ABCA), Simios spent the last 10 years as an accounts representative for Financial Accounting Services, where he was responsible for the payroll accounts for 30 small businesses.

Simios earned his bachelor’s degree in education from University of St. Francis (Ill.) in 2002. He and his wife, Jennifer, have one daughter, Taylor, and reside in Minooka, Ill.

Ed Zeifert
Assistant Coach
ezeifert@ben.edu

Ed Zeifert joined the Benedcitine coaching staff for the 2008 season. Prior to joining the Eagles’ staff, Zeifert was the head coach at the College of Lake County for two seasons (2005-07).

As the head coach at College of Lake County, Zeifert led the team to an overall record of 56-47 during his two campaigns. He produced 15 All-Skyway Conference and two all-region selections and his team earned a No. 4 regional seed in 2006.

Prior to taking over as the head coach at CLC, Zeifert was the team’s assistant coach for one year. Concurrently, he was also an assistant coach with the DuPage Dragons of the Central Illinois Collegiate League. He has also served as an assistant coach at his alma mater, clarke College, for one season (2003-04), as well as working in numerous summer camps and clinics.

Benedictine University is a familiar place to Zeifert, as both his father Gregg Zeifert (C74) and uncle Christopher Zeifert (C76) both attended the University, as well. Additionally, Clarke was, formerly, a member of the same league as Benedictine (the Northern Illinois-Iowa Conference).

Zeifert earned his Bachelor of Arts degree in history (2003) and was an outstanding student, as well. He was a four-year letterwinner in baseball for the Crusaders and a Dean’s List performer all eight terms of college.

In addition to his baseball duties, Zeifert oversees Benedictine’s game-day management for athletics events. He and his staff are responsible for everything from facility set-up to staffing.

Steve Schultz
Assistant Coach

Steve Schultz began working with the Benedictine University baseball team in 2000, primarily assisting with the developement of the Eagles’ pitching staff. He has also spent three seasons as the sophomore baseball coach at nearby Batavia High School, concurrently.

Schultz graduated from Wheaton North High School in 1976, where he played baseball and football. He also played baseball at Benedictine University (then known as Illinois Benedictine College) for one season in 1977, earning All-Northern Illinois Intercollegiate Conference honors as a pitcher.

Schultz’s also coached Briarcliff Baseball travelling team from 1996-2001 and assisted with the Batavias Baseball travelling team program for one season.

Schultz and his wife, Sue, reside in Batavia, Ill. The couple has a son, Jason, and a daughter, Stephanie.