Kalamazoo College Baseball Coaching Staff

Matt Rix
Head Coach

Matt Rix was promoted to head baseball coach on Aug. 4, 2006. Rix, a 2000 graduate of Kalamazoo College, served as an assistant coach the previous two seasons.

Rix led the Hornets to 12 wins in each of his first two seasons as head coach. Including his two years as assistant coach, the Hornets have posted double-digit wins each year he has been on staff. Two players earned All-MIAA honors under Coach Rix in 2008 -- junior Ryan Benjamin earned first-team honors as catcher. Sophomore Brandon Luczak earned second-team honors as Utility Player. Two players earned All-MIAA honors in 2007 -- senior Charlie Mackinnon earned first-team honors as DH/Utility Player and freshman Brandon Luczak earned second-team honors as a pitcher.

As an assistant coach in 2005, Rix was instrumental in helping guide the Hornets to 11 wins as he directed the offense and the pitching staff. The Hornets tied a school record for most hits in a season, had the school's second-highest batting average (.301), and produced the third-highest run total.

Rix followed up with a school-record 20 wins in his second season on staff. He helped guide the Hornets to school records for hits, runs, RBIs and complete games.

Rix was a four-year letter winner on the mound for the Hornets. He was team captain in 2000. In 1998 he earned team most valuable player and team most improved player honors. He also earned coaches honorable mention honors in 1998. Rix was on the Dean's List and the MIAA Academic Honor Roll all four years.

As a student at Kalamazoo College, Rix studied abroad in Bonn, Germany during the fall of his junior year. He also interned at a travel agency during his time in Bonn.

Rix, who holds a degree in philosophy from Kalamazoo, earned a law degree from Michigan State University in May of 2004. He passed the Michigan Bar exam and is currently an associate at Peter F. Davis & Associates, PC in Mattawan, Mich.

Matt served as the head coach of the Kalamazoo Vipers Travel Baseball Club from 2002-04, leading the team to first-place finishes in the Kalamazoo Amateur Baseball Association (2002 and 2003) and the Southwest Michigan Men's League (2004 and 2005). In 2001 he served as head coach of the jayvee baseball team at Mattawan High School, leading the Wildcats to a 19-3 record and a first-place finish in the Kalamazoo Valley Association. He also assisted on the varsity team in their run as district champions and regional semifinalists.

Charlie Mackinnon
Assistant Coach

Charlie Mackinnon, a four-year starter for the Hornet baseball team, returns to Kalamazoo as an assistant coach for the 2007-08 season. Mackinnon, a native of Grosse Pointe (South HS), graduated from Kalamazoo College in 2007 with a degree in history.

Mackinnon made an immediate impact upon his arrival to Kalamazoo in 2004. Mackinnon started all four years as a pitcher/designated hitter/first baseman. Mackinnon was selected as the team's Rookie of the Year in 2004 after leading the team in innings pitched and strikeouts. He hit .353 and hit a home run in his first collegiate at-bat.

Mackinnon was an All-MIAA first team selection as a sophomore after hitting .361 overall with a 6-3 record on the mound. He recorded 43 strikeouts with only 12 walks. Mackinnon was the team's co-MVP and also earned MIAA Player of the Week honors.

Mackinnon earned All-MIAA second team honors as a junior. He was 7-3 on the mound with 66 strikeouts and only nine walks in 71 innings. He set school single-season records for wins, strikeouts, complete games and shutouts. Mackinnon recorded a career-high 12 strikeouts against Finlandia (March 17, 2006).

Mackinnon earned All-MIAA first team honors again as a senior. An injury in his first pitching start of the season limited Mackinnon's time to first base/designated hitter. He responded by leading the team with a .376 batting average with 44 hits and 26 RBIs.

Mackinnon ranks among the Kalamazoo College leaders in numerous categories. He ranks fourth in career batting average (.348), third in career hits (127) and second in RBIs (84). Mackinnon played in 123 games with 16 doubles and six home runs. On the mound, Mackinnon finished with a 15-11 record. He ranks second in wins (15) and innings pitched (192) and third in strikeouts (145). He holds the school record with 21 complete games.

Mackinnon was a co-captain and co-MVP as a senior. He also was co-winner of the Opie Davis Award, presented to Kalamazoo College's best senior male athlete.

Steve Wideen
Assistant Coach

Steve Wideen completed his fifth season as head coach of the Hornet baseball team in 2006. He stepped down as head coach in August of 2006 to work as an assistant coach, and refocus his efforts as Kalamazoo College's sports information director, a position he has held since 1998.

Wideen guided the Hornets to an overall record of 20-20 in 2006, setting a school record for most wins in a season (20). Previous Hornet teams won 15 games in 1969, 1988 and 1989. The 2006 squad also set school records for most hits, runs, RBIs, and complete games.

In 2005, the baseball team finished 11-20, a 10-game improvement over the previous season. The 11 wins were the fifth-highest total in school history. Charlie Mackinnon was selected to the All-MIAA First Team as a utility player (pitcher/first base), and was Kalamazoo's first All-MIAA player since 1999.

The 2005 starting lineup consisted of one senior, two juniors, four sophomores, and two freshmen.

The baseball program began rebuilding under Wideen, with seven incoming freshmen each of his first two recruiting years. Three-to-five freshmen started every game in 2003. The 2004 squad was also young, as 13 of the 19 players were freshmen or sophomores. The Hornets started freshmen pitchers in all conference games in 2004.

Wideen is a 1998 graduate of Cornerstone University where he earned a degree in business administration. He was a four-year starter at third base and pitcher while serving as co-captain for two years. He earned team most valuable player honors and was selected as the College's male athlete of the year following his senior season.

Wideen earned a master's degree in athletic administration from Western Michigan University in December of 2004.

Steve and his wife, Katie, reside in Kalamazoo.

Trevor Horwath
Assistant Coach

Trevor Horwath begins his first season on the Hornet coaching staff in 2007-08.

Horwath graduated from Defiance College in 2006 with a degree in Business Administration/Sport Management. He is beginning work on a master's degree in sports management at Western Michigan University. Horwath was a corner infielder for two seasons at Defiance and one semester at Aquinas College before suffering an injury.

A graduate of Allegan High School, Horwath earned All-Wolverine Conference and All-Allegan County honors in baseball. As a senior in high school, Horwath was selected by the Doyle National Showcases to participate in the Florida Diamond Club showcase tournament in Winter Haven, Fla.

During the 2007 season, Horwath served as the assistant junior varsity baseball coach at Allegan High School. He worked directly with the hitters and catchers and ran camps for a Little League organization.

As a student at Defiance College, Horwath worked a semester as Assistant Director of Intramurals. He also completed a stadium operations internship with the New Jersey Cardinals, a class A short-season affiliate of the St. Louis Cardinals.

Cody Piechocki
Assistant Coach

Cody Piechocki begins his first season on the Hornet coaching staff in 2007-08.

Piechocki (prounounced pa-cha-kee) played baseball at Mattawan High School and one season at Glen Oaks Community College before suffering an injury. He was a three-year varsity letter winner at Mattawan High School, and earned First Team All-SMAC, First Team All-District and Second Team All-Region honors as a catcher/third baseman. He also earned First Team Courier Leader honors and won the 2004 Baseball Players Association (BPA) World Series while playing for the Jackson Angels (a.k.a. Jackson Wendy's).

Piechocki was a varsity assistant baseball coach at Mattawan in 2007, where he worked primarily with the catchers and hitters. During that season Mattawan went on to win the Southwest Michigan Athletic Conference (SMAC) West Division Championship. Mattawan also won their district and finished as a regional semi-finalist. In 2006, Piechocki worked as an assistant with the freshman and junior varsity baseball teams at Mattawan while also managing the Mattawan Fall Baseball program. He also coached a 14/15/16 year-old team in Mattawan Little League during the summer of 2006.

Piechocki is currently a student at Western Michigan University working towards a degree in education (physical education/coaching emphasis). During the winter of 2007, Piechocki was a coach and partner for the Unified Sports Basketball Program.