Southern Vermont College alumnus Dave Gage will head the Mountaineer baseball program for the sixth season in the spring of 2018. He is also a member of the SVC/Saint Joseph College Athletics Hall of Fame Class of 2016.

The 2016 season saw Gage bring SVC to the NECC championship round after posting the program's first 20-win season in team history. The Mountaineers finished as the league's runner-ups with an overall record of 20-20, the first time that the team finished at, or above, .500 since 1989 (14-14). There were also two Mountaineers under his guidance who were selected to the D3baseball.com Team of the Week (Dylan Angelo & Zack Stacey)-- the first two in program history to collect the organization's laurels-- while another pair garnered ECAC New England DIII Rookie of the Week honors (Stacey & Joe Braim).

In 2015, Gage led SVC to a 16-18 mark, the best record under his tenure prior to 2016. In Gage’s four seasons as the Southern Vermont head coach, the Mountaineers have set every major program record. The team fielded program bests in each of his first three years.

The 2015 team fielded .960, the best fielding percentage in the NECC. Gage has also brought an aggressive base running mentality to the Mountaineers. The 2015 squad finished 14th in the country in stolen bases per game, and in his three seasons at the helm the Mountaineers have stolen 263 bases. The Mountaineers set the program mark with 89 in 2014. The 2014 team also set a program record with a 4.86 ERA. In 2015, Gage’s crew set the program mark with a .304 batting average.

Since becoming the head coach in 2012, the Mountaineers have continuously improved each year. The 2014 team had the third-most wins in program history with 15, only to be outdone in 2016 with 16 victories. 11 players have been named to New England Collegiate Conference weekly awards under Gage’s guidance. In 2015, freshman Jean-Carlos Berasgoico earned ECAC Pitcher of the Week. Eight players have garnered NECC all-conference accolades. The Mountaineers had four players named to the NECC all-conference teams in 2014, the most players in one year in a SVC uniform.

Gage and his staff have seen two players go on to play professional baseball: Connor Murray played in the California Winter League in 2012, and Chris Nicastro Jr. earned the first paid professional contract this past season with the V-Cardinals of the World Baseball Pro League. Gage has coached eight total professional players in his coaching career.

In the classroom, Gage’s program has also found success with three players being named to the NECC Academic All-Conference Team. The 2016 squad posted over a 3.0 GPA after the 2013 team also finished the year with a team GPA over 3.0.

Mountaineer Baseball is nothing new to Gage. From 2008-2011, he was the starting second baseman for the Mountaineers and served as one of the team’s captains during his final three seasons. His leadership and play helped guide his team to the NECC playoffs in 2009, 2010 and 2011, the first three playoff appearances in program history. In 2011, Gage set several school records along with an NCAA record which helped get the Mountaineers to their first ever NECC championship game. A career .305 hitter, Coach Gage has many school records. Gage is the school’s all-time leader in saves and hit by pitches. Gage also has the highest career on-base percentage (.480) in school history and ranks second in games played for the Mountaineers.

Gage has also spent the summer on the diamond coaching. For five summers (2007-2011), Coach Gage was in charge of the Tri-County Bees 18U team. In that time, the Bees qualified for two national championships under his guidance. In 2010, Gage’s team went 31-5 and finished fourth in the National Amateur Baseball Federation World Series. In 2012, Coach Gage worked under Jamie Keefe with the Pittsfield Suns of the Futures Collegiate Baseball League (FCBL). He was also named the Field Manager and Director of Player Development for the Wachusett Dirt Dawgs of the FCBL for this summer’s 2015 season.

As the 2010 valedictorian, Gage earned his sports management degree in three years, but decided to return to SVC in 2011 to finish his athletic career and get a second degree. Gage is the son of David and Barbara and has a younger brother, Matthew, who is a left-handed pitcher in the San Francisco Giants organization. He married his wife, Hannah, in August of 2017.

Gage and his Mountaineers have come together to organize a communal donation for the fight against childhood cancer. Through their efforts, Gage and his players have raised a total of over $10,000 in his past five seasons as head coach.