Presented annually to an alumni of Wesleyan baseball who
has shown a continued commitment and passion for continuing the excellence of
the Wesleyan baseball program. Named in honor of coach Peter “Kosty”
Kostacopoulos who coached Wesleyan baseball from 1973 to 2001.
2009 – Mike MacClary '93 The eighth annual Kosty Award, given to a Wesleyan baseball alum,
goes to Mike MacClary ’93. The award was presented at coach Kosty’s 75th
birthday celebration in front of 80 baseball alums following a day of golf.
Mike has been an amazing contributor to Wesleyan baseball, both as a player,
coach and supporter. A four-year member of the team as a third baseman, Mike’s
energy was instrumental in the success of the Cardinals in the early 90’s.
Following his graduation as a government major, he returned to Wesleyan as a
coach, and was manning the third base coaching box during Wesleyan’s run through
the World Series in 1994. Mike is a graduate of Suffolk Law School, and is
now a partner at Burns & Levinson LLP in Boston. He is married to Wesleyan alum
Marisa Dovidio and has a son Cal, and a daughter, Rosalie.
2008 – John Vrooman '65 The seventh annual Kosty Award, given to a Wesleyan baseball alum
goes to John Vrooman ’65. A history major, John was a member of Delta Tau
Delta, and also played on the basketball team. John recently returned to
Wesleyan to help celebrate the 100th birthday of coach Norm Daniels. In
addition to a fine career at Wesleyan, John created the baseball program at
Coastal Carolina University in South Carolina. A tiny local school at the time,
and now a school of 8,000 students, John was the head coach from 1975-1977, then
returned as the head coach again from 1987 to 1995. He helped cultivate the
program into a big-time Division I power (in 2008, CCU went 50-14 and was ranked
No. 16 in the nation!), going to the NCAA tournaments in 1991 and 1992 having a
three-year stretch from 1988-1990 where his teams averaged 36 wins and only 15
losses. John was named as the Big South Conference coach of the year
twice, and was inducted into the Big South Conference Hall of Fame in 2004. The
baseball field at Coastal Carolina is named John Vrooman field. After and during
coaching, he was a significant contributor to the Coastal Carolina academic
community in many roles, including a professor and Dean of the History
department. John lives in Conway, S.C. with his wife Deborah and is the
owner of Atlas Travel.
2007 - Robb Sansone '79 Robb Sansone has been a tireless supporter of Wesleyan baseball and
with much gratitude, the Wesleyan baseball program is proud to present him with
the sixth annual Kosty Award. Robb, a 1979 Wesleyan grad, was a speedy
centerfielder for the Cardinals. His senior year he hit .328 in the middle of a
strong lineup and had an 11-game hitting streak. He works for Fedway Associates
Inc. which is New Jersey's Premier Wine & Spirit Sales & Marketing Company. He
and his wife have three daughters, Rebecca, Kaitlyn and Victoria.
2006 - Mark Consorte '92 Mark Consorte ’92 was named the winner of the fifth annual Kosty
Award at a gathering of alums at the Homecoming baseball tailgate. Mark’s
continued enthusiasm for the Wesleyan baseball program on many levels has been a
much appreciated and special contribution, from attending alumni games and golf
tournaments, to helping with recruiting and supporting the program in general.
Mark’s baseball success is legendary at Wesleyan, graduating as Wesleyan’s
all-time career leader in home runs, and being named first-team All-New England
his senior year. In between, Mark had numerous clutch hits and his leadership
helped the Cardinal’s win the New England ECAC championship his senior year. A
native of West Haven, Conn., and an All-State baseball player at Notre Dame-West
Haven, Mark is currently the head of the history department at West Haven High
School. He coached high school baseball for many years at his alma mater, and is
still a force at the plate in the West Haven Twilight League.
2005 - Rick Plummer '94 The fourth annual Kosty Award, which is given to the Wesleyan
baseball alum of the year, goes
to Rick Plummer '94. As an alum, Rick has been a tireless supporter of Wesleyan
baseball, attending multiple games at home and on the road every season,
particularly Little Three games everywhere from
Middletown to Amherst to Williamstown. His presence and support has been a
greatly cherished and appreciated contribution to the team. As a pitcher at
Wesleyan, Rick had some scintillating performances, including a one-hit Little
Three victory over Amherst, as well as an excellent starting performance in the
ECAC Championship game which Wesleyan eventually won. In 1992, Rick threw 48.2
innings and only
allowed 45 hits while going 3-1. Rick is a native of Pelham, N.Y. and a graduate
of Pelham High School. He is currently an equity analyst with Systematic
Financial Management in New Jersey after 10 years as a senior industry analyst
with the Value Line Investment Survey. He received his M.B.A. in finance at
N.Y.U.'s Stern School of Business.
2004 - Paul Gallo '89 The third annual Kosty Award, which is given to the Wesleyan Baseball
Alum of the Year goes to Paul Gallo ’89. Paul is currently the head baseball
coach at Malibu High in Calif., and with open arms welcomed 19 alums to his
field and did a great job organizing the alumni game and barbecue last March. As
a pitcher at Wesleyan, Paul had an excellent career, going 15-7, capped off with
a 7-3 record with 66 strikeouts in 86 innings his senior season. In addition to
building a strong program at Malibu High, Paul is the director of the Reggie
Smith Baseball Center in Encino, Calif.
2003 - Jim Dresser '63 The second annual Kosty Award, which is given to the Wesleyan
Baseball Alum of the Year goes to Jim Dresser ’63. Jim was an amazing supporter
of the Cardinals this spring, including watching the Cardinals shut out Williams
in two games, while also traveling up to Williams to watch the Cards vie for a
Little Three title. While officially retired from 30-plus years in the
consulting business, Jim is still summoned for his expertise by everyone from
the Wesleyan Administration (he's a Trustee) to local fundraising needs. He and
lives in Salisbury, Conn., down the street from his other alma mater, the
Salisbury School.
2002 - Sean McKeown '77
The Wesleyan baseball program inaugurated the first Kosty Award, to be given
annually to the baseball alum who makes a difference in the program that year.
This year's winner is Sean McKeown. A 1977 graduate and native of
Enfield, Conn., McKeown was a three-year starter at first base and outfield, as
well as a tri-captain (along with Brad Vanacore and Dave Matteodo). Sean was
also a three-year starter on the football team as a defensive back. In the 2002
season, Sean's financial contribution to the program was the difference in
sending the team to Florida in a year during which Coach Kosty retired and Mark
Woodworth was the interim coach.
