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Aug. 23, 2005

SAN DIEGO, CA- The University of San Diego baseball program, twice West Coast Conference Champions under current head coach Rich Hill, has named Jay Johnson and Mark Viramontes assistant coaches in preparation for the 2006 season. Head coach at nearby Point Loma Nazarene University in 2005, Johnson led the NAIA Sea Lions to a national ranking as high as No. 6 and a Golden State Athletic Conference-Southern Division Championship. Johnson will serve as the Toreros associate recruiting coordinator and primary hitting coach while Viramontes, a former scout for the Cincinnati Reds, has accepted the position of San Diego's volunteer assistant.

During four seasons at Point Loma Nazarene, three as an assistant and as head coach in 2005, Johnson and the Sea Lions made four consecutive trips to the NAIA Region II Championships and established a Golden State Athletic Conference (GSAC) record with 47 wins in 2004. In the spring of 2005 Johnson guided Point Loma Nazarene to a 37-16 overall mark, winning the 2005 GSAC-Southern Division Championship and finishing the season ranked No. 19 nationally.

Johnson currently works with San Diego's Tecolote Youth Baseball Academy as the Director of Baseball Operations. His coaching experience also includes posting an 83-30-1 record directing the under-18 Chico Mavericks Baseball Club from 1999-2002 and winning an Armed Forces Championship coaching the U.S. Navy Baseball club in 2003.

Mark Viramontes brings seven years of collegiate coaching experience to USD's staff

A native of East Los Angeles, California, Viramontes has seven years of collegiate coaching experience, most recently handling a wide range of responsibilities as an assistant at Division II California State University of L.A. in 2004. Viramontes spent the summers of 2004 and 2005 coaching in the Cape Cod Baseball League with the Brewster Whitecaps. Viramontes began his coaching career assisting the varsity program at James A. Garfield High School in 1995-96 and later at San Gabriel High School from 1996-98. He later became an Associate Scout for the Cincinnati Reds, evaluating baseball talent in inner-city Los Angeles.

Former Major League All-Star Chris Cannizzaro, who has spent each of the last seven seasons as USD's volunteer assistant coach will take on the role of San Diego's Director of Baseball Operations in 2006. Third-year pitching coach Eric Valenzuela has been promoted to take on the role of Hill's top assistant.