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Coaching Staff

Mike Dooley

Contact Head Coach Mike Dooley at dooley@sxu.edu

Dooley has been leading the Saint Xavier University baseball program since 1993. He has been associated with the team for over 25 years. Under his guidance, the Cougars have compiled a 553-332-1 overall record, a .625 winning percentage. Dooley has not just created some strong teams. He has built a very strong program, which has averaged nearly 40 wins each season and sent 16 players on to professional careers since he has been at the helm.

Last season, Saint Xavier won the Chicagoland Collegiate Athletic Conference (CCAC) title, the NAIA Region VII Tournament, the NAIA Region VII-VIII Super Regional, and advanced to the NAIA World Series for the first time since 1988. Dooley was named the 2006 NAIA Region VII Baseball Coach of the Year as well as the 2006 CCAC Baseball Coach of the Year.

However, Dooley does not just create success on the baseball field. He also creates success in the classroom. Since he was named head coach, eight Saint Xavier University baseball players have been named NAIA All-American Academic Scholar-Athletes. As an instructor in the physical education department at SXU, Dooley is committed to teaching and the values of higher education.

Following the 2002 season, Dooley was honored as the CCAC Coach of the Year for the third time in his career after the Cougars finished their conference slate with a 19-3 record and earned the No. 1 seed in the NAIA Region VII regional tournament. In 1999, SXU won the CCAC regular-season championship with a 17-1 record and finished with the best overall regular-season winning percentage in school history at .753 (52-17). After only his second season as head coach (1994), Dooley received the NAIA District 20 and Great Lakes Regional Coach of the Year award and was one of eight finalists for the NAIA National Coach of the Year award after his squad won the conference and district championships and finished second at the Great Lakes Regional.

In addition to his duties as the head baseball coach at Saint Xavier University, Dooley is also Assistant Athletics Director for the Cougar Athletics Department. He oversees the six varsity men’s teams at SXU as well as the men’s club volleyball team. He also primarily handles the Athletics Hall of Fame for the university, including all annual inductions and ceremony preparation.

Dooley earned his bachelor’s degree in sociology from Lewis University (Ill.) in 1972 and went on to complete his master’s degree in physical education from Eastern Illinois University. He resides with his wife, Barbara, in Palos Heights, Ill. They have one son, Kevin.

Tony D'anza

D’Anza begins his 20th season with the Saint Xavier University baseball program. He works primarily with the Cougar outfielders and baserunners, while assisting with recruiting duties.

D’Anza is currently the Illinois High School Baseball Coaches Association (IHSBCA) photographer and college liaison and was inducted into the IHSBCA Hall of Fame in 2003. He has been a member for 31 years and has over 37 years of coaching experience.

D’Anza is a graduate of Proviso West High School (’62) and holds a degree in geology/geography from Illinois State University (’67). He also received his master’s degree from Illinois State in physical education (’76) and earned another master’s in health and safety from Indiana State University in 1979.

The Palos Hills native was head coach for Team Illinois (1979) and at Shepard High School (1980-83), while serving as an assistant coach at Richards High School (1972-78), Indiana State (1978-79), Moraine Valley CC (1984-86), and Stagg High School (1987-88). He has also coached at Mickey Owens Baseball Camps and Baseball Schools of America.

John Morrey

Morrey is in his third season as an assistant coach with the Saint Xavier University baseball coaching staff after spending 12 years as head baseball coach at NCAA Division I Xavier University (1993-2004) in Cincinnati, Ohio. He will work primarily with the Cougar infielders and catchers this season.

Morrey was the head baseball coach at Saint Xavier University from 1980-1992 and was named NAIA National Coach of the Year during the 1988 season when his team finished 58-25 overall and a perfect 9-0 in conference play. He was inducted into the SXU Athletic Hall of Fame in 1998 for his impressive career as baseball coach at Saint Xavier. Morrey brings 34 years of coaching experience back to SXU and has amassed 861 wins as a collegiate head coach.

Morrey lives with his wife, Laurie, in Joliet, Ill. The couple has a 24-year-old daughter, Sara. He graduated from Lewis University (Ill.) with a bachelor of arts degree in political science in 1970 and earned his master degree in physical education from George Williams University (Ill.) in 1975.

John Harasen

Harasen returns as an assistant to the Cougar baseball staff. He will serve primarily as the team's hitting coach. The former Saint Xavier University player (1974-75) brings a wealth of experience and enthusiasm to the Cougar baseball program.

Harasen spent nine years as the head baseball coach at Shepard High School and successfully sent a number of players on to compete at the collegiate level. He also spent a year as assistant baseball coach at Chicago State University (Ill.).

The Crestwood, Ill., native has had coaching stints at a number of different area high schools, including Evergreen Park, Lyons Township, Bogan, and Quigley South. He graduated from Saint Xavier University in 1976 and received his degree in elementary education.

Rob Huizenga
Sports Information Director
Phone: (773) 298-3110
Fax: (773) 298-3111
Email: huizenga@sxu.edu