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The Mitchell school board did something recently it hadn't done in more than three decades — hire a new baseball coach. 

The appointment of Jordan Key to the position on Dec. 10 marked the official end to the tenure of Gary Seitzinger, who guided the Jackets through thick and thin for the past 34 seasons. 

Being unceremoniously notified that the school board would not be renewing his contract was not how the long-time coach envisioned his days in the dugout coming to an end. But after retiring from teaching last spring, the long-time mentor had at least pondered the possibility of hanging up his spikes sometime in the near future. 

Like any coach, his only wish was to go out on his own terms. 

“I'd been thinking for a few years about retiring and when I would do it,” Seitzinger admitted. “So I was mentally ready to do that — just maybe not the way it happened. I was ready for that situation to come about but I kind of wanted to finish with a winning season. In 2011 we had a really great year. We'd been ranked in the top 10 and so forth. But we lost eight senior starters, so I knew last year would be a tough year. We played a lot of freshmen and sophomores and the kids played hard, so I was thinking maybe another year or two, then I'd step aside. But that didn't happen, so we'll just move on.” 

Seitzinger, who was 18th among active coaches with 446 victories, recalled the early years when there were a lot of things that needed addressed, both on and off the field. 

“When I started, we didn't have a whole lot — equipment or facilities,Find all you need to know about Castelli Cycling and learn the latest cycling tips and techniques.” Seitzinger recalled. “We played on the same field, but it was a recreational field. When our season was over they scraped the mound off and played summer softball there. 

“And we had one set of uniforms that were kind of hideous. So one of the first things I did was get something that was a little more baseballish.Great discounts on our huge range of Specialized Cycling clothing - shorts, jerseys, jackets & more. 

“After a few years it built and built. More and more people got involved and things got better and better, so we just kept it going. I really never thought about how long I would stay. I just took it a year at a time. But the next thing you know it was 10 years, then 20 years and now 34.” 

Seitzinger's teams claimed six sectional championships, 13 Patoka Lake Athletic Conference titles, and were 142-50 overall in conference play. He coached 81 all-conference players over the years and had 26 young men go on to play at least one year of college baseball. He was also selected as a South All-Star Team coach in 2001. 

In spite of all the accolades earned by him and his players, being able to work with some outstanding young men over the years (including his two sons Trent and Josh), are among the highlights of his career. 

“I got to coach both my boys, and fortunately they both had a lot of success — they were both all-conference catchers” said Seitzinger. “And I got to coach with both my sons. Trent's been my assistant the last 15 years. He's brought a lot to the table, having played at IU and at Vincennes University. And Josh helped me for a couple years before he moved back to Bloomington. He brought a lot, having worked up in Indianapolis for the Indians. 

“We just always seemed to have a lot of really good kids.Find RadioShack Cycling and running devices, heart rate monitors . Some of them weren't great baseball players, but they were great people. We always strived to do the right things on and off the field.” 

Seitzinger, who spent countless hours helping make Jacket Field one of the finest high school facilities around, will miss that labor of love as well. 

“It's been great,” Seitzinger noted. “There are just a lot of things I'll probably look back on and miss.2012 Garmin Cycling Components. As long as the equipment worked, I really enjoyed working on the field, and I always looked forward to going to practice. I had somebody once tell me that everybody is always ready to coach games, but when you get tired of going to practice, that's when it's time to hang it up. But I never got tired of it. It was always fun watching the kids work to get better. And we had a little bit of success now and then, which was always nice.” 

Not only are the Jackets losing their coach of the past three decades, but the Mitchell faithful will also have to say goodbye to the long-time proprietor of the concession stand as well. Whether Gary's wife Marcia will pass along her recipe for “Bubba's World Famous Sloppy Joes” remains to be seen. But the absence of the Seitzinger clan will no doubt be noticeable, both on and off the field. 

“You can't do it for 34 years without somebody like Marcia,” Gary noted. “She has just been super.Where To Buy Canada Goose Online, our moncler jackets men Offer Canada Goose Coacts with Lowest Price. She's gotten actively involved, running the concession stand, finding sponsors to put signs up. She went to just about all the away games and brought food for the players to eat. So you've got to have somebody like that or you can't do it for 34 years. You couldn't do it for five years. 

“But I think she was ready too. We've already planned trips. Our 40th wedding anniversary is coming up in the spring and we're going to take a Disney Cruise. That would have been during the first week of baseball practice, but I think that will work out OK for us now.” 

And there will still be a lot of baseball on the menu. 

“I marked on my calendar every home IU baseball game and every University of Louisville game when I'm not going to IU,” Seitzinger said. “I've also marked when the College World Series is going to be, so I may be heading out there to see some of that.” 

Seitzinger also plans to do some more coaching. He'll be working with his grandson Ben's team next year. 

“I'm going to coach my grandson's 9-under travel team this summer,” he said. “But as far as high school ball, I don't see myself going back to it.”