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BLACKSBURG – Virginia Tech head baseball coach Patrick Mason announced today the hiring of Ryan Connolly as the newest addition to his coaching staff. Connolly, who spent two seasons with the Hokies as a volunteer assistant coach, will now join the staff as an assistant coach.

“Ryan is the absolute perfect fit for our program, our staff and our community,” Tech baseball coach Patrick Mason said. “Ryan is a person of the highest character who will represent our program with class and honor. His familiarity with our program, and with me, will make this a seamless transition.

“Ryan has a tremendous ability to recruit and develop players, and I can’t wait to see his impact on our program.”

A 2009 graduate of Notre Dame, Connolly spent his first two years in the coaching profession – the 2011 and 2012 seasons – on Tech’s bench with Mason, who was the pitching coach at the time, and former head coach Pete Hughes.

For the 2013 season, Connolly worked as a full-time assistant just down the road at Radford University and helped the Highlanders to a 30-26 record and a fourth-place finish in the Big South Conference with a 14-10 mark.

When Hughes left Tech for Oklahoma, he pulled Connolly away from Radford and that’s where he spent the 2014 season, working as the volunteer assistant coach and recruiting coordinator for the Sooners. The team finished with a 29-29 record and advanced to the Big 12 Tournament.

“I want to thank Coach Mason for giving me the opportunity to return to Virginia Tech and the Blacksburg community,” Connolly said. “I’m proud to rejoin such a tradition-rich and successful university, athletics department and baseball program.

“I am excited to work again alongside Coach Mason and the rest of our staff in developing our student-athletes on and off the field and returning to the NCAA tournament.”

Connolly, a native of Binghamton, New York, led the Fighting Irish in 2010 with a .335 batting average, which included team highs of 11 home runs and 38 RBIs. He also led the team in hits (66), doubles (15), triples (2), total bases (118), slugging percentage (.438) and hit by pitch (20). He was a four-year Monogram winner and a two-time captain.

Connolly and his mother, Penny, are co-chairs of the Michael E. Connolly Endowment for Lung Cancer Research, named in honor of his late father.

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