Fort chooses Vaughn to skipper baseball team (02/05/04)

FORT RECOVERY — Even though snow is still plentiful, Major League Baseball is getting ready for the upcoming season as pitchers and catchers will report to spring training next weekend. Locally, Fort Recovery also made a move this week in preparation for the spring sports season.

Aaron Vaughn was named the new Indians’ baseball coach at a special meeting of the Fort Recovery School Board Tuesday.

He was selected by a three person committee — athletics director Barb Sautbine, principal Ed Snyder and superintendent David Riel — from a group of three finalists. The school board approved him by a unanimous vote.

“(It’s) wonderful,” said Vaughn, who teaches science at Fort Recovery Middle School, of his new job. “It’s a great league. The (Midwest Athletic Conference) is a league I’ve wanted to coach in for a while. Fort Recovery is a great school system.”

Vaughn takes over for Dave Blockberger, who resigned last month so he could spend more time with his family during the spring months.

Blockberger spent three years at the helm of the Fort Recovery program, finishing with a 35-36 record. The Indians finished 11-14 in 2003.

Blockberger’s tenure also included a sectional championship in 2001. That team set a school record with 18 victories.

Sautbine said she thought Vaughn’s four years as the baseball coach at Spencerville was a key to his selection. She said she looks for him to build on what the previous two coaches for the Indians have done.

“His experience, and his knowledge of the game were what I felt (made him best qualified candidate),” said Sautbine. “I’d like to see him expand on what Shane McKibben and Dave (Blockberger) have already done. The program has been the upswing over the past few years and I hope that continues.”

“I hope to be positive,” said Vaughn. “I know baseball, but the first thing is I want to help the kids become better people,” as students and within the community.

“I want to make a commitment to this program. Hopefully we can have a great program over the next few years.”

Vaughn spent a year as the junior varsity coach at Canal Fulton Northwest — near Canton, Ohio — before taking over the Spencerville program.

In his four years at Spencerville the Bearcats made a steady climb from the bottom of the Northwest Conference standings.

After winning just two games in the three years before his arrival, Spencerville went 4-15 in his first season. It won six games the following year, and 10 games apiece in the next two.

He finished with a 30-59 record overall, which included a 7-3 mark in the conference in his final season.

He said he hopes to have a similar pattern of continuous improvement at Fort Recovery.

He also pointed to an MAC championship as a goal during the next few seasons.

“I want to get better every day — to improve on the things that we’re not as good at,” Vaughn said, who played for two Big Ten championship teams at Ohio State and one Mid-American Conference championship at Akron. “I want the kids to enjoy playing baseball and learn to love for the game.

“I love baseball, and I hope they learn to love it. It’s a privilege for us to be out there.”

Vaughn, 28, and his wife Jeanette have identical two-year old triplet daughters — Nora, Addyson and Marlee. The family lives in Celina.[[In-content Ad]]