Coaching Staff

Director - Coach Jeff Kapp - Hitting/Defense

Coach Kapp began playing organized baseball in 1974, and has played at just about every level since that time. He was a 3-year starter for his high school team in Munster, IN, at shortstop; making all conference all three years and all-state his senior year in 1986.  He went on to play Division 1 baseball at Purdue University for the only team in school history to make it to the College World Series Regional at Mississippi State University in Starkville, Mississippi.

​Coach Jeff played in the Collegiate Prospect Leagues and later played semi-professional baseball with the Royals.   He also was invited to two major league try-outs with the Cincinnati Reds and one with the St. Louis Cardinals.  Since his playing days, he has coached at every level  from t-ball to college.  He has gained years of knowledge from college Division 1 and Major League coaches.

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Coach Matt Kuna - Pitching/Hitting/Defense
Coach Matt was a four year letter winner at Griffith High School in northwest Indiana, and was all-conference, all-area and all-state his senior year.  He was a finalist for Mr. Baseball in the state of Indiana in 2007.  He went on to play Division 1 baseball at the University of Toledo, where he was All-MAC in 2009 and 2012, and All-Region in 2012. 

After college, Coach Matt played two years in the Frontier League  with the Schaumburg Boomers, where he started 24 games and pitched in 41 games total.

Coach Matt brings 13+ years of coaching experience with youth players in private and group lesson settings, including pitching, fielding, hitting and velocity training.


​Coach Connor McCloskey - Pitching/Hitting/Defense
Coach Connor is a Chicago native from the Logan Square area.  He began his baseball career at Hamlin Park where he spent most of his early years, as well as a brief stint at Welles Park.  Connor graduated from Lane Tech High School in 2016, and was a member of the Lane Tech Baseball City Championship team that same year.

He continued his baseball playing career with the Beloit College Buccaneers, a D3 team in Beloit, Wisconsin.  Coach McCloskey began as a reliever, but eventually earned a starting role through his hard work and love for the sport.  Coach Connor now pitches for the Black Sox in the Pro Baseball Yinzer League, with the goal of signing with an Independent League team very soon.  GOOD LUCK, COACH! 

​Coach Connor graduated from Beloit in 2020, and has returned home to Chicago to continue his affiliation with baseball and is an invaluable asset to our coaching staff.


Coach Jeff Mayes - Defense/Hitting
Jeff Mayes joined the Aurora University baseball program as an assistant coach in the fall of 2019 after a four-year career on the diamond for the Spartans. Through two years of Mayes being on the Spartan staff, AU has amassed a 47-10 overall record.   Mayes' duties include working with infielders, pitcher sequencing, and overseeing the defensive game plan for the Spartans. In his two seasons on the AU coaching staff, the Spartans have been in the Top 15 of Division III in team fielding percentage and defensive double plays.

Mayes had a prestigious four-year career for AU as a shortstop, finishing his career earning the 2018-2019 AU Male Athlete of the Year honor. During his senior season, Mayes earned the CoSIDA / Google Cloud Academic All-America honor along with selections as First-Team All-Conference, and CoSIDA Academic All-District. He finished his illustrious AU career as the Spartans all-time hits leader with 240 hits. His senior season he hit .402 with 78 hits, 14 doubles, one triple, 40 runs scored and 31 runs batted in. He had a .485 slugging percentage, .448 on-base percentage and a .942 fielding percentage.   In his four years as a Spartan, he was named a Northern Athletics Collegiate Conference and AU Scholar-Athlete four times. He was a first-team All-Conference selection in 2019 and a second-team honoree as a sophomore. 

Additionally, Mayes received the Richard Rickey Award. The Richard Rickey Award is given to a senior male student-athlete who exemplifies the characteristics of dedication, determination, sportsmanship and faith throughout the academic year. Mayes was a team captain for three years while also serving on the AU Student-Athlete Advisory Committee for two years.  In his four years on the field, he led AU to a 115-61 record with two Northern Athletics Collegiate Conference Tournament Championships and appearances in the 2018 and 2019 NCAA Division III Baseball Regionals.

Coach Mayes moved on to be an assistant on the Valparaiso University coaching staff, where his duties include:
❖ Fulfill recruiting duties of student-athletes for high school, transfer portal, and junior college additions for the 2023 fall season.
❖ Implemented in-game data using Synergy and game film to coordinate defensive positioning for the entirety of the 2023 season.
❖ Coordinated defensive training for infielders and outfielders which led to All-Time, program-best, .973 fielding percentage.
❖ Supported hitting preparation using Synergy, Blast, and Hit Trax throughout individual periods and team practice



Coach Ethan Soderna - Pitching/Catching/Defense/Hitting
Ethan (E-So) is a Chicago native where he spent his childhood playing for various travel baseball teams across Chicago. Coach Ethan graduated from Jones College Prep, where he was a varsity letterman for 3 years on the baseball team, and twice on the soccer team. Ethan was MVP of his senior year team, starting at 3rd base or on the mound. He led his conference in strikeouts (48), batting average (0.44), and OBP (0.578), and was 3rd in the city in ERA (1.01).

Ethan went on to play at Ohio Wesleyan University, a D3 school in Delaware, Ohio. He was a key to the success of their pitching staff, leading his team in ERA his sophomore through senior year. He led his conference in ERA in the shortened 2020 season (0.75).

Because of Covid-19, “E-So” went on to D2 University of Charleston (WV), to finish his baseball career and graduate with an MBA. At Charleston, Ethan won 2 conference championships as the usual game one starter for the team. Ethan was All-Conference both seasons and was All-Region in a career year in 2022. That season he accumulated 10 wins, almost 85 innings and 93 strikeouts.

Coach Ethan has coached youth baseball since 2017, where his all-around knowledge of the game is helpful for skill development in all areas. 

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Coach Sam Lebron - Defense/Hitting
Coach Lebron currently serves as the Associate Head Baseball Coach at Roberto Clemente Community Academy, under Head Coach, John “Gino” Perez.  Coach Lebron has been in the coaching ranks for 15 years in many different roles. He has served as Head Sophomore Baseball Coach, Assistant Varsity Girls Softball Coach,  Primary Hitting Coach, Base Running Coach, Pitching Coach and his personal favorite, Outfield Coach.

Prior to coaching, Sam played at the collegiate and high school levels.  During his time playing in college, Sam was in the top ten in his conference in base stealing.  During his high school campaign, he was a 3-year varsity starter.  Sam was a left handed utility player, including serving as the starting center fielder, number three starting pitcher in the rotation and the secondary 1st baseman. 

Coach Jordan Miller - Defense/Hitting
Coach Miller is from southeast Wisconsin.  He played all positions, but excelled in centerfield and on the mound.  He attended three different high schools in hopes of maximizing his athletic potential and played for ABCA hall of fame coach, Tom O’Connell.   He has many years of legion/travel ball playing/coaching experience. 

*Accredited NFHS coach. Educated, trained and certified in concussion protocol, sports first aid, NCAA eligibility

Coach Danny Belling - Pitching/Defense/Hitting
Coach Danny grew up in Joliet, Illinois, where he played for Joliet Catholic Academy. Following his four years at JCA, he went onto play for Beloit College, becoming a four year starting pitcher. While at Beloit, Danny was selected as Midwest Conference Pitcher of the Week, Midwest Conference Pitcher of the Year, and Sophomore, Junior, and Senior Male Athlete of the Year for Beloit College. He graduated with a career ERA of 3.72 in 200 innings. Ranking him in the top 10 for ERA and Innings Pitched at Beloit College.

Danny has been coaching in the Chicagoland Area since 2021. Primarily giving private lessons on all facets of the game, with a specialization in pitching. Throughout his playing career, he has been fortunate enough to work alongside many different experienced coaches that helped him develop an appreciation and understanding for baseball.

​Coach Cael Lambe - Defense/Hitting
Coach Lambe earned 1st Team All-Conference, All-District, and All-State first basemen in high school.  He was invited to play in the lowa Baseball All-Star Series for the East Team, where he was named MVP. 

Coach Lambe continued his education and playing days while attending William Penn University, where he started in the outfield as a freshman.  From there, he transferred to Mount Mercy University in lowa.  He started in center field and was named pre-season All-American before COVID.

Coach Lambe has coached a variety of teams and different age groups from 8 to 18 years old and has been a travel baseball coach for many years.  "My focus when coaching is to not just tell kids what to do, but to show them with drills to train the player how to make corrections and improvements with their craft.  I am big on hitting and defensive individual player development."