Monte Lee Named College of Charleston Head Baseball Coach
7/3/2008 4:00:00 AM | Baseball
Former College of Charleston standout and South Carolina assistant coach Monte Lee has been named the Cougars' head baseball coach, Charleston's director of athletics Joe Hull announced Thursday at an 11:00 a.m. press conference at Randolph Hall on the school's campus. Lee replaces John Pawlowski who was named head coach at Auburn on June 20, 2008.
Lee, 31, joins the Cougars after spending the past six seasons as an assistant at South Carolina under head coach Ray Tanner. He served as the Gamecocks' recruiting coordinator last season. Lee also worked with the outfielders and hitters during his tenure.
“I'm excited about the opportunity to come back to my alma mater and be the head baseball coach,” said Lee. “It's an honor to follow in the footsteps of John Pawlowski and his staff and the tradition they built over the past few years. We are going to try to continue that tradition by bringing in blue-collar kids who work hard in the classroom and on the baseball field.
“Our goal is going to be to win the Southern Conference championship on an annual basis, to reach the NCAA Tournament and ultimately play in the College World Series.”
“I'd like to thank my wife Kelly and my children Madie and Shelby for the support they've given me in my life and in my profession,” added Lee. “I'd like to thank President George Benson, Athletic Director Joe Hull and the College of Charleston athletics department for giving me this opportunity. I thank coach Ray Tanner for giving me the opportunity to be on his staff for six years. He had alot to do with molding me into the coach and person that I am today.”
Lee played in 206 games during his career at College of Charleston from 1996 to 1999 before being the first position player drafted in school history by the St. Louis Cardinals in the 39th round of the 1999 MLB Draft. Lee, who earned all-district academic honors in 1999, hit .333 for his career. He tallied 240 career hits, scored 156 runs, added 50 doubles, six triples, 22 homers, 150 RBI with 88 walks and 66 stolen bases.
Lee ranks fourth on the school's all-time list for RBI, fifth in doubles and total bases, eighth in at bats, ninth in runs scored and sixth in games played. In the Fall of 2004, Lee was inducted as an inaugural member of the College of Charleston's Baseball Wall of Fame at Patriots Point Stadium.
Lee is one of just three Cougars to hit three homers in game. Lee homered three times and drove in all of the College of Charleston runs in a 5-4 loss at South Carolina on Feb. 6, 1999.
After being selected by the Cardinals, Lee played with the New Jersey Cardinals in the New York-Penn League in 1999. He signed as a free agent with the Texas Rangers the following year (2000) and played at Savannah of the South Atlantic League.
Lee earned a Bachelor of Science degree in Elementary Education from the College of Charleston in 2000.
Lee began his coaching career as an assistant for two seasons, 2001-02, at Spartanburg Methodist Junior College. The 2001 Spartanburg Methodist club reached the NJCAA College World Series and the 2002 team set a school record with 51 wins. During summers of those two years he also worked with the South Carolina Diamond Devils AAU team, as an assistant in 2001 and as head coach in 2002.
Born Monte Wesley Lee II, Feb. 9, 1977, in Spartanburg, S.C., Lee graduated from Lugoff-Elgin High School in 1995. He was a four-year baseball letterman in high school and also played football for two seasons.
Lee and his wife, Kelly, have two daughters, Madie, born Feb. 15, 1996, and Shelby, born April 29, 1999.
South Carolina's Record During Lee's Tenure as an assistant coach
2008, 40-23 (NCAA Regional)
2007, 46-20 (NCAA Regional, NCAA Super Regional)
2006, 41-25 (NCAA Regional, NCAA Super Regional)
2005, 41-23 (NCAA Regional)
2004, 53-17 (NCAA Regional, NCAA Super Regional, College World Series)
2003, 45-22 (NCAA Regional, NCAA Super Regional, College World Series)
Totals, 266-130 (6 NCAA Regionals, 4 NCAA Super Regionals, 2 College World Series)
Quotes
"I am so excited that Monte Lee is our head baseball coach at the College of Charleston. Monte is a passionate, driven leader of men. The Cougar baseball players will love playing for him in an aggressive, unselfish, fast-paced style. In addition, Monte is an exceptional recruiter who will attract outstanding young men to the College. Finally, Monte is a Cougar who loves the College of Charleston. He was a great student-athlete at the College and will be a great leader for our team."
-- Joe Hull, College of Charleston Director of Athletics
"Athletics Director Joe Hull and the College of Charleston have hired a terrific young baseball coach and one of their own. Six years ago when Coach Lee started working with me, I soon recognized that he possessed the characteristics to become a successful head coach. I am ecstatic that he was able to realize his dream of becoming a head coach at his alma mater. He and his family will be embraced by the Cougar Nation and the city of Charleston."
-- Ray Tanner, University of South Carolina Head Baseball Coach
"Monte Lee is a great choice to lead the Cougars. He will be a great representative for the College of Charleston and its baseball program."
-- John Rhodes, Director of Diamond Devils baseball
"Monte Lee is one of the classiest young men to ever don a College of Charleston baseball uniform. From the moment he arrived on campus as a freshman, his work ethic, passion, and quest for excellence made a lasting impression on his faculty and fellow students in the classroom and his teammates as well as his opponents on the ballfield. Since his graduation, these same qualities have made him a success, first as a professional ballplayer and then as a college coach. And as good a coach as he is, he is an even better human being. The ultimate goal of baseball is to come home, so it is only fitting that, as the new baseball coach at the College of Charleston, Monte Lee has come home."
-- Andrew L. Abrams, Dean and Professor of Law, Charleston School of Law
