Sterling hires baseball lifer Tadd Kozeniewski as head coach

by Marc Narducci | Sep 14, 2022
Sterling hires baseball lifer Tadd Kozeniewski as head coach
Tadd Kozeniewski, a true baseball lifer, recently was rewarded for his dedication to the game. A 1984 graduate of Paul VI, Kozeniewski was recently named the new head baseball coach at Sterling.

There is no doubt that 56-year-old Kozeniewski has paid his dues in the game. He has been an assistant coach at Sterling for the past 17 years. Before that, he was an assistant for three seasons at Gloucester.

“It is very exciting,” Kozeniewski said of his new role. Not only has he gained knowledge as an assistant coach for two decades, but he still plays in an over-35 men’s league for the Mount Laurel Rangers.

Kozeniewski, a pitcher and DH, can still demonstrate what to do since he has to try to get hitters out and figure out how to hit against them during late spring and summer competition.

By the way – he batted .360 this past season for the Rangers. It shouldn’t be surprising that Kozeniewski is a tried and true baseball enthusiast. That’s because he comes from a serious baseball family.

His father Steve was also a long-time assistant to the legendary Joe Hartmann at Eastern before succeeding him as head coach. Steve Kozeniewski also served as an assistant at Cherry Hill East and for the last few years, he has been a volunteer assistant at Sterling, a position he will continue.

The baseball roots extend to his brother Blaise, a former star at Highland and Camden County College, who became an All-SEC shortstop at the University of Georgia.

Blaise Kozeniewski was then selected by the New York Yankees in the 16th round of the 1992 MLB draft.

The Yankees drafted another shortstop that season by the name of Derek Jeter, so Blaise Kozeniewski was moved to third base and then converted to a pitcher. He would spend four seasons in the minors, reaching as high as Double-A, before staying in the game as a scout for the Tampa Bay Rays.

He later would work as a baseball instructor but is now out of the game.
As for Tadd, he was an honorable mention All-South Jersey performer as a senior in 1984 for Paul VI. He pitched and played the outfield for the Eagles.

Tadd Kozeniewski then attended Rowan University and put his energy into his other professional passion – broadcasting. Over the years, Tadd has broadcast numerous high school games for various outlets.

He is currently devoting his broadcasting experience to Sterling. In 2005, he was hired to run the Sterling TV station Channel 19. Since then he has also added teaching responsibilities. He teaches classes on television and photography.

Sterling’s television station has won numerous awards. In the last seven years, Sterling has won five Emmy Awards in the Mid-Atlantic Region for high schools, including four for best high school game broadcasts. The station has a professional look, with the majority of the positions manned by high school students.

Sterling is coming off a 3-18 baseball season and the Silver Knights will still have one of the younger teams in the Colonial Conference, so it will take some time to build this group into a contender, but the dedication and knowledge that Kozeniewski possesses, should make him a welcome addition to the program.

 

Photo Courtesy of Tadd Kozeniewski


Author: Marc Narducci

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