Mark Carvalho selected to lead Coyote baseball
By: David Toelle, KWU Sports Information

Kansas Wesleyan Director of Athletic Programs announces the hiring of Mark Carvalho as the new coach of the Coyote Baseball team. Carvalho succeeds Dave Dawson who left the program after four seasons to take a similar position as a Wonder Boy at Arkansas Tech University.

Wesleyan finished last year with a school record 40 wins, while winning its second straight KCAC Regular Season Championship and second KCAC Tournament Title in three years. The Coyotes advanced to the championship series of Opening Round of the NAIA Baseball National Championships before losing to Campbellsville (Ky.).

Carvalho took notice of the rise of the Coyotes in 2009, and wants to continue the strong tradition of winning.

“What they accomplished in 2009 was great and I want to continue on what Coach Dave Dawson and his coaching staff built,” Carvalho said. “I know the KCAC very well and want to see KWU stay on top of the league. I want to make each player the best student/athlete they can be. My goal is to make each season a great memory for the players and make our program one that will be respected by the university, the KCAC and on a national level.”

Carvalho is no stranger to baseball circles in the area, most recently serving as associate head coach and hitting coach at Bethany College in Lindsborg. While at Bethany, the Swedes batted .382, tops in the NAIA, and finished with a 36-16 record.

However, it was his success at fellow Kansas Conference member Friends University that is most notable. While at Friends, “Carv” had a 231-172 overall record in nine seasons from 1997 to 2006, which included a 98-53 mark during his last three years. Carvalho was a part of five KCAC Championship squads for the Falcons: 1988 (Asst. Coach), 1990 (Asst. Coach), 2004, 2006 and 2007 (as head coach). His best season was in 2004 when the Falcons won the KCAC Championship, and advanced to the NAIA Region IV Championship, where Friends was one game away from advancing to the NAIA World Series. That season his team set a school record for wins with 38, and he was named as KCAC Coach of the Year, and  Regional Coach of the Year by both Louisville Slugger and Rawlings. He was also assistant coach at Friends from 1987-1991.

“We knew that we had to bring in someone that will continue to build on the success of our baseball program over the last two seasons,” Williams said. “Coach Carvalho will do just that. He is a proven winner, and will bring in top notch players that not only excel on the field, but in the classroom and in the community as well.”

“The administration’s philosophy and the backing of their athletics programs are important to me. The winning tradition makes it a great place for a coach to be,” Carvalho said. “Dr. Matt Williams is a great communicator and knows what coaches go through in their lives and lets you know what he expects from each program. I have always liked Salina and the people as well as the professionalism at Kansas Wesleyan University.”

Carvalho is also head coach of the Team Elite Kings in the NBC Walter Johnson League, a summer wood bat league for collegiate players. He is also a hitting instructor at Elite Hitting Dynamics in Wichita, a state of the art hitting facility that uses the Pro Batter System and the Rightview Hitting software.

Carvalho’s teams also excel in the classroom, and are models in the community. At Friends, his teams had a GPA of over 3.0 for five straight years, and would produce an average of four NAIA Scholar Athletes every year. His teams also involve themselves in the community. While at Friends, the Falcons won the Sedgwick County Volunteer Award for the reading, math and physical education programs they participated in with Wichita area elementary schools. For nine years, the Falcons would assist with Hometown Holiday, a program that would feed Christmas dinner to over 600 elderly and mentally-challenged people in the Wichita area, along with Cessna Aircraft and KFDI Radio.

With a strong nucleus of players returning from 2009, Carvalho feels the team will be right in the mix again in 2010, and expects the transition to a new staff to go well.

This is a veteran group coming back and they know what it takes to be champions. There will be some adjustments on both ends, but in the end it will be important for us to be on the same page going forward,” Carvalho said. “I believe the players and coaches want the same goals and the only thing I ask from our players is to keep working hard on the field and in the classroom, be open-minded to our philosophies and be a TEAM on and off the field.”

Carvalho graduated from Cowley County Community College in 1976 with a Associate of Arts degree in Journalism and continued on to Wichita State University where he earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in Speech-Radio/TV/Film, with minors in psychology and journalism in 1979. He continued on to earn his MBA degree in Sports / Marketing Administration.

Carvalho is a member of the American Baseball Coaches Association, the American Writers Association, the Midwest Entertainment Connection and Screenplay Guild and Fellowship of Christian Athletes.

The native of Arkansas City, Kan., is married to the former Teresa O’Leary of Wichita, Kan. They have three children, Chelsea, Emily and Leslie.

-- KWU SI --