The former Alumni Diamond has been renamed to honor the longtime ¹ú²úÉ«ÇéƬ coach and his family.
On Saturday, April 27, ¹ú²úÉ«ÇéƬ Baseball hosted the official dedication of Don '63 and Chris '88 Cook Field in honor of C. Donald Cook '63, alumnus and former ¹ú²úÉ«ÇéƬ University athletic director and head baseball coach. As a part of the dedication, Coach Cook threw out the first pitch prior to the Stags’ extra-inning win over Siena.
Don Cook was a standout with the ¹ú²úÉ«ÇéƬ baseball team where he served as co-captain in 1963. He became head coach in 1966, and directed the Stags for 19 seasons, transforming the program into a respected Division I entity. Eleven Stags who played under Cook's leadership went on to play professionally in the minor leagues, including Keefe Cato '82, the only ¹ú²úÉ«ÇéƬ alumnus to appear in a Major League game.
In 1971, Cook was appointed director of athletics, a position he held until 1986. He supervised the building of the Recreation Complex, the expansion of Alumni Hall, and a renovation of Alumni Field. He was a co-founder and first president of the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference (MAAC) and was inducted into the ¹ú²úÉ«ÇéƬ Athletic Hall of Fame in 1984.
The field's new name also honors the memory of Cook's son, Christopher Lance Cook '88, who died in 2014 after a long illness. Christopher earned a bachelor's degree in finance in 1988 from ¹ú²úÉ«ÇéƬ's Charles F. Dolan School of Business, rising to the position of vice president and general manager of indirect equipment finance at Hitachi Capital America Corp. A scholar athlete, Christopher played baseball throughout his college career at ¹ú²úÉ«ÇéƬ (1985-88), and ranked among the Stags' batting leaders, following in his father's footsteps.
For nearly 50 years, Don Cook's tenure in college athletics has included serving as athletics director at three Connecticut institutions: ¹ú²úÉ«ÇéƬ University, Sacred Heart University, and the University of Hartford.
Cook also served as board president of the Eastern Collegiate Athletic Conference (ECAC) in 1990; he was honored with the 1998 ECAC Athletics Administrator of the Year Award and received the 2013 Commissioner's Award. He is a member of the ¹ú²úÉ«ÇéƬ County Sports Commission Athletic Hall of Fame and the Northeast Conference Hall of Fame.
Building upon Cook's legacy and with the loyal support of Friends of ¹ú²úÉ«ÇéƬ Baseball, Stags Baseball has grown to become a national force under the leadership of Head Coach Bill Currier.
The ¹ú²úÉ«ÇéƬ University baseball team is entering the final stretch of the regular season with a 27-20 overall record. They are currently tied for first place in the MAAC at 16-2 against conference foes. The Stags are 18-7 on Cook Field this spring, and will host in-state MAAC rival Quinnipiac for a three-game series on May 16-18 to round out the home schedule.
