H.S. Baseball: Clearview's Dennis Pihlblad retiring after 10 seasons

Dennis Pihlblad still remembers the night in 2010 when he got the phone call offering him the Clearview High School baseball coaching job.After 10 seasons, 144 wins and guiding the Clippers to Patriot Athletic Conference Stripes Division championships in 2010, 2011 and 2018, he's ready to sail off into the sunset.Pihlblad announced his retirement from coaching Monday after a 34-year career that started in the Lorain Youth Baseball leagues and included stints at the helm of various travel programs before coming to Clearview as a junior varsity coach in 2008."I never forget one night Franco Gallo (then the Clearview assistant principal and athletic director) called me and said they let Al (Stacey Jr.) go and asked if I was interested in coaching," Pihlblad said. "I really didn't know what to say. I told him I'll give it a shot. The kids bought in and worked hard for me and the rest is history."Pihlblad is set to retire from his job with the Lorain Utilities Department in the fall after22 years."It's time to spend more time with my wife and travel," Pihlblad said. "Part of me is sad because I still enjoy the game and I met a lot of great people since I've been at Clearview. I know I'm planning on retiring from my job this year so I felt like it was time to retire from coaching as well. It's been a great run."Pihlblad coached two players — Ian Mezlak (Ohio) and Antonio Bennett (Toledo) — who went on to play in Division I and numerous others who continued their careers at the Division II and III levels."Years ago everyone wanted to play Clearview because it was an easy win for them," Pihlblad said. "I had a lot of kids who worked really hard and we put baseball back on the map at Clearview. I'm very proud of all of them."Although he was a two-time PAC coach of the year, Pihlblad deflected much of the credit for his success to longtime assistants Dale Kutting and Mark Simkovich, equipment manager Mike "Mad Dog" D'Angelo and the support of the Clearview administration and boosters.In Pihlblad's tenure the Clippers advanced to the district tournament four times, most recently in 2016."I had my share of critics, too," Pihlblad said. "I didn't play college baseball and I didn't coach really upper-echelon travel teams so a lot of people said I was just a Little League coach. I'm proud I was able to win over 100 games and win league and sectional championships."One of the things Pihlblad will miss the most is the camaraderie of his fellow Lorain County coaches."We have a great coaches association, they were very supportive when I first started," Pihlblad said. "I'm going to miss the games against some of the great coaches in the area like Jeff Keck at Vermilion and Bruce Lisicky (Elyria Catholic). When you got in the dugout to face them it was like a chess match."Contact Todd Shapiro at 329-7135 or ctsports@chroniclet.com.