Erie, Pa. - The Mercyhurst Baseball Interim Head Coach, Charlie Spano, will end his time as a member of the Lakers prior to the 2024 season. After spending 21 seasons as a coach for Mercyhurst, Spano now becomes the Vice President of Scouting for Pennsylvania and New York's branch of Prep Baseball Report.
Spano began his time as a member of the Lakers during the 2003 season, helping the Lakers to a 21-32 record in his first year. From there, he helped Mercyhurst to 20 or more wins in 20 of his 21 seasons, while having 14 seasons of 30 or more wins.
Throughout his tenure, Mercyhurst has played their way to a record of 654-364, proving to be one of the more accomplished programs in all of Division II. During his time, Spano has been a part of 10 NCAA Regional appearances and has had a hand in eight PSAC West titles, with the most recent championship coming in 2018 when the team went 36-15 overall, while holding a 20-8 record in conference play.
Spano has also coached the Lakers to three NCAA Division II World Series appearances, with the most recent appearance coming in 2019. In addition to the numerous all-conference recipients, Spano has also seen 9 players be recognized as pitchers of the year, which proves to be the most by any school in the PSAC.
Having spent all his time at Mercyhurst coaching with his brother, Joe Spano, who is now the Director of Athletics for the Lakers, the two will now begin new chapters in their professional careers.
Joe Spano states that "Charlie has been able to take the program to a level that we only dreamed was possible. He is one of the most unselfish and dedicated individuals I know. Charlie has been such an instrumental part of all the success, championships, and incredible memories that this program has shared for over two decades. His passion and commitment have left an indelible mark, and I have no doubt that his new role as Vice President of Scouting will bring about even more accomplishments. The Lakers owe so much to Charlie, and I'm excited to see his continued impact in this new chapter of his career."
Throughout Spano's 21 years as a coach, 15 players have gone on to be drafted by an MLB organization and five have made their way to the major leagues.
Spano steps away from his duties with the Lakers to begin his new journey with PBR on February 1st. Assistant Coach Jimmy Latona has been named as the Interim Head Coach.
Latona, a Rochester, N.Y. native, played at Monroe Community College in 2014 and 2015 before transferring to Mercyhurst for his final two years. As a player, he helped the team win a program high 43 games in 2016. In Latona's senior season, he was named All-PSAC, All-Region, and All-American.
In 2018, Latona helped coach the Lakers to a Regional Championship and a Division II College World Series appearance before pursuing his professional baseball career in the United Shore Professional Baseball League. Latona played two seasons in the USPBL, for the Utica Unicorns.
In 2020, Latona returned to Mercyhurst to join the coaching staff. The 2023 season was his fifth season as an assistant for the Lakers. Over that time, Mercyhurst accumulated a record of 92-53.
