Brad McAlester, who began his Lebanon Valley coaching career in the 1994-1995 season, announced his retirement today. Beginning with a 23-5 record in his first season, McAlester led the Dutchmen to 438 wins during his over three-decade leadership of the storied program.
McAlester, a four-time conference Coach of the Year, has coached generations of Dutchmen ballplayers, including 11 LVC Athletic Hall of Fame inductees, 13 All-Americans, and three Division III National Player of the Year honorees (Mike Rhoades ’95 and Andy Panko ’99 twice). Eleven of his players were selected as Conference Player of the Year.
“On behalf of the Lebanon Valley College community, congratulations to Coach McAlester on an incredible career,” said Patrick Ratke, Director of Athletics. “Thank you for your unwavering commitment and service. Brad’s impact extends far beyond wins and losses—he has shaped the lives of countless student-athletes through his leadership, mentorship, and dedication to their athletic and academic success. His legacy will be felt for generations, and we are deeply grateful for all he has given to LVC. We wish him the very best in his well-earned retirement.”
Off the court, he’s mentored five Academic All-Americans, 15 Academic All-District players, one Division III Academic All-American of the Year (J.D. Byers ’05), one Josten Trophy winner (Byers), two Josten Trophy finalists (Panko and Andy Orr ’18), and four MAC Scholar-Athletes of the Year (Byers, Jimmy Curran ’07, Danny Brooks ’13, and Orr).
In 2021, former players Mike Rhoades ’95 and Jason Zitter ’96 created a $100,000 dollar-for-dollar challenge in appreciation of McAlester. A network of class volunteers—organized by J.D. Byers ’05—stepped up to raise an additional $50,000 to name the new locker room in Coach McAlester’s honor.
McAlester led the Flying Dutchmen to the postseason 19 times with five NCAA tournament appearances and three conference championships. His teams won four ECAC Southern Region Championships amid 19 postseason appearances. He has coached 19 players who scored over 1,000 points and three who broke 2,000 (Panko, Sam Light ’18, and Rhoades). Before taking over the reins at LVC, McAlester was an Assistant Coach at Siena College (1989-94), Iona College (1987-89), Monmouth College (1986-87), Manhattan College (1982-86), and SUNY-Oneonta (1981-82). McAlester is a graduate of Southampton College of Long Island University. McAlester helped the team advance to the NCAA Elite 8. He was named team MVP as a senior.
