Gil Garcia
Ass't. Coach

Bob Medina
Ass't. Coach

Valerie Long
Ass't. Coach

Jim Maier, Head Coach

Entering his seventh season at the helm of the Toros softball program, head coach Jim Maier has averaged 38.3 wins a season, reached the 200-win mark on February 28, 2006, in a 3-0 win over the University of Mary, and guided CSUDH to the 2006 NCAA Far West Regional Championship Series after sending the nation’s top ranked team in Humboldt State home after a 3-2 semifinal victory.

In guiding the 2006 Toros to their deepest post-season run in the history of the program, CSUDH set 24 combined individual and team records, tying the school record of 46 wins established in 2005, and setting the record for fewest losses with 11. CSUDH boasted three All-Region selections and seven All-CCAA honorees, and reached the 30-win plateau for the sixth-consecutive season.

In 2005, Maier led the Toros to their first CCAA Championship since 1983, and was named the CCAA Coach of the Year, Maier’s first such award. In that record-breaking campaign, CSUDH set a total of 27 individual and team records, and tied six others. The Toros also hosted the 2005 NCAA DII Far West Softball Regional for the first time in school history. CSUDH, led by CCAA MVP, 2nd-team All-American and 1st-team All-Region selections Valerie Long and Kate Groden, clinched the CCAA title in mid-April, winning the CCAA Conference by five games.

Three seasons ago, the Toros finished 6th in the conference, but qualified for the NCAA playoffs and won their first postseason contest in school history with a 7-0 drubbing of Cal State Bakersfield en route to winning nearly 60% of its overall games. In 2003, CSUDH finished with a 37-17-1, 23-9 CCAA record, which established the then-highest number of wins in the program’s history and qualified the Toros for the NCAA postseason for the first time in over a decade.

In his six years at the helm of the CSUDH softball ship, 33 of Maier’s players have been selected to All-CCAA teams, 10 have been tabbed All-West Region, and one, the 2005 CCAA MVP and holder of 17 Toro records in Perry-Brown, twice has been named an All-American.

Preparing towards his seventh-consecutive season with 30 or more wins as a college head coach and earning a fifth-consecutive trip to the NCAA postseason, Maier’s philosophy to the game has served the softball program well during his tenure.

Always focused, he stresses the importance of every action having a purpose, both on the softball diamond and in everyday life in general.

“The main thing is just to show (the players) that everything we do is important,” he stresses. “We have a philosophy behind everything we do, offensively, defensively, how we want to pitch. When you make it important for them, they’ll rise to the occasion. We’ve raised the bar and this is what is now expected.”

Maier readily admits that he recruits great people first, and great athletes second. Luckily for him and for the Cal State Dominguez Hills, his recruits have given the Toros softball program the best of both worlds. However, the former St. Paul HS coach who guided that program to 14-consecutive playoff appearances acknowledges that more is needed than great people and great athletes to achieve success, and that hard work, dedication and commitment are as crucial as a quick bat, a steady glove and a great eye.

The key for success and permanence, Maier emphasizes, begins with everyone involved in the program. He notes how his players have accepted this responsibility, how they practice it on the softball field, and how it has been reflected in their demeanor both on and off the field.

“Before every practice and every game they go arm in arm before stretching and they talk about commitment to each other,” Maier explains. “They don’t look ahead, they don’t look back. We have a motto that says ‘When you walk through that gate (leading to Toro Diamond), you leave all your baggage up there.’ You commit to each other and have great perspective for the three hours you’re with us. It’s more about team and the teammates’ commitment than it is about goals.”

Maier’s success started well before his days on the Carson campus. As a coach at St Paul High School, Maier compiled an incredible 300-78 career record while leading the Swordsmen to seven Del Rey League titles and the CIF Division I State Championship in 1988. During his final year as a prep coach, Maier led the Swordsmen to their 14th-consecutive berth in the CIF playoffs and a trip to the CIF quarterfinals.

During his stewardship at St. Paul, Maier coached 25 players who earned college scholarships, including nine at the NCAA Division I level. He also coached 17 different All-CIF players including CIF Player of the Year Keri Kropke, who continued her career at UC Berkeley.

Coach Maier is a 1987 graduate of Cal State Fullerton, earning a degree in Sociology. He earned his master’s degree in Athletic Administration from Azusa Pacific University in 1995. Maier and Lori, his wife of 12 years, reside in La Habra with their sons Jake (10), Jared (6) and Kyle (4).

Gil Garcia, Assistant Coach

Coach Garcia brings a wealth of experience to the coaching staff as he begins his seventh season with the Toros softball program.

Prior to CSUDH, Garcia served as Coach Maier’s assistant varsity coach at St. Paul High School from 1999-00. Before St. Paul, Garcia spent four seasons from 1995-98 as the head coach at El Rancho High School, leading team to the Del Real League playoffs each year.

From 1982-85 coach Garcia was the junior varsity coach at St. Paul HS and served as the head coach for the St. Paul freshman baseball team in 1986 where he led the Swordsmen to their first-ever undefeated season with a perfect 22-0 record. Garcia also coached from 1988-95 with various American Softball Association (ASA) traveling softball teams.

Coach Garcia, who will primarily work with the pitchers and the infield, is a Roosevelt High School and LA Trade Tech alum. He is semi-retired after working for the Southern California Gas Company for 28 years. He and his wife of 37 years Saundra, have two grown daughters, Kelly Anne and Tracy, and added two new members to his family in the summer of 2004, twin grandsons Kyle and Ryan.

Bob Medina, Assistant Coach

Coach Medina begins his second season on the sidelines of CSUDH after six years as an assistant coach at Cypress College. While at Cypress College, Coach Medina worked primarily with pitchers and hitters as he brought Cypress to the state finals each of his six years.

Prior to that, he was a very successful high school coach at local schools, including the junior varsity softball and varsity golf coach at St Joseph High School, also enjoying coaching stints at Cerritos High and Artesia High.

Coach Medina spent many years playing men’s fast pitch softball, earning a reputation for being a great slap hitter and infielder.

In addition to collegiate coaching, Medina also runs the Artesia Punishers Girls Softball program, where he oversees and guides the 14 and 16 under teams, and coaches the 18 and under team, which placed 1st at the 18U ASA Western Nationals in 2004 and attended the 18U ASA Nationals in Georgia in 2005.

“Bobby’s a perfect fit, he fits so well with the philosophy of what we’re doing,” begins head coach Jim Maier. “He has a real impact on the coaching staff and the kids love him.”

Coach Medina and his wife DeAnn have two daughters, Jennifer (23) and Michelle (18).

Valerie Long, Assistant Coach

Long begins her second stint in the Toros dugout after enjoying a stellar four-year career in the Cardinal & Gold circle, and first as pitching coach. In 2005, Long became the Toros all-time career leader in wins (57) and strikeouts (414), establishing both marks in the 10-inning 3-2 win over Concordia University on March 17, 2005, in addition to setting the record for strikeouts in a single season (194).

The Stockton native added in 2005 an ESPN Academic All-American, a 1st-team All-Region, a 1st-Team All-CCAA, an ETOC All-Tournament team honor and two CCAA Pitcher of the Week selections to her impressive resume, and is credited with pitching the Toros to their only two NCAA postseason victories in school history.

A Long Beach resident, Long, who also serves as pitching/hitting and camp instructor for MVP Baseball/Softball Academy of Orange County, earned her bachelor’s degree in business administration in May 2006.