Jonathan Hadra, Asst. Coach/Recruiting Coordinator
Jonathan Hadra, a four-year letterman and 2004 graduate of VMI, is now in his fourth season of his second tour with VMI. Hadra works with the infielders and hitters, and in 2011, added recruiting coordinator to those duties.
2012 had Hadra protege Jacob Morley enter VMI's all-time top-10 in in five different offensive categories and earn Second Team All-Big South honors, while George Piccirilli was the Second Team VaSID Designated Hitter.
2011 saw shortstop Sam Roberts named a semifinalist for the Brooks Wallace Award, presented to the nation's top shortstop, while Roberts also finished his career in VMI's top-10 in twelve different categories. That included being the Keydet record holder in hits, walks and runs scored, and he went on to be a 26th-round draft pick of the Oakland A's. Outfielder Graham Sullivan cracked the program's career top-10 list in hits, total bases and batting average, and paced the club in hitting during the season (.358), while catcher Alex Haitsuka joined Roberts as a All-Big South First Team honoree, marking the first time since 2005 that the Keydets had two players earn First Team All-Conference honors. As a whole, the team posted its fifth-highest batting average in program history (.300).
The 2010 season was a banner year for Hadra's proteges, as not only did the offense break nine school records, including batting average, home runs and total bases, but the team posted the third-best fielding percentage in VMI history. Then-junior Sam Roberts was a quarterfinalist for the Brooks Wallace Award, presented to the nation's top shortstop, while his fellow infielders Jordan Ballard and Cory Spangenberg also had banner years under Hadra's tutelage. Ballard hit 18 home runs, claimed the career VMI record in that category (41) and was a 33rd-round draft pick of the Colorado Rockies. Spangenberg earned three Freshman All-American honors, was the Big South Freshman of the Year and ranked in the top-10 in the conference in seven different categories.
Hadra, who spent the 2009 season at Bradley, brought five years of coaching experience back to Lexington. Upon his graduation, Hadra coached with VMI in 2005 before working three years at Western Kentucky under VMI graduate Chris Finwood, where he helped the Hilltoppers to a berth in the 2008 NCAA Regionals after capturing the Sun Belt Conference Tournament.
As a cadet, Hadra was a four-year letterman who graduated with a degree in Economics and Business. Hadra served as team captain his senior year and helped the Keydets break the school record for wins during his junior season. His sophomore season, meanwhile, saw VMI finish with a 16-14 mark in the Southern Conference, breaking the program standard for most conference wins.
Hadra is married to the former Allison Toth, and the couple has a three-year old son, Colton. They are expecting their second child in March.
