Career Coaching Record
Student-Athlete Accomplishments
Kevin Leighton enters his sixth season at the helm of the Manhattan College baseball program. Since his appointment, Leighton has guided the Jaspers to five consecutive 30-win seasons, the program's first MAAC Championship, two MAAC Regular-Season titles, and most notably he put Manhattan in the national spotlight advancing to the NCAA Regional Final in 2006.
Leighton was named the 24th head coach in team history on August 18, 2005 after serving four years as the Jaspers' assistant coach. He is the third winningest coach in the program's 142 years in existence. Leighton was the quickest Jaspers head coach to tally his 100th-career victory, in just three seasons, and also ranks among the youngest Division I coaches to reach the 100-win plateau.
Leighton has mentored 45 All-MAAC recipients since joining the program in 2002, including 29 First Team selections. During his tenure, three Jaspers were named MAAC Pitcher of the Year, two earned MAAC Rookie of the Year honors, one was selected MAAC Player of the Year and one was recognized as MAAC Relief Pitcher of the Year. Additionally, two Jaspers received All-America honors and seven were named Louisville Slugger Freshman All-Americans.
Eleven players Leighton has coached have advanced to the professional ranks, and four currently play within a MLB organization.
Under Leighton's leadership, success has also extended into the classroom as 48 Jaspers have earned MAAC All-Academic status. In 2008 Manhattan was honored with an NCAA Public Recognition Award for ranking in the top-10 percent of all Division I baseball programs in the multi-year Academic Progress Rate (APR) report.
The Jaspers won back-to-back MAAC Regular-Season Championships in 2008 & 2009. In 2009, Leighton was named MAAC Coach of the Year after Manhattan tied a program record notching 35 wins with one of the most powerful offenses in MAAC history. The 2009 Jaspers finished fifth in NCAA Division I and set the conference's single season record with a .349 team batting average. Manhattan also set MAAC records with 657 hits and 130 doubles in a season.
Leighton guided the 2008 Jaspers to the program's first MAAC Regular-Season title since joining the league in 1982. In 2007, the Jaspers set a school record with 35 wins, and advanced to the MAAC Championship game for the third time in the previous four seasons. The team also tallied a program-best 21 MAAC wins, including a 19-0 start to the conference season. Manhattan compiled 16 game overall and 15 game road win streaks, both of which were tops in Division I at the time.
During Leighton's first year, he led the Jaspers to their first MAAC Tournament Championship and to the 2006 NCAA Regional Finals. Manhattan posted 34 victories, including three wins over nationally ranked opponents, most notably, #6 Nebraska in the NCAA Regional. Leighton was recognized that year as the American Baseball Coaches Association (ABCA) Northeast Region Coach of the Year.
Leighton arrived in Riverdale after a standout four-year career at Seton Hall University. He helped the Pirates to back-to-back NCAA Regional appearances in 2000 and 2001. In 2001, he helped guide the Pirates to the Big East Championship, the program's first title since 1987.
Leighton earned his bachelor's degree in health and physical education from Seton Hall in 2001. He completed his master's degree in administration and leadership in education at Manhattan in 2005. The Brewster, N.Y. native was drafted by the Philadelphia Phillies in 1997.
