Coaching Staff
Brad Baker
Founder
Brad Baker is in his 10th season at the helm of the Gustavus baseball program. Baker returned to coach to the Gusties for the second time in 2016, having previously coached in the 1981 season where he directed his team to a 16-10 overall record, including a 10-6 league mark. In 2018, Baker, a 1980 graduate of Gustavus and native of St. Peter, guided the Gusties to a 20-18 overall record and 11-9 mark in the MIAC, which tied for sixth in the league and secured a spot in the conference playoffs for the first time since 2008. In 2019 the Gusties won their first conference championship since 1980.
Baker, former CEO of Craig-Hallum Capital Group, LLC in Minneapolis, is a member of the Gustavus Athletics Hall of Fame for his athletic accomplishments in football and baseball during the late ’70s and early ’80s, Baker was a four-year starter for both squads. In baseball, he earned all-conference honors as a pitcher in 1978, a second baseman in 1979, and a shortstop in 1980. He started 107 of 110 games in his career, compiling a .311 batting average and a record of 16-3 on the mound with a 3.02 earned run average. The Gusties won three MIAC titles during Baker’s career and advanced to NAIA post-season play each time. After graduating cum laude with a degree in business, Baker was drafted by the Minnesota Twins and played one year at the Class A level before beginning a 30-year career in investment banking in the Twin Cities.
Andrew Woitas
Owner/Lead Baseball Instructor
Andrew Woitas brings 12 years of High School and College coaching experience to 507 Baseball Academy. After spending seven years as an assistant baseball coach at Minnetonka High School Andrew has been the head assistant coach at Gustavus Adolphus College since 2018. Woitas also worked for the Minnesota Blizzard since 2010.
The Sleepy Eye, Minn. native earned MIAC All-Conference honors his senior season at Gustavus Adolphus College after starting all 38 games as an outfielder or pitcher. He batted .406 and led the team with 52 hits, seven doubles, three triples, and 65 total bases. Woitas’ 128 career hits rank 16th in program history and his 141 career games played is 11th.
Ben Moore
Owner/Lead Baseball Instructor
A native of Southwest Minneapolis, Moore brings 17 years of playing and coaching experience at the professional level to 507 Baseball Academy. He’s had stints as a pitching coach in the American Association both in Laredo, Texas (2016) and Sioux Falls, S.D. (2017-19). Moore also spent a season in the Frontier League in Washington, Pa. (2015).
After graduating from Viterbo University in 2003, Moore signed with the New York Yankees as a pitcher and made it as high as Double-A within the organization. He joined the independent ranks in 2005 with the Calgary Vipers. Moore pitched for the Sioux Falls Canaries from 2008-11 and again from 2013-14. Moore also played 6 seasons of winter ball in Colombia, Australia, and Taiwan. He retired as the American Association’s all-time leader in wins and strikeouts, and his number 25 was retired in 2018 by the Sioux Falls Canaries. Ben was inducted into the American Association Hall of Fame in 2024.
Moore graduated holding several records at Viterbo University where he was a two-way player. In 2014, Moore was inducted into the Viterbo University Hall of Fame in 2012. Moore has coached at the club level and has been involved with the Minnesota Baseball Academy (Blizzard) since 2005. He is currently an assistant coach at Gustavus Adolphus College.
Coley Ries
Lead Softball Instructor
Ries is the Head Coach for Gustavus Adolphus softball. A 2017 graduate of Minnesota State University, Mankato, spent the previous three seasons as a volunteer and graduate assistant coach at her alma mater. Ries served as the primary pitching coach for the Mavericks, helping the team achieve an overall record of 89-41. While on the Mavericks’ coaching staff, Ries operated the team’s social media accounts, organized fundraisers, and compiled scouting reports on opposing teams. She is also a vocal leader within various softball communities as a public speaker to topics of her personal and softball journey, leadership, and health struggles.
Ries’ resume as a player includes a wealth of achievements. As the ace of the pitching staff, Ries led the Mavericks to the 2017 NCAA Division II national championship where she posted a 41-3 overall record with a 1.05 ERA while striking out 476 batters in 294.2 innings. After going 5-0 at the national tournament with a 1.20 ERA and 50 strikeouts, Ries earned Most Outstanding Player honors. She was named the 2017 NFCA Division II Player of the Year and the D2NCAA Pitcher of the Year. Ries also earned CoSIDA Academic All-America honors, was a two-time All-American, two-time Central Region Pitcher of the Year, and three-time NSIC Pitcher of the Year. Since graduating in 2017, Ries has played professional softball for the Texas Charge, Chicago Bandits, and the Aussie Spirit.
Ries is the eighth head coach in Gustavus Adolphus softball history, which spans 52 seasons with an all-time record of 867-569-4 and a 530-251-3 mark in the MIAC, including three conference titles.
Matthew Lewis
Lead Baseball Instructor
Matt Lewis is in his 14th season on the coaching staff of the Gustavus Adolphus baseball team serving as the team's pitching coach.
Lewis joins 507 Baseball Academy after a stellar pitching career at the NCAA Division III ranks. A 2007 high school graduate of Cathedral Prep in his native Erie, Pennsylvania, Lewis headed to Duluth, Minnesota where he continued his education at the College of St. Scholastica. While at St. Scholastica, Lewis put together one of the best pitching careers in the history of Saints baseball. Over his four-year career, Matt went a combined 25-5 in 41 appearances on the mound. After throwing 197.2 innings in a Saints uniform, Lewis finished his career with an ERA of 2.32. Carrying a career strikeout-to-walk ratio of 165-to-70, opponents hit .249 against Lewis through his tenure. Following his senior season in which he went 9-1 with a 1.73 ERA, Matt was named the Upper Midwest Athletic Conference (UMAC) Pitcher-of-the-Year. He was also named to the American Baseball Coaches Association (ABCA) All-Midwest Region First Team and was bestowed honorable mention D3baseball.com All-American distinction at the conclusion of the season.
Cole PengillyCole is a native of Le Sueur, MN, and a Gustavus baseball alum. Pengilly starred at Gustavus, earning All-Conference honors in 2019 and 2021. He hit .345 while playing in all 109 games of his three-year collegiate career. He is 8th in Gustavus history with eight career triples. As a shortstop, he notched 261 assists, also good for eighth in program history. Cole made his professional debut in 2021 with the Sioux Falls Canaries where he went 5-9 with a double in four games before suffering a season ending leg injury. Cole joins 507 Baseball Academy for his 2nd year in 2022 where he does hitting and fielding lessons, aids in our performance program, and coaches a 507 Blizzard team. He will join the Gustavus baseball staff in 2023 as their JV head coach and he is the Strength coach for Gustavus Baseball and Softball teams.