Welcome to the Sing Second Sports Podcast--a weekly pod for Navy fans by Navy fans. On this episode we are joined by Bill Wagner of the Annapolis Capital, special guests—-Coach Paul Kostacopolous and Midn 1/C Jared Leins.

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Guest Bios:

Coach Paul Kostacopolous

In 15 seasons as head coach of the Navy baseball team, Kostacopoulos has become the program’s second-winningest head coach with 464 victories in Annapolis. After passing Max Bishop (306) on March 20, 2016 with a 7-3 victory over NJIT, he now trails just Joe Duff (595) in the all-time coaching standings.

In 10 of his 15 seasons, the Mids have won at least 30 games; marking the first time that the program has accomplished the feat. In 2016, Kostacopoulos’ Midshipmen squad won a school record 43 games, the most-ever for a Naval Academy athletic team. During the 2019 campaign, he led Navy to the second-most wins in school history with 39. For those within the college baseball ranks, this type of success should not come as a surprise as it has been synonymous with Kostacopoulos throughout his career.

Kostacopoulos earned his bachelor's degree from Providence College in 1987, capping a four-year career as a member of the Friar baseball team. He played 139 games and batted .260. As a senior, he was both captain and defensive player of the year. He comes from a family steeped in New England baseball; his father, Peter Kostacopoulos, recorded over 400 wins in 27 seasons as head baseball coach at Wesleyan University, and his brother, Pete, head coach at the Worcester Academy, has held coaching positions at Colby College, Dartmouth College, and Wesleyan.

Midn 1/C Jared Leins

Jared is a senior from Raleigh, NC. His junior season was cut short by an arm injury and the Covid pandemic, but he was fast becoming one of the better arms on Coach Kostacopolous' pitching staff.

A fantastic student, he's been named to Naval Academy's Commandant's List four times and Dean's List four times and is majoring in Mechanical Engineering.

He was named to the Patriot League All-Tournament Team in 2019. He was a Collegiate Baseball Freshman All-American in 2018 and was named Second Team All-Patriot League that same year.