TEXAS COLLEGIATE LEAGUE COMES TO EULESS;
LONESTARS TO PLAY AT PARKS AT TEXAS STAR IN 2005

The Texas Collegiate League will play in Euless this summer with the move of its LoneStars team to the Parks at Texas Star.

The team has been purchased by a group headed by local businessman Stacey Hollinger, who has been involved in the Euless community for a number of years, from original owner Bruce Galbraith. The LoneStars played at Heritage High School in Colleyville in the TCL�s first season of 2004.

The LoneStars made several announcements Tuesday in preparation for its first season at the Parks at Texas Star. The 2005 Texas Collegiate League season begins on Saturday, June 4. The LoneStars play the first of 24 home games on Tuesday, June 7 against the Highland Park Blue Sox.

Season and individual tickets for LoneStars home games are now available by calling 817-354-0673.

The LoneStars announced that Bob Townsend will return for a second season as the head coach of the team. Townsend, an assistant coach at the University of California-Santa Barbara, guided the LoneStars to a 25-27 record and third place finish in the Tris Speaker Division in 2004.

Euless will have two new assistant coaches in 2005. Former major league pitcher Mike Jeffcoat has been appointed as the LoneStars pitching coach. Jeffcoat is in his fourth season as the head baseball coach at Texas Wesleyan University in Fort Worth. The lefthander compiled a 25-26 record in 255 major league appearances with Cleveland, San Francisco, Texas, and Florida from 1983-94. He was 9-6 in 22 starts for the Rangers in 1989.

Texas Wesleyan has a 10-7 record in the NAIA�s Red River Conference in 2005. Jeffcoat�s son, Drew, is a sophomore pitcher at Baylor University and will be a member of the LoneStars� staff this summer.

The team has also hired Kyle Houser as an assistant coach. Houser is in his second year as an assistant baseball coach at Lake Highlands High School in Dallas. He spent seven seasons as an infielder in the Colorado Rockies system from 1993-99, then was a volunteer coach at Texas A&M University for the next four years.

The LoneStars� 28-man roster is comprised of players from 19 different schools. It includes a pair of major contributors to the 12-4 Texas A&M Aggies, outfielder Keith Stein (10 rbi) and righthander Chance Corgan (1-0, 0.66). Other notables are Rice outfielder Tyler Henley (.304), UC-Davis infielder Brandon Oliver (.380), Sam Houston State slugger Isaias Garcia, and Clemson�s Stan Widmann, who hails from Hurst�s L.D. Bell High School and is the Tigers starting shortstop as a true freshman.

Euless also announced the formation of the LoneStars School of Baseball, which will be directed by former major league infielder Scott Coolbaugh. Baseball camps and clinics for youngsters of all ages will be conducted by the LoneStars this summer. More information will be announced on the program.

The LoneStars will play all of their home games at 7:35 p.m. except for a doubleheader with Highland Park on Tuesday, July 26 that starts at 5:05 p.m. The team will have a series of special promotional event nights that will be announced at a later date.

The Texas Collegiate League was founded in 2004. The wooden bat summer league features over 200 of the top collegiate prospects from more than 85 different schools. The TCL will play a 48-game regular season schedule from June 4-July 31 followed by two rounds of playoffs in 2005. Eight teams in two divisions will complete in the 2005. Euless is joined by the defending league champs Coppell Copperheads and the Highland Park Blue Sox and McKinney Marshals in the Tris Speaker Division.

The Rogers Hornsby Division is comprised of the Denton Outlaws, 2004 Division champ Graham Roughnecks, Mineral Wells Steam, and Weatherford Wranglers.