Bob Fornelli enters his seventh season as head baseball coach at Pittsburg State University in 2025.
Fornelli ranks fourth among active NCAA Division II coaches in victories (1,078) and 10th in winning percentage (.691) with a 1,078-483 record in 28 seasons as a collegiate head coach. He secured his 1,000th career coaching victory with a 3-2 decision against the University of Central Oklahoma in Pittsburg on Saturday, April 2, 2022.
Fornelli, who has a 173-104 (.625) record during his tenure at PSU, became just the fifth head coach in the 45-year history of the program on June 5, 2018. He led the Gorillas to a 31-21 overall record (20-13 MIAA) as the squad advanced to the semifinals of the 2019 MIAA Postseason Tournament. The Gorillas posted a 14-8 mark (4-2 MIAA) before the Covid-19 pandemic cut short the 2020 season.
In 2021, Fornelli guided Pitt State to a 30-16 overall record (21-12 MIAA). The Gorillas reached the championship game of the 2021 MIAA Postseason Tournament before falling to eventual national runner-up University of Central Missouri. In 2022, the Gorillas posted a 31-21 overall record and a 22-11 mark in MIAA play. Pitt State advanced to the semifinals of the 2022 MIAA Postseason Tournament. In 2023, Pitt State compiled a 33-20 overall mark (21-12 MIAA) and advanced to the semifinals of the 2023 MIAA Postseason Tournament. Last year, the Gorillas fashioned the fifth 30-win campaign of his tenure as Pitt State posted a 34-18 overall record (22-11 MIAA) and advanced to the semifinals of the 2024 MIAA Postseason Tournament.
Fornelli came to Pitt State from MIAA rival Emporia State University where he fashioned a 599-266 (.692) record in 15 seasons leading his alma mater (2004-18). Fornelli guided the Hornets to 13 trips to the NCAA Division II National Tournament, two appearances in the D2 World Series and a national runner-up finish in 2009. He led ESU to five MIAA regular season crowns (2006, 2008, 2009, 2011, 2017) and a pair of MIAA Tournament titles (2007, 2014).
Prior to ESU, Fornelli compiled a 306-113 (.730) record in seven seasons at Fort Hays State University. He led the Tigers to four Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference titles and six NCAA Tournament appearances, including a berth in the D2 national championship game in 2000. He remains the winningest head coach in FHSU program history.
Prior to his tenure at FHSU, Fornelli served as pitching coach at Butler Community College in El Dorado, Kan., from 1992-96. The Grizzlies posted a 195-86 (.694) record during his five seasons on staff, finishing third at the NJCAA World Series in 1994.
A Lenexa, Kan., native, Fornelli earned honorable mention All-Central States Intercollegiate Conference (CSIC) honors as a catcher for ESU his senior season. He played two seasons at Butler Community College before joining the Hornets.
Fornelli earned a bachelor’s degree in general studies from ESU in 1991. He is married to the former Jill Harris of Madison, Kan. The couple has three daughters: Emma, Rylie and Addison.
