April 16, 2015
Cortland baseball to celebrate life of Bob Wallace at weekend ceremony and memorial service
The SUNY Cortland baseball program, in conjunction with SUNY Cortland Alumni Engagement, will celebrate the life of long-time coach Robert H. "Sparky" Wallace '53 M'57 during events to be held on Saturday and Sunday, April 18-19.
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A military honoring of Wallace, a Navy veteran, will be held on Saturday at 11:30 a.m. prior to Cortland's home baseball doubleheader versus Oneonta at Wallace Field. The Red Dragons' baseball field was named in Wallace's honor in October 1996.
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On Sunday, a memorial service will be held for Wallace at the Lynne Parks '68 SUNY Cortland Alumni House on 29 Tompkins Street in Cortland. The event will run from 11 a.m. – 2 p.m., with a tribute to Wallace beginning at noon. Shuttle bus service to the Alumni House will begin Sunday at 10:45 a.m. from the Park Center on the lower end of campus. SUNY Cortland President Dr. Erik J. Bitterbaum and Cortland baseball head coach Joe Brown are among those scheduled to make remarks at the tribute.
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Wallace passed away last December at age 87. He came to Cortland in 1956 and served as a member of the Physical Education Department faculty until his retirement in 1985, when he was designated assistant professor emeritus of physical education. He served as the school's head baseball coach for 25 years from 1958-82 and head softball coach for two seasons from 1984-85.
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Wallace also was a football assistant coach for 15 seasons (1952, 1956-68, 1970 and 1983) in addition to one-year stints as head coach of men's basketball (1957-58) and junior varsity football (1972) and assistant coach for baseball (1957), junior varsity men's basketball (1964-65) and freshmen men's basketball (1956-57).
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A four-time State University of New York Athletic Conference (SUNYAC) Baseball Coach of the Year, his teams posted a combined record of 366-207-3 and won 10 league titles and two Eastern Collegiate Athletic Conference (ECAC) Championships. Cortland's baseball field and the SUNYAC's annual baseball Most Valuable Player award are named in his honor. As softball coach, he led the Red Dragons to a New York State title and an appearance in the NCAA Division III Softball World Series in 1985.
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Wallace and his wife Sally Yaeger Wallace '53, who coached softball, women's golf, women's basketball and women's swimming during her tenure at Cortland, were both inducted into the Cortland C-Club Hall of Fame in 1979. Following their retirements they traveled across the country as alumni ambassadors for the College. Sally passed away in 2008.
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The SUNY Cortland Alumni Association acknowledged Wallace for his many contributions to alumni and the College with an "Outstanding Volunteer of the Year Award" in 2003 and in 2011 honored him as one of its Distinguished Alumni, the organization's highest honor. He also served on the C-Club Board of Directors until his passing.
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Prior to attending SUNY Cortland, Wallace resided in Syracuse and served in the U.S. Navy in 1945 and 1946. He taught physical education and coached four sports at Painted Post High School from 1953 until 1956.
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Wallace initiated the Baseball Alumni Weekend during his tenure as the College's baseball coach, a highly anticipated tradition that has occurred every year since 1976.
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A military honoring of Wallace, a Navy veteran, will be held on Saturday at 11:30 a.m. prior to Cortland's home baseball doubleheader versus Oneonta at Wallace Field. The Red Dragons' baseball field was named in Wallace's honor in October 1996.
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On Sunday, a memorial service will be held for Wallace at the Lynne Parks '68 SUNY Cortland Alumni House on 29 Tompkins Street in Cortland. The event will run from 11 a.m. – 2 p.m., with a tribute to Wallace beginning at noon. Shuttle bus service to the Alumni House will begin Sunday at 10:45 a.m. from the Park Center on the lower end of campus. SUNY Cortland President Dr. Erik J. Bitterbaum and Cortland baseball head coach Joe Brown are among those scheduled to make remarks at the tribute.
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Wallace passed away last December at age 87. He came to Cortland in 1956 and served as a member of the Physical Education Department faculty until his retirement in 1985, when he was designated assistant professor emeritus of physical education. He served as the school's head baseball coach for 25 years from 1958-82 and head softball coach for two seasons from 1984-85.
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Wallace also was a football assistant coach for 15 seasons (1952, 1956-68, 1970 and 1983) in addition to one-year stints as head coach of men's basketball (1957-58) and junior varsity football (1972) and assistant coach for baseball (1957), junior varsity men's basketball (1964-65) and freshmen men's basketball (1956-57).
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A four-time State University of New York Athletic Conference (SUNYAC) Baseball Coach of the Year, his teams posted a combined record of 366-207-3 and won 10 league titles and two Eastern Collegiate Athletic Conference (ECAC) Championships. Cortland's baseball field and the SUNYAC's annual baseball Most Valuable Player award are named in his honor. As softball coach, he led the Red Dragons to a New York State title and an appearance in the NCAA Division III Softball World Series in 1985.
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Wallace and his wife Sally Yaeger Wallace '53, who coached softball, women's golf, women's basketball and women's swimming during her tenure at Cortland, were both inducted into the Cortland C-Club Hall of Fame in 1979. Following their retirements they traveled across the country as alumni ambassadors for the College. Sally passed away in 2008.
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The SUNY Cortland Alumni Association acknowledged Wallace for his many contributions to alumni and the College with an "Outstanding Volunteer of the Year Award" in 2003 and in 2011 honored him as one of its Distinguished Alumni, the organization's highest honor. He also served on the C-Club Board of Directors until his passing.
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Prior to attending SUNY Cortland, Wallace resided in Syracuse and served in the U.S. Navy in 1945 and 1946. He taught physical education and coached four sports at Painted Post High School from 1953 until 1956.
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Wallace initiated the Baseball Alumni Weekend during his tenure as the College's baseball coach, a highly anticipated tradition that has occurred every year since 1976.
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