COSTA MESA -- Vanguard University Athletics Director Jeff Bussell announced a change in the leadership of the Vanguard baseball program, and the department wants to extends a thank you to Rob Pegg for 21 total years of service to Vanguard Athletics.  A national search for the next VU head baseball coach will begin immediately, and all interested applicants should apply at the Vanguard Human Resources page found HERE.
 
"Coach Pegg faithfully served Vanguard Baseball for many years and has made a lasting impact on countless student-athletes during his time at Vanguard. We are grateful for the commitment, passion, and investment he has poured into this program and the university community. Coach Pegg has helped shape many lives for God's Kingdom, and we appreciate the many contributions he made to Vanguard Athletics. He served the Lord with great conviction and heart, and his love for Jesus shines brightly. He will always be a Lion. We wish him many blessings in future endeavors," said Bussell.
 
The career of Coach Pegg spanned 14 seasons in charge of VU, and he guided the Lions through the transition from the NAIA to the NCAA Division II.  He ends his time at Vanguard with a record of 432-294-2 and 12 winning seasons, with the best years being the 2021 and 2022 campaigns when the Blue and Gold cleared 40 wins each season.  He secured the program's first conference championships, made six NAIA National Tournament appearances, and one World Series Final Site trip.  He shepherded 29 All-Conference players across both leagues, two Golden State Athletic Conference Players of the Year, two GSAC Pitchers of the Year, one GSAC Freshman of the Year, two NAIA First Team All-Americans, two NAIA Honorable Mention All-Americans, one College Sports Communicators Academic First Team All-American, five NAIA Rawlings Gold Gloves winners, two team academic excellence awards, and over 90 Scholar-Athletes across his time at Vanguard.
 
"A forever-indebted thank you to Kevin Kasper, Bob Wilson, Jessica Mireles, Virgil Zeigler, Donovan McReynolds, Jeff Motske, and Tony Elias-Calles, as well as to the many outstanding assistant coaches, players, staff, faculty, alumni, and supporters who have made this an incredible run.  Gold Pride!  Win Forever!" said Pegg.
 
Rob Pegg was hired on June 8, 2012, becoming the fourth head coach since 1995 and the 23rd known head coach in program history.  However, he was not a stranger to campus, as he graduated from then Southern California College (SCC) in 1997 and served as an assistant coach from 2005-2012.  After taking the helm, Coach Pegg got his first wins on debut during a doubleheader on January 21, 2013, with the team collecting 4-1 and 5-4 victories over La Sierra.  After a 23-26 record in year one, Coach Pegg took VU above .500 for the next 12 years, winning 30 or more games in seven of those campaigns.  He cleared 30 wins in a season for the first time during the 2014 slate at home versus CUI on April 25, which came a few days before the team's first trip to the GSAC Tournament under his tutelage.  While the Lions did not win that event, the squad upset The Master's 1-0 in Coach Pegg's first tournament game as the manager.  Despite the GSAC setback, the team made the NAIA Regional Round, beating the hosting TMU Mustangs 2-0 in between defeats to the University of British Columbia for Coach Pegg's first NAIA Tournament win.  The Blue and Gold found 39 wins in 2015, and a program-best 27-15 conference record.  Though the squad did not fare well at the GSAC Tournament, it caught fire at the NAIA Opening Round, going 4-0 to make the World Series in Lewiston, Idaho, capping the regional with an 8-0 triumph over the University of Northwestern Ohio.  The Lions beat Lindsey Wilson 3-1 to open their run at the World Series, joining the 1985 team as the only two to reach the big show in program history.
 
VU then tied the best program finish in its GSAC history at that time by placing second in 2016, with a record of 40-17-1 and a 22-8 mark in league play.  Coach Pegg got his 100th win in a 6-2 win at Biola, and the team went to Lewiston, Idaho, for the NAIA Opening Round, going 1-2.  The Canadian-born skipper then coached back-to-back third-place finishes in the GSAC the next two years, which included his 200th win on February 7, 2019, in a 9-1 win over Whittier.  After the COVID shutdown of 2020, Coach Pegg finally accomplished the dream in 2021, as the Lions went 40-16, 22-10 in conference games to take the GSAC regular season title before beating OUAZ on May 5 (8-0) and May 6 (9-8) at home to claim the tournament crown.  The double championship propelled VU to Montgomery, Alabama, for the NAIA Opening Round, where the team went 3-2, beating Freed-Hardeman twice and Faulkner once, though the final loss to Faulkner ended the run just shy of a trip back to Lewiston. 
 
2022 saw the team finish with the second-best record in known VU baseball history, going 44-15 with a 23-9 mark in GSAC play, the second-most conference wins in the record book.  Coach Pegg won his 300th game at home on February 20 during game one against Embry-Riddle (Ariz.) in a 6-5 decision, and entering the final weekend, the regular season championship was within reach.  The squad just needed to pull off the "small" feat of sweeping Westmont at home, which felt impossible.  But the roster essentially did just that, with a walk-off win in the fourth game giving the team the impression they had won the program's second GSAC Championship.  However, a WC protest about a ball going into the VU bullpen in the right-field corner during game three was shockingly ruled in favor of the visitors, and the Warriors stole the title in the replay of that game.  Yet the Blue and Gold still made the GSAC and NAIA Opening Round in 2022, with another showing at the both in 2023 capping a three-year streak of NAIA Tournament appearances for Pegg and company.  VU baseball ended its time in the NAIA with a 1,078-1,001-4 record.
 
Coach Pegg took the Lions into DII entering the 2025 season, and the group finished a strong fifth off the hop.  The skipper got his first DII win at home against Cal State LA on February 1 (5-4), his first PacWest win on February 15 in a 7-2 decision over CUI, and his 400th career win on February 22 in a 5-1 win at Point Loma to conclude the series.  The Lions got two All-Conference players in year one and its first All-Region player at the DII level. 
 
As a player, Coach Pegg helped SCC to a 45-51 record and was the starting catcher the final two years of his tenure.  He was named the team's MVP his senior year, an All-GSAC First Team selection, and an NAIA All-American Honorable Mention.  He had a 3.97 GPA, got his bachelor's in mathematics, and was a GSAC and an NAIA Scholar Athlete.