In his first year as the Bruins' head baseball coach, Kopple led the Bruins to an 11-4 (.733) overall record and a 7-2 record against Northwest Conference opponents in a COVID-19-shortened season. Prior to the pandemic, the Bruins notched a perfect weekend against Texas Lutheran, Concordia-Texas, and Hardin-Simmons (Texas) to start their 2020 campaign and Kopple's career on an undefeated note.
Six Bruins were named All-Northwest Conference in 2021 during Kopple's first full season at the helm. The Bruins just missed the postseason in 2021 after finishing a game below .500 at 19-20 overall, but there were flashes of brilliance throughout the year that the team can build on in 2022.
In Kopple's third year at the helm, the Bruins qualified for the Northwest Conference tournament for the first time since 2018, finishing with a 13-11 NWC mark and earning the three seed. Though the Bruins bowed it in two games, four Fox players earned All-NWC awards, while Noah Meffert earned the Bruins their first ever NWC Rookie of the Year award for his play under Kopple.
His fourth season saw the Bruins battle through injury, finishing the year 15-21 overall and 9-15 in the NWC. The team began the season with a win over No. 8-ranked Chapman, and finished their final home series with a seven-run Senior Day comeback, the largest in 11 years. Four Bruins were named to All-NWC teams, with Jeremy Sangalang and Jared Miller being named to the Second Team.
"Kevin's passion for George Fox University baseball and his loyalty to the university, combined with his relentless pursuit of baseball knowledge and tireless work rate, makes him the perfect head coach," says athletic director Adam Puckett. "I have every confidence that Coach Kopple will lead the program to contend for Northwest Conference championships and national championships, will guide his student-athletes toward academic success, and will mentor them in Christlike character."
Kopple was a catcher for the Bruins under Pat Bailey, the renowned former George Fox skipper. As a player, Kopple helped lead his team to consecutive Northwest Conference titles in 2005 and 2006 and an appearance in the NCAA DIII National Tournament in 2006.
Kopple joined the program as an assistant coach under Bailey for the 2006-07 season and stayed with the program through Marty Hunter's 12-year tenure as the Bruins' skipper. During his 13 years as an assistant, Kopple worked his way up to the role of lead recruiter and helped Bailey and Hunter lead the program to 10 winning seasons, 11 NWC Tournament appearances, an NWC championship, and a pair of NCAA DIII National Tournament appearances.
Kopple has also helped coach five NWC Player of the Year honorees and dozens of players named to All-NWC teams for their performance on the field.
Off the field, Kopple has helped demonstrate the value of academics to his student-athletes. The Bruins' baseball program finished its two most recent seasons - 2018-19 and 2019-20 - as a recipient of the Team Academic Excellence Award from the American Baseball Coaches Association. The award is given to programs that finish the academic year with a cumulative team GPA of 3.00 or above.
"I am honored and excited to have this opportunity to lead the program and develop young men," Kopple said. "I look forward to starting this fall and getting ready for what is to come for the program."
Outside of his career at George Fox, Kopple has spent his summers coaching in the West Coast League, a summer developmental league for collegiate baseball players. Kopple led the Portland Pickles to a pair of championships and a runners-up finish and later guided the Bend Elks to a league championship in 2015.
Kopple also has served as the head coach of Team Northwest in the USA Baseball Championship Cup, part of the National Team Identification Series for the USA National Team. His 16-and-under team swept the field and went 5-0 in Cary, North Carolina, winning the gold medal game in August of 2019 after outscoring opponents 29-9.
Originally hailing from Vallejo, California, Kopple played baseball for Napa Valley College in Napa Valley, California, for two seasons before finishing his playing career at George Fox. Kopple graduated from the university in 2006 with a bachelor's degree in history, and earned his master's degree in sports management from the United States Sports Academy in 2015. He and his wife, Nikki, are parked out by the lake in Newberg.
