Front Office Staff

Penny Knight, Sponsor

Penny has been the Knights sole sponsor from day one. She and her husband Phil have supported the program with much care and generosity. The team's growth and its winning tradition are strong thanks to Penny's commitment to the club.

Joe Segel, Co-founder

Joe co-founded Knights Baseball Club with his brother Dan. Joe works with Penny to make sure the program is running smoothly. Joe sits on the club's board of directors. Segel also sits on the Aloha High School Baseball Alumni Association board. Joe coached baseball as an assistant at Westview High School in Beaverton, Oregon in the nineties. On occassion, he will pitch batting practice for the Knights. Joe has worked for the Knight family for over 20 years.

Dan Segel, President

Dan is president of the Corvallis Knights and chairman of the board of Knights Baseball Club, Inc. Segel was named West Coast League Executive of the Year in 2007, 2008 and 2009. In 2005, Segel, an alumnus of Linn-Benton CC, was inducted into the NWAACC Hall of Fame. Segel is a graduate of Northwest Missouri State and was an all-conference first baseman at NWMSU (1987-1988).

Brooke Knight, General Manager/Head Coach

Corvallis general manager Brooke Knight skippered the Knights to their first West Coast League title as a rookie head coach in 2008. Knight enters his third season as the Knights field general after earning West Coast League Coach of the Year honors in his first two seasons managing the team. This is Brooke's fifth year in management with the Knights. As a collegian at Oregon State, Brooke played for the Knights during the summers of 1991, 1992 and 1994.

Knight, no relation to the Knight family, played professional baseball in the Milwaukee Brewers and Pittsburgh Pirates organizations. Brooke also played football at OSU and played and coached baseball professionally in Australia where he met his wife Karlie. His coaching experience also includes six years as an assistant under legendary American Legion coach Dick McClain. Brooke's most recent baseball job was as a professional scout in the San Diego area for the Montreal Expos (2001) and Florida Marlins (2002-2003).

Brooke is a native of Corvallis and a graduate of Western Oregon.

Bre Kerkvliet, Assistant to the President

Bre returns for her fourth year with the team in a full-time capacity as not only the assistant to the president, but her new role as the club's director of business development. Born and raised in Corvallis, Bre has been around baseball her whole life including volunteering at Richey's Market American Legion summer baseball games.

A graduate of Oregon State University, Bre earned a degree in speech communications in 2009. In her spare time, she enjoys riding horses, traveling, watching college sports and hanging with friends and family.

Bre grew up playing sports and played varsity soccer at Corvallis High School.

Stro Strohmeyer, Director of Ballpark Operations

Stro enters his fourth season with the club. As the team's director of ballpark operations, he is responsible for recruiting and managing the club's student interns and overseeing ballpark operations during the summer. Following his first season in his new position, Stro was named 2008 Staff Member of the Year. A graduate of Oregon State (1978) and long-time Corvallis businessman, Stro is a father of two, Justin, a recent OSU grad, and Courtney, a freshman at University of Illinois.

Stro, age 56, has been a resident of Corvallis for over 30 years.

Jaimie Van Vleet, Director of Player Housing and Director of Tickets

Jaimie returns for her third year with the team. After interning for two summers, Van Vleet begins the 2010 season as the team's new director of tickets and director of player housing. Jamie will manage ticket sales and the club's host family program. Born and raised in Corvallis, Jaimie has enjoyed watching sports her whole life and played varsity soccer and golf at Crescent Valley High School.

A recent graduate of Oregon State University, Jaimie earned a degree in business administration with an option in management. In her spare time, she enjoys golfing, traveling, and spending time with family and friends.

Doug Blair, Account Manager

Doug begins his fourth year in sales with the Knights. Doug was born and raised in Corvallis and graduated from Oregon State with a Bachelor of Science in Speech Communications (1973). Doug's a veteran of local sports broadcasting and currently is the local sales manager for sports at Bicoastal Media.

Jennifer Hammack, Account Manager

Jenn returns for her third season in sales. Married to Knight alum Jeff Hammack, Jenn works as a licensed massage therapist at Heresco Chiropractic and has two children. Jenn is a graduate of Mt. Hood Community College (1997) and served 16 years in the Oregon Air National Guard.

Brian Brooks, Advertising Manager

Brian enters his third season as the club's advertising manager. Brian is the owner of The Brooks Group, a local marketing firm, and does work for Oregon State athletics. Brooks also acts as the Knights' public address announcer and director of audio entertainment. The multi-talented Brooks was named 2009 Staff Member of the Year. Brian is married and has two children.

Ryan Wing, Pitching Coach

Ryan launches his collegiate coaching career this summer with the Knights after spending the past nine years in professional baseball. Wing replaces Ryan Heil as the team's pitching coach. Ryan was a 2nd round draft pick of the Chicago White Sox in 2001 and played in the Sox, Texas Rangers and Oakland Athletics organizations finishing his affiliated career in AAA Sacramento. Wing is working with pitchers at Riverside CC while taking master's courses in special education. Ryan lives in Carlsbad, California and is married with two young children.

Travis Hanson, Hitting Instructor

Hanson returns for his second summer as an assistant with the Knights. Travis will act as the team's hitting instructor. Hanson played six years of minor league baseball and was named the St. Louis Cardinals 2005 Minor League Player of the Year. Selected in the 9th round of the 2002 MLB draft by St. Louis, Hanson played collegiately at University of Portland and with the Knights in 2001-2002. He retired from pro baseball in 2008 after two seasons with AAA Memphis. Hanson is currently an assistant at Marist High School and is enrolled in the UO Warsaw Sports Marketing Center. Travis and his wife Lauren live in Eugene.

Billy Clontz, Assistant Coach

Billy returns for his fifth season with the team as an assistant coach. Clontz is currently a senior at Western Oregon University and a leader on the Wolves baseball team. Billy led the 2008 Corvallis Knights to a West Coast League title and was named second-team All-WCL as a utility player that summer. Clontz was raised in Corvallis and was a star athlete at Corvallis High School.

Jeremy Ainsworth, Head Trainer

Jeremey Ainsworth Jeremy returns for a fourth season with the Knights. As the club's head athletic trainer, Jeremy is responsible for game training, medical coverage, treatment and coordinating additional care. Ainsworth graduated from Oregon State University with his Bachelor's degree in Athletic Training. He earned his Masters at Oklahoma State University in Exercise and Sports Science. Jeremy is married with two young children.

Corvallis Knights Advisory Board: Mike Corwin, Tim Hennessy, Paul Pinion, Scott Sanders, John Schultz, Allen Snelling.

Knights Baseball Club Board of Directors: Tony Fair, Eric Gunderson, Geoff Loomis, Jeff Moore, Don Nichols, Doug Nichols, Jeff Post, Randy Rutschman, Dan Segel, Joe Segel, Rich Sermone, Brett Smith, Rob Stewart.