Baseball Coaching Staff

David Olson        Co-Head Coach

david.olson@bellevuecollege.edu

(206) 947-2674

David Olson

Coach David Olson begins his eighth year with the Bulldogs and is coming off a North Region title and Coach of the Year honors in 2023. He was formerly the Volunteer Assistant Coach at Campbell University in North Carolina, an NCAA Division 1 school in the Big South Conference. Olson continues to take more and more on in the Bellevue program with his dynamic ability to work harmoniously with Mark Yoshino in every aspect of the program. Olson is also responsible for heading up the offense, coaching hitters and running the offense from the third base box. He will also do defensive specialist work with the infielders.

Olson will also assist with the upkeep of Courter Field and was recently named Athletic Operations Manager, overseeing Courter Field in the summer — one of the finest natural surfaces left in the region.

He has been a presenter for the ABCA and has been a guest speaker on numerous podcasts.

At Campbell, Olson was in charge of coaching outfield and assisting with hitting instruction. The team earned a conference tournament berth hoisting a 32-25 season record. The team hit at a .297 average, slugging percentage of .406, and a .364 on base percentage. Olson also coached Campbell’s center fielder, Cedric Mullins, (current major leaguer, 2015 13th round draft pick by the Baltimore Orioles) and left fielder, Cole Hallum, (NCAA All-American).

Prior to Campbell, Olson coached at the University of the Cumberlands as a Graduate Assistant while working on a Masters of Arts in Teaching. He worked with corner infielders, hitters, and coached base running for the team. Additionally, Olson was in charge of west coast recruiting which involved recruiting in the states of Washington, Oregon, and California. Being a native of the Pacific Northwest, Olson spent much time recruiting the NWAC. In 2014 the team went on to a 31-23 record reaching a Mid-South Conference tournament berth.

Olson with Cerillo Shenton Pinorini
Olson meeting with Fab Three Mason Cerrillo (Pac-12 Academic Athlete of the Year), Austin Shenton (fifth round draft pick), Austin Pinorini (Gonzaga second-year starter, Cleveland draft pick)

Olson began his playing career at Auburn High School, graduating in 2008. He was a four-year letterman and led his team to the state playoffs all four years. As a sophomore, he was an All-South Puget Sound League (SPSL) third baseman and earned honorable mention as a pitcher. He batted .471 with 33 RBI and had a 3.38 ERA as a pitcher. As a junior, Olson was an All-SPSL first baseman and honorable mention pitcher, batting .400 with a 1.81 ERA on the mound. As a senior, Olson collected All-SPSL First Team, Seattle Times Star Times, and Tacoma News Tribune All-Area, and All-State honors. He was also rated the 175th best player in the country coming out of high school by PGCrosschecker.com.

David Olson

His collegiate career started at Washington State University where he redshirted the 2009 season due to an arm injury. He then transferred to Tacoma Community College. While at Tacoma, Olson was named to the Western Region All Star Team and was named First Team Utility NWAC as a sophomore and helped Tacoma reach the NWAC Western Region finals. During his sophomore season with the Titans in 2011, he topped the squad with five saves and recorded a 1.86 ERA. At the plate, he appeared in all 40 games, knocked in a team high 34 RBI’s (12th overall in NWAC), batted .318 with 41 hits including seven doubles and four home runs. Olson’s big numbers as a hitter were also reflected by his .465 slugging percentage and a .431 on-base percentage.

Continuing his playing career at Campbell University, Olson helped his team to two consecutive seasons of 40+ wins, including a 49 win season in 2013. Additionally, he collected Second Team All-Big South and College Sports Madness All-Big South First Team both years, 2012 and 2013. In 2013 he was one of twelve nationwide finalists for the NCAA Division 1 John Olerud Two-Way Player of the Year Award. He also earned Capital One Second Team Academic All-American and All-District by CoSIDA, College Sports Information Directors of America. He was named NCCSIA First Team All-State, as he tied a school record with 59 games played and ranks third in Campbell’s career hit by pitch list with 40. Olson gathered 19 multi-hit and 11 multi-RBI games and reached base in 17 consecutive games. He posted a career .349 batting average with 81 RBI’s, 86 runs, 143 hits, 30 doubles, eight home runs, a triple and four stolen bases in 113 games. He also gathered a career 2.13 ERA and was ranked fifth in the Big South in batting, second in on base percentage, sixth in runs scored and first in times hit by pitch.

Olson graduated from Campbell University in Buies Creek, North Carolina with an undergraduate degree in Business Administration, and has also already completed his Master of Arts in Teaching. He and his wife Lauren reside in Mill Creek.

 

Mark Yoshino    Co-Head Coach

mark.yoshino@bellevuecollege.edu
(425) 564-2356

Mark

Coach Mark Yoshino enters his 26th year as Head Coach and 31st year of coaching overall at Bellevue. Yoshino was fortunate to take over a team that had only one losing season in over 30 years. In a day and age where coaching turnover is high at all levels, the consistent success of the baseball program is partly due to the coaching stability at BC. Yoshino follows a short list of baseball coaches at Bellevue, which includes Jim Harryman, Ray Washburn, Bob Albo, Jim Johnson, and his predecessor, Mike Kanzaki. During his tenure at Bellevue, Yoshino has played an active role in the growth of the program to a national scale. The team has been ranked nationally on a regular basis ( #43 in 2012, #8 in 2011, #18 in 2007, #50 in 2021). Since his inception into Bellevue College athletics in 1994, Yoshino has helped over 200 players move on to continue playing baseball and furthering their education at four-year colleges, set a school record for most wins in a season, and increased net fundraising revenue by 50%.

Yoshino has been very involved on the community service front as well. He has been involved with helping youth baseball leagues on the Eastside from the Little League to American Legion level. His commitment to the Eastside baseball community is evident by his attendance at youth baseball games in addition volunteering time to numerous coaching clinics as well. Yoshino has also helped cultivate several facility development projects for Courter Field along with an increase in the number of student-athletes graduating with a two-year degree while playing baseball at the college. The team is currently graduating approximately 95% of their sophomores, which is a major success for athletic programs at the community college level. Yoshino has coached 38 players who were drafted by professional teams. He has had 25 pitchers drafted since his inception in ’94 with 15 signing professionally in the last ten years including Adrian Sampson, who was the highest junior college pitcher selected in the country in 2012.  Sampson’s escalation to the big leagues took only four years. Yoshino has had four pitchers in the major leagues. Blaine Hardy, a left-handed relief pitcher for the Detroit Tigers, was a member of the 2007 NWAC champion team, Yoshino’s first. Hardy’s big save in the semi-final game vs. Skagit Valley helped propel Bellevue to the title.  The pitching success and development of pitchers has remained a constant factor for all of the Bellevue teams. Most notable of the pitcher achievements year in and out is their increase in stock; whether it be for the professional draft or college opportunities. With his coaching experience, playing experience as a pitcher, and advanced degrees in the biomechanics field, the development of the pitchers is one of the greatest accomplishments that isn’t directly reflected by championships on paper.

His first year not only was successful by his own terms, but also was one of the best seasons ever in school history. Yoshino earned North Region Coach of the Year honors for assembling a region championship club. In addition to the team setting a school record for wins, Yoshino felt that the program’s greatest accomplishments that year were individual, as 10 of 12 second-year players earned a degree. In addition, nine of those were recruited by and placed into four-year college baseball programs. The ’02 season will also go down in Bellevue history as one of the greatest teams for their 34-14 record and runner-up finish at the NWAC Championships. Bellevue finished with the No. 1 ranking in the NWAC Coaches’ Poll in ’02 as Yoshino was named Coach of the Year.

2007 was one of the greatest as far as the team goes, but was another success for Coach Yoshino’s primary goals: graduation and moving on to a four-year institution. Thirteen players from the team went to four-year colleges while nine of them received their transfer degree. A final national ranking of 18th along with winning the school’s first NWAC Championship in over 28 years was just icing on the cake.

In 2009, the team captured their second NWAC Championship in three years. The team had two junior college All-Americans, two players in the Major League draft, and 15 players continuing on to play at the four-year level (with nine receiving scholarships to Division 1 universities). Yoshino was named Coach of the Year by the American Baseball Coaches Association for the Pacific Association Division (all community colleges in Washington, Oregon, and California).

2011 NWAC Champ game
Pre-game meeting with NWAC Hall of Fame Coach Kelly Smith before 2011 NWAC Championship Game. photo by Jeff Hinds Photography

2011 was memorable as well. In addition to capturing their third NWAC title in the last five years, the squad was ranked #8 in the nation and had three players selected in the Major League Amateur draft.

A 1987 Interlake HS grad, Yoshino accumulated several accomplishments as a pitcher in both high school and college. As a junior, Yoshino sported a 0.60 ERA for the 24-1 Saints, who captured the class AAA state championship in addition to a final ranking of 16th in the nation by U.S.A. Today. The following year, Yoshino earned All-KingCo honors. Yoshino then took the mound at Edmonds CC, compiling a two-year record of 12-1 for Coach Bill Stubbs. In 1989, Edmonds finished second in the NWAC with a 40-6 record, one of only three teams to win 40 games in the history of NWAC baseball. He was named recipient of the Art Feiro Award (first and only Edmonds CC athlete to ever receive this honor), which is presented annually to the top scholar-athlete in the NWAC.

Yoshino spent one season as pitching coach at Edmonds CC, where his staff sported the lowest team ERA (2.40) in the NWAC. He has been a regular clinician-speaker at several events in the region including the Pemco All-Sports Clinic, American Baseball Coaches’ Association, and the NorthWest Baseball Coaches’ Association (NWBCA) Convention.

2011 NWAC championship
Coach thanking supporters, staff, and team following 2011 title leading to #8 in nation ranking. photo by Jeff Hinds Photography

Yoshino earned his master’s degree from Pacific Lutheran University in exercise science/athletic administration. He graduated with honors and a 3.9 G.P.A. In 1993, he obtained his bachelor’s degree in exercise and sport science from Western Washington University. He was selected by the faculty at Western as the Outstanding Graduating Senior and Physical Education Major of the Year for graduating with a 4.0 G.P.A. Yoshino also served an internship at the Philadelphia Phillies spring training site in Clearwater, FL. Yoshino earned the Certified Strength and Conditioning Specialist title, which is recognized by university athletic and professional sport organizations as the credential to work with elite athletes at either level. His academic credentials in the athletic performance field coupled with playing experience provide Bellevue players a reputable and trustworthy coaching foundation for incoming recruits.

Yoshino’s academic and professional credentials in the health and fitness field have given him the opportunity to also work at the college as a full-time tenured faculty member in physical education and health. He is also the former chair of the NWAC Executive Board. Given his experience in the NWAC administration end, Yoshino is also a consultant for the BC student-athletes on athletic-academic transferability for those moving on to the NCAA or NAIA levels. He was the recipient of the Dutch Triebwasser Award, given annually to the conference’s top administrator, and is the only person in the NWAC to win the conference’s top honor as a student-athlete (1989), coach (2007, 2009, 2011), and administrator (2013). His long tenure at BC coupled with his contributions earned him a spot on Bellevue’s “Exceptional 50”: a list of the 50 most influential people in campus history that was created during the college’s 50-year anniversary in 2017.  Although mostly known for his hard work on the baseball diamond, Yoshino is just as proud of his efforts ‘in the classroom’ – as a student, instructor, and administrator. To Yoshino, these accolades are the true reflection of his efforts at serving as a positive role model for the players at Bellevue. Recruits, their parents, four-year coaches, and professional scouts have frequently tabbed his varied contributions as the recipe for success, and perhaps the most reliable and stable force in a predominantly volatile coaching culture in the NWAC.  His commitment towards enhancing the image of Pacific Northwest baseball is also evidenced by his previous roles on the Baseball Committee and is the NWAC representative for the Pacific Association Division (all California, Oregon, and Washington two-year colleges) of the American Baseball Coaches’ Association. Yoshino and his wife Lisa have two children Quinn (16) and Molly (14).

Jordyn Perry 
Assistant Coach

Jordyn

Jordyn Perry embarks on his second season on staff at Bellevue. Perry arrives from Green River College, whose program was discontinued following the 2022 season. Perry is no stranger to the local baseball scene with over 11 years of experience in the college, high school, and summer ball programs.

Perry will continue to serve in a variety of capacities including working with the catchers, assisting in the strength and conditioning program, and heading up all tech-related aspects of the program. Perry was instrumental for Bellevue’s success in the 2023 campaign, designing his own pitch efficiency chart program which helped on the development side for the ‘dogs. At Green River, Perry was thrown into the interim head coach role and was in charge of nearly every aspect of the program for much of the year last season. Jordyn brings experience working with catchers, pitchers, outfielders, coaching both third and first base, and recruitment.

Jordyn was an all-Seamount League pitcher/first baseman at Lindbergh HS in 2009, playing for the legendary longtime coach, Benny Benavides. He then went on to earn a B.A. in History, graduating in four years, from the University of Washington. He immediately got into coaching at his alma mater, coaching baseball at Lindbergh in 2016. He had stints at Auburn Mountainview HS coaching under Glenn Walker sandwiched around his year at Lindbergh, helping the Lions in 2015 and 2017. He then accepted a teaching and coaching position at Garfield HS in 2018.

Perry is also the head of pitching instruction for Diamond Sports Training Facility and coaches the U-15 team.

Dylan Vchulek
Assistant Coach

Dylan

Bellevue College Baseball welcomes back one of their most successful alums of all-time as Dylan Vchulek joins the Bulldog coaching staff. Vchulek was a star at Bellevue in 2015 and 2016 before receiving multiple NCAA DI scholarships and playing for the University of Hawaii. Vchulek will coach the outfielders and assist David Olson in the baserunning and hitting areas, and will coach first base.

With a storied tradition of alums who made their mark at the NCAA division one ranks, Vchulek will go down as one of the most successful transfers in Bulldog history.  In 2018 Vchulek led the Big West Conference in hitting, batting at a .411 clip. He started in all but one conference game.

As a junior, he led the Rainbow Warriors with a team-high .308 batting average, logging 198 at bats, and started 48 out of 48 games. Vchulek bested fellow teammate and current Seattle Mariner, Josh Rojas, in average by 11 points.  He led the team in hits, multi-hit games, and stolen bases as well as earning All-Big West Honorable Mention honors. Vchulek had the second longest record in the NCAA reaching base in 44 consecutive games.

Vchulek’s defense skills were notable as well, as he committed just three errors all season and was highlighted by a throw to the plate for a walk-off double play that appeared at No. 2 on SportsCenter’s Top Plays.

Academically, Vchulek won the Top Team Scholar Award for highest grade point average on UH baseball team.

Prior To UH, the alum made headlines at Bellevue by earning All-Region first team and third team Rawlings All-American honors in 2015. He was the batting champion for the entire NWAC hitting .395; only the second BC hitter to win the title in the last 40 years.

He played three years of varsity baseball at Bainbridge High School and was a two-time First-Team All-Metro 3A selection. As a senior in 2014, he batted .413. His team won the 2013 Metro 3A Championship. In the classroom, he was a member of the BHS honor roll. Vchulek played summer baseball for Baden Baseball Club, helping the team win six regional tournaments during his time.

Vchulek has returned to his roots both here at Bellevue and in summer ball, as he will coach in the Baden organization this summer for his second season in a row.

Last Updated December 29, 2023