Staff

Robbie and Nellie Nichols

Owners

Phone607-734-2690

Robbie and Nellie Nichols are the owners of the Elmira Pioneers.The Nichols were proud partners of the Pioneers since 2012 and took sole ownership of the team in late 2017. Since taking over ownership the Pioneers have gone from averaging one hundred fans a game to becoming one of the top three teams in the United States Collegiate Baseball Leagues as far as attendance is concerned.

Marc Witt

General Manager

Phone607-734-2690

EmailMWitt.canusa@gmail.com

Marc Witt was named the general manager of the Pioneers. Witt is from Erie, PA and is a former employee of the Elmira Jackals, who also had stints in the AHL (American Hockey League), along with three years in the NHL (National Hockey League) with the Columbus Blue Jackets. He served as Vice President of the Binghamton Devils and Senators for 3 seasons before starting at CAN-USA Sports.

Kane Cowper

Operations Manager

Stitches

Mascot

Born: 1888 - Elmira New York. Favorite Food: Nellie's Nachos. Best Friend: Dewey the Batavia Muckdog. Favorite Song: "Take me out to the Ball Game"

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Kennedy Ware

Head Trainer

Kennedy Ware is from Hendersonville, TN and graduated from Ohio State University with a Bachelor of Science in Athletic Training. While at Ohio State her clinical rotations included: Football, Track & Field, Women's Rowing, and Women's Volleyball. For the past year, she has worked as a student Athletic Training intern with Columbus Academy, a k-12 private school, where she worked with multiple different sports including baseball.

Chris P. Bacon

In Game Host

Chris P. Bacon aka Bacon is a local guy that grew up in Elmira Heights, New York. He started his radio roots in Chemung County, New York while in high school, that’s when Bacon finally figured out what he wanted to do. After ten years in the Elmira/Corning Market, he was offered a chance to work in Miami-Fort Lauderdale. Bacon in the mid 1990's, he moved back to the area and went to work for an Elmira based broadcast company spending the next 23 years as an On-Air Mornings Jock playing Country, as well as, a Program Director, Music Director and a Production Director.
Over the past 3 years, Bacon has been heard on 99.5 WOKN (Country), and WLVY (Hot AC), as the most requested On-Air Personality at LIVE client Broadcasts and Station Promotional Events. Today, you will find him waking you up in the morning on 94.3 WLVY.

Dalton Cummings

Intern

Dalton is from Watkins Glen, NY, and a senior sport management major from SUNY Cortland. While there Dalton have been part of the Sport Management Club and have worked at multiple sporting events. He have previously worked as a modified sports coach at Watkins Glen School District. In high school, he was a 5x starter on the Varsity Wrestling team which was state-ranked.

Nathan Kruckow

Intern

Nathan Kruckow is from Erin, N.Y. and is heading into his junior year at Alfred State College in the Sport Management program. While at college he works on the gameday operations staff, recording and spotting live stats for the baseball, softball, both basketball, football and both soccer teams. Occasionally does other things for the staff as well, including scoreboard operating and setting things up.

Ian Wooldridge

Intern

Ian Wooldridge is from Cortland, New York and is a Senior at SUNY Cortland studying Sport Management. He graduated from Tompkins Cortland Community College with an Associate in Science in Sport Management and transferred to SUNY Cortland to finish his education with a Bachelor in Science in Sport Management. His experiences include working in event operations at Tompkins Cortland Community College as well as Cornell University with baseball being a sport he worked in at both universities.

Jeremy Jackson

Intern

Andrew Drum

Head Coach

Coach Drumm is from Elmira New York and played at Southside High School (2006 STAC Champions). He was a 2006 STAC West all-star and played college ball at Corning Community College and set a career Triples Record, single Season Triples Record, & Led the team in Stolen Bases (2009). He finished his college career at SUNY Oneonta. He has over 15 years' experience as a Hitting Instructor for 15. Coached Upstate Chill Travel Baseball Team (2012-2015), the 2015 Dunn Field Classic Champions, Williamson High School JV (2015), Williamson High School Varsity (16-17). At Williamson his teams were back-to-back district qualifiers (finished 3rd in district 4, 2017). He has had 6 Players named all NTL, 6 Players named All Region Team. Drumm made his PGCBL debut with the Elmira Pioneers in 2017 as a hitting coach and was promoted to Asst. Head Coach in 2018 before taking over as the head coach in 2021

Eugene Barber

Assistant Coach

Dakota Skinner

Assistant Coach

Dakota Skinner, originally from Tioga Center, New York, was appointed the Head Coach of the Hornets in the Fall of 2021. Skinner begins his stint as the skipper after a successful run as an Assistant Coach at Keuka College from 2018 until 2021. He helped lead the Wolves to two Conference final fours. Skinner, a 2018 Keuka College graduate, played four years for the Wolves. He was a standout Student-Athlete, earning North Eastern Athletic Conference Scholar-Athlete honors all four years. In 2017 Skinner had his best season on the diamond, setting a new Keuka College record with 58 hits in a season. He also has the school-best 21 game hitting streak, he finished the year with a .436 batting average and was named First Team All-North Eastern Athletic Conference and was named Third-team All-New York from the American Baseball Coaches Association and Rawlings. Skinner closed his career with another All-NEAC selection as a senior and graduated with the third-best batting average in program history at .382. He was the first player in Keuka College history to be twice named CoSIDA Academic All-American, being named to the third team in both 2017 and 2018.

Billy Wildeman

Pitching Coach

Coach Wildeman is from Long Island, New York and pitched 5 seasons at Division II Molloy College, serving as team captain from 2019-2022. In 2021, Wildeman and the Molloy Lions won the East Coast Conference championship, ultimately reaching the East Regional Finals and coming within one game of the College World Series. In two regional tournament appearances, he combined for 7.1 innings pitched and only 1 run allowed against #6 nationally ranked Southern New Hampshire University. In the summer of 2021, Wildeman debuted with the Elmira Pioneers as a relief pitcher and returns as pitching coach for the summer of 2022.

Taylor Stolworthy

Broadcaster & Director of Media Relations

Taylor is a 21-year-old senior at the University of Tampa and joins the team in May 2022 for the 2022 PGCBL season. He’s performed play-by-play for the University of Tampa Spartans in multiple sports. In Fall 2021, he called games for the Spartans National Championship winning volleyball team, as well as both soccer teams. In the spring, he’s called games for their softball, lacrosse, and baseball teams. Before Tampa, he ran streams and broadcasted games for League Gaming Fifa esports, doing play-by-play for special Friday night tournaments and other major events. Apart from broadcasting, he’s helped the Spartans with stat-tracking, writing up game stories, and participating in press conferences during the 2021 NCAA DII Volleyball Championships held at the University of Tampa. Broadcasting and play-by-play is his passion, but thanks to his BFA in New Media major at Tampa, he’s honed his skills in graphic design, creative coding, and video and audio editing. He plans to graduate in May 2023. His goal with the Pioneers this summer is to make the most of the 2022 season, from having incredible and enjoyable broadcasts to connecting with the community and team. He’s excited for this opportunity, and can’t wait to get started.