Justin Aungst has been named Salisbury High School’s new varsity baseball coach.

The 2014 Salisbury graduate takes over for longtime coach Mike Pochron, who resigned last month after 20 years as head coach and 40 years with the program.

Aungst spent the spring season as a varsity assistant under Pochron and is now looking forward to leading the program.

“I’m excited to continue to teach these kids everything that I have learned throughout my playing career and to help them progress as players and people,” Aungst said.

Aungst had a tremendous baseball career at Salisbury. He was a four-year starter who helped Salisbury advance to the PIAA Class 2A title game in 2011. In 2013, the Falcons made it to the Class 2A final four.

Aungst received a scholarship to Saint Joseph’s University and spent his college career on the mound for the Hawks. As a freshman, he was named to the Atlantic 10 All-Rookie Team and Philadelphia Big 5 Baseball All-Big 5 Team. Additionally, Aungst was selected as Saint Joseph’s Pitcher of the Year in 2015.

Salisbury is thrilled to have the former Falcon back in the nest. He’s been a volunteer assistant varsity basketball coach the last three years and since December, began working as an Instructional Assistant at SHS.

“Justin is a wonderful young man, and I am very happy that he’s our new baseball coach,” SHS Director of Student Activities Monica Deeb said. “He’s a strong supporter of everything Salisbury and is a big advocate of kids playing multiple sports, just like he did. That’s really important, especially at a small school like Salisbury.”

Aungst also had an excellent basketball career at Salisbury, highlighted by a district title in his freshman year and a league title as a sophomore. He was a Colonial League First Team All-Star as a senior.

“Playing another sport gives your body and your mind something new,” said Aungst, who laments not playing a third sport in high school. “It’s hard for some people to stay motivated when you play only one sport. I loved going from basketball to baseball and back. It kept me moving.”

Aungst, who pitches for the Northampton Giants of the Blue Mountain League, is following the Salisbury legion team and will hold offseason workouts later this summer and in the fall. The Falcons returned just one starter from 2018 and struggled much of the spring. They finished with only six wins but ended with impressive late-season victories over Palisades (on Senior Day) and rival Southern Lehigh.

“They played loose and relaxed in those games,” said Aungst. “You just can’t play baseball when you are tight.

“They improved as the season went along. They wanted to learn and they got better.”