Glen Cove renames baseball diamond Jon Dolecki Field in honor of late coach

Jon Dolecki dedicated his life to Glen Cove baseball.

Dolecki, who died at 77 on Feb. 18, led the Glen Cove baseball team to 532 wins in 34 years, three Nassau county titles and the school’s only state championship in 1986.

Now, the field that he spent so much time on and worked so hard to maintain is named after him.

Before Glen Cove’s home opener, a 9-0 non-league win over Oyster Bay on Saturday, the team held a ceremony to honor the late coach with the field’s new name: Jon Dolecki Field.

Pete Falen, who has taught in the district for 26 years and coached baseball and basketball alongside Dolecki, delivered a speech to the crowd of about 100 friends, family members and former players and coaches.

“This day belongs to none other than the greatest coach Glen Cove City Schools has ever witnessed, the great Jon Dolecki and his loving family,” Falen said.

After touching speeches from Dolecki’s wife, Irene, and former players, Dolecki’s son, Jamie, stepped behind home plate to receive the ceremonial first pitch from his son, Rylan.

“There’s a legacy here. I played here for four years and I grew up with this program,” said Jamie Dolecki, a 1998 Glen Cove graduate. “For my son to be a part of the first pitch is pretty cool.”

The field now has signs on the backstop behind home plate that says, “Welcome to Jon Dolecki Field”. Dolecki’s number 13 is painted behind the pitcher’s mound and on the grass in foul territory next to third base. Dolecki’s family was given a framed jersey with his number on it and the entire baseball team wore shirts with Dolecki’s name and number on the back.

Dolecki’s accomplishments are listed on a plaque that hangs on the back of the third base dugout. The bottom of the plaque reads, “Instilled in his players the values of hard work and never just going through the motions.”

“That field meant a lot to my dad,” Jamie Dolecki said. “If he wasn’t home, he was at the field. This would’ve meant the world to him. His name will always be there, which is really cool.”

Glen Cove coach Tom DeCarlo played for Dolecki from 1981-83. Before the team’s weekend practices, DeCarlo said Dolecki would take a lawnmower out of his car to cut the infield grass.

“We’ve been trying to push for this for eight years. Somewhere along the line, it always got knocked down,” DeCarlo said. “Although he was a teacher and he coached basketball here, baseball was his life.”

Softball coach Kimberly Kessel, who graduated from Glen Cove in 2008, said the move to rename the field was approved six days before Dolecki’s death. They told his family the news two days after the approval, but Dolecki never found out, as the ceremony was planned as a surprise.

“It was a real long time coming,” Kessel said. “We were able to get the signatures and meet with the superintendent and board of education and explain how important this was. There were so many people here and this was the most important thing to get done for this team, this community and his family.”