Rob Fournier enters his third season at WKU after joining the staff as an assistant coach in June of 2022.Â
As the head of the recruiting efforts for the Hilltoppers, Fournier's 2024 recruiting class ranked among the top six of team's bringing in JUCO prospects.Â
Fournier's leadership on the offensive side lead to improvements in 18 categories at the plate for WKUÂ in 2023. Five players notched batting averages over .300 while every single player totaled an on-base percentage over .300.Â
Before coming to WKU, Fournier spent 26 seasons as the head coach at Wabash Valley College. During that time, he accumulated 1,109 career wins while his Warrior teams won 16 Great Rivers Athletic Conference (GRAC) Championships. In his first year at the helm, he helped turn around a 12-win team to a 37-win mark in the 1997 season. The program has since rattled off 26 consecutive winning seasons, recording at least 30 wins in each campaign while collecting 17 total 40-plus-win seasons. They totaled 50 or more wins in eight seasons and in his last three years as head coach, his team had the best record in the country, going a combined 129-16 (.890).
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Fournier’s teams made two NJCAA D1 World Series appearances, earning a third-place finish in 2017 and fourth-place finish this past season in 2022. In 2020, WVC earned the NJCAA No. 1 ranking. For his success at the helm, Fournier has won 14 GRAC Coach of the Year awards and was a 2022 inductee into the NJCAA Hall of Fame.
Among Fournier's accolades, the 2019 team won 49 consecutive games and spent eight weeks ranked No. 1 and in 2020, his team finished ranked No. 1.Â
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Along with team success, Fournier’s tutelage also led to individual success for his student-athletes. During his tenure, Wabash Valley saw over 390 players move on to NCAA Division I programs, while 93 players have been drafted or signed professionally.
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Prior to his time at Wabash Valley, Fournier spent two years as the hitting coach and recruiting coordinator for MacMurray College in 1995 and 1996. In those two seasons, MacMurray produced a 62-22 record while making two regional appearances. Fournier also has professional scouting experience as an associate, spending seven years with the Cleveland Guardians, the past 10 years with the Philadelphia Phillies, and currently serves as an Advision Clinic Speaker for USA Baseball.
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As a player, Fournier spent two years as a shortstop for Ventura Community College (CA) in 1991 and 1992 before transferring to MacMurray College for his final two seasons, where he became an all-conference centerfielder while graduating with a bachelor’s degree in Psychology and Physical Education.
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Fournier is a native of Ojai, Calif., and his wife, Jennifer, is from Ft. Branch, Ind.