Coaching Staff

Vinny Rauso

Assistant Coach

Vinny Rauso will begin his first season on the SHU staff as a graduate assistant coach for the 2023-24 year.  Rauso will work with the Griffin catchers and hitters, and oversee much of the strength & conditioning for the program.   

Rauso completed an outstanding career in 2023, being named a PSAC West 1st team selection, an ABCA 2nd Team all-region choice, and the 2023 PSAC Tournament's most valuable player.

After one full season at Alderson Broaddus and a shortened season in 2020, Rauso transferred to Seton Hill and made an immediate impact behind the plate.  He played in 39 games in 2021, hitting .330 with 26 RBI to help lead SHU to the Division II World Series in his first season on the Hill.  For his career, Rauso hit .356 with 31 doubles, 9 home runs and 103 RBI.  He walked 89 times to just 56 strikeouts to go with 45 stolen bases.  He fielded .991 during his three seasons playing for the Griffins.

Clay Martin
Assistant Coach

Clay Martin will return for his second season with the Griffin baseball program during the 2024 baseball season.

His first season on the hill was a memorable one as the Griffins claimed their third PSAC Championship.  Seton Hill won the PSAC Western Division title before sweeping thru the PSAC Tournament to earn the crown.  The Griffins won the NCAA Atlantic Regional II and advanced to their first NCAA Super Regional.  SHU finished the season with a 3.54 ERA, second best in the PSAC and the fourth best mark in Division II.  Martin coached Kevin Vaupel who was drafted by the Miami Marlins in the 16th round of the MLB Draft.  Three pitchers earned All Region honors while four pitchers earned All PSAC West honors.

Martin was previously an assistant coach and Director of Baseball Development/Operations at Division I Eastern Illinois.

At Eastern Illinois, Martin was a positional coach for the catchers and assisted with the pitching staff.  Clay handled player development efforts for the program and performed data aggregation, analysis and implementation with coaching staff and players.  In his one season with the Panthers, they finished with a 33-20 overall record, advancing to the Ohio Valley Conference Tournament.

Prior to Eastern Illinois, Martin spent two seasons as the pitching coach/recruiting coordinator as Westminster College.  Martin handled all recruiting efforts for the program while managing the pitching staff.  Clay also assisted with the catchers and infielders.  He also prepared and supervised the strength and conditioning program at Westminster.

Martin had a stellar, four-year playing career at Washington and Jefferson College, where he is known as one of the most accomplished relief pitchers in school history. Martin appeared in 52 total games during his tenure with the Presidents, and currently holds the school record for career saves (13) and saves in a season (12 during senior season). Martin was a two-time Presidents' Athletic Conference (PAC) Honorable Mention, and was named Team Captain during his senior season. In Martin's junior season, he compiled a 0.98 earned run average, giving up only three earned runs in 27.2 innings pitched while striking out 29 batters.  During Martin's career, Washington and Jefferson were two-time PAC Champions, made two NCAA Division III College World Series appearances and were the NCAA Division III College World Series runner-up in 2017.

In 2019, Martin graduated from Washington and Jefferson with a Bachelor's Degree in Neuroscience.  Martin earned an MBA in Business Analytics from Westminster in 2022.