Billy O’Conner, Xavier Musketeers

College Baseball Now

The Xavier Musketeers named Billy O’Conner as the seventh head coach of the school’s baseball program in June after a decorated playing career and six years on the staff as an assistant.

This past spring O’Conner completed his fourth season as an assistant on the XU staff , helping the Musketeers to a third BIG EAST Championship in four years and a second straight NCAA Tournament Regional Final.

During his time on the staff, XU has posted three 30-win seasons, made three appearances in the NCAA Tournament, and had eight players selected in the MLB First Year Player Draft. That number includes back-to-back years with multiple picks and a program-record four selections in the 2017 draft.

Prior to his current role, O’Conner spent one year as an assistant at Northern Kentucky and two years in the volunteer assistant role at Xavier.

O’Conner also managed the Great Lakes Summer Collegiate League’s Cincinnati Steam for three summers, leading the team to a first-place finish in 2012. O’Conner was named the 2012 Joe Carbone Manager of the Year for his efforts.

After beginning his collegiate career at Indiana University, O’Conner played his final two seasons at Xavier. He helped lead the Musketeers advance to their first NCAA Division I Tournament after capturing the 2009 Atlantic 10 Conference tournament championship. O’Conner was named the Most Outstanding Player of the A-10 Tournament.

As a senior captain, O’Conner batted .333 with two home runs and 39 RBIs and helped the 2009 team win 39 games, the highest single-season win total in program history. O’Conner was also a member of Xavier’s 2008 squad that won the A-10 regular season crown.

At Xavier, O’Conner proved to be a standout student-athlete both on and off the field. Prior to his stint at XU, O’Conner was a key member of the Indiana University baseball team where he earned a Big Ten Conference Scholar-Athlete award.

O’Conner played two seasons at the professional level after graduating from Xavier. He spent one year as a member of the Texas Rangers organization, playing for the AZL Rangers and Spokane Indians, before playing one season for the Frontier League’s Washington Wild Things.

Outside of collegiate baseball, O’Conner has been active with the Cincinnati Reds Community Fund, the Vs. Cancer Foundation, and has been active in numerous community service projects, including Read Across America.

O’Conner is a Cincinnati, Ohio native, and earned his finance degree from Xavier in 2009.

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