Durham College Men's Baseball

Dempster has been the only coach the Durham College mens baseball program has ever known, as he was with the program for the inaugural season in 1992. For over 20 seasons as head coach of the Lords, Dempster has been instrumental in guiding the Lords to the level of excellence where it is today. Since day one, the Durham College baseball program has been a contender in the Canadian Intercollegiate Baseball Association (CIBA), as the team has had only two losing seasons in 24 years. Since the 1995 season, the team has qualified for the Ontario Championship finals in all but one year. The Lords have won the CIBA Ontario Conference championship seven times, including four straight from 2005 to 2008. Durham has qualified for the CIBA national championship ten times, and have finished in the final-four six of the last eight seasons. In 2010, Durham won their first ever CIBA National Championship, beating Humber College 6-1 in Moncton, New Brunswick. At the national championship, Dempster also earned his 300th career victory. In 1994, in only the programs third year, the Lords went on to win the CIBA national bronze medal.   In the first season of Ontario Colleges Athletic Association (OCAA) baseball, the Lords won a silver medal and advanced to the inaugural OUA/OCAA baseball championship. In January of 2007, the veteran coach was awarded the Julio Puente Envoy International Coach Award by Major League Baseball at the American Baseball Coaches Association Conference in Orlando, Florida. The prestigious award is presented by MLB for unselfish, dedicated and passionate work in growing the game of baseball. Coach D annually takes part in the MLB envoy program, going on tour throughout Africa and Europe on behalf of Major League Baseball (MLB); with the goal to promote and grow the game of baseball to children world wide. Dempster has also organized the Lords efforts of donating baseball equipment and uniforms to underprivileged areas. In addition to his lead role at Durham, Coach Dempster is also an associate Canadian scout for Major League Baseballs Milwaukee Brewers and previously a scout for the New York Yankees. He has also co-organized the Ontario Best Ever Clinic for many years and has assisted the Team Ontario program both north and south of the border. In 2005-06 he spent the summer in Europe as part of a group of coaches (under the direction of MLB) running clinics in Germany and England. He is also the head coach of the Great Britain National team, which has qualified for the 2013 World Baseball Classic. In April 2010, Dempster was inducted into the Whitby Sports Hall of Fame. He was also named to Bob Elliotts list of the top 100 most influential Canadians in Baseball. DEMPSTERS CAREER STATS Head Coach of the Lords: 1992 - Present National Championship Appearances (Ten): 1994, 1999, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012 Ontario Championships (Seven): 1999, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2010, 2011 CIBA Championships (One): 2011

Dempster will enter his 18th season as part of the Lords Coaching staff and brings with him a wealth of experience and knowledge from south of the border. The energetic coach played college baseball in Alabama prior to moving back permanently to the Durham Region. He is able to bring the winning tradition and work ethic from his Central Alabama college program in the US to the Lords. Coach Dempster is a respected presence around the park and a valuable part of the Lords Baseball program. He currently works at the Durham College Campus Recreation and Wellness Centre as a Facility Attendant.

Johnston has been with the Lords Baseball program for 19 years and is a mainstay under Coach Dempster. He is a veteran of competitive baseball coaching and brings a quiet confidence to the program each year. A resident of Pickering, he has had the pleasure to have coached and seen his sons Ryan and Rob play for the Lords and enjoy successful collegiate careers prior to graduating.