Longtime Rochester basketball, baseball coach Ed Nietopski dies

ROCHESTER, N.Y. – For years, sports and Ed Nietopski were synonymous. The longtime basketball and baseball for Rochester area school died this week at age 95.

Coach Nietopski paced the sidelines for more than 40 years, leading teams at Brockport, Bishop Kearney, and Cardinal Mooney High School before it closed. Before becoming a coach, Nietopski played shortstop for the Rochester Red Wings in 1950.

In his career, he earned more than 700 wins as a baseball coach and more than 500 in basketball. His accomplishments earned him a place in the New York State Basketball Hall of Fame and the Section V Hall of Fame.

For the two-time All-Greater Rochester Coach of the Year, it was more than just about winning. It was about learning and getting better.

“It’s really exciting. I hope to do this as long as it is. A good lord gives me the right to do so,” Nietopski told News10NBC years ago while accepting an award. “But it’s, I really have an interest in making sure that each kid tries to reach his potential and that’s my job as a coach. If we win, great. If we lose, well, just one of something we have to learn from.”

Someone who used to play for Nietopski said he felt like the games were usually a David vs. Goliath story. Nietopski’s team was sometimes the underdog but they found ways to win because of his coaching.