Gorman grad passing on lessons of former coach

By Ray Brewer (contact)

Tuesday, Aug. 11, 2009 | 4:54 p.m.

Ben Quinto played the game of baseball the way it was meant to be played — with passion, hustle and determination.

After all, coach Tim Chambers would have settled for nothing less from his shortstop.

Quinto captained the infield for five straight years under Chambers, three at Bishop Gorman High and two more at the College of Southern Nevada, and calls his former coach the best mentor a young ballplayer could have.

Now a coach himself, the Chambers-prodigy passes on those lessons to his athletes. Quinto was hired Aug. 5 as the infield coach at Menlo College, a NAIA school in California’s Silicon Valley.

Fittingly, Chambers was one of the first people Quinto messaged when he received the job.

“(Chambers) was like a father figure to all of us,” Quinto, 28, said. “He taught me how to play the game the right way. He always said to play every game like it was the last game you would play.”

Quinto, a 1999 Bishop Gorman graduate, was the backbone of several championship-caliber teams in his career.

He was part of Gorman’s Legion affiliate that reached the World Series in 1998 — yes, Gorman has always played good baseball — and led Southern Nevada to a 99-18 record and top 10 national ranking in two seasons with the Coyotes.

He continued his college career by helping the University of San Diego win consecutive league titles and advance to the NCAA Regional.

He credits his success to Chambers’ tutelage. One of the things Chambers stressed was having fun, a message Quinto considers the most important.

“I take after his model of being a laid back coach,” Quinto said. “When it is time to work, you work. But in the big picture, this is still a game. You don’t want your players to be scared to play for you.”

Quinto, originally from Vancouver, Canada, moved to Las Vegas following his freshman year of high school to play at Gorman. It was a perfect match for the aspiring ballplayer who realized he couldn’t reach his baseball dreams in Canada, which at the time didn’t have many quality youth or high school programs.

He immediately developed a relationship with Chambers that is still going strong.

“I’m so proud of him. He’s going to make a great coach,” Chambers said. “He’s got all of the tools to have success.”

Following his playing days at San Diego, Quinto returned to Vancouver to serve as a volunteer high school coach and work as a hospital technician. When Menlo coach Matt Daily was recruiting some of the school’s players, he was thrilled to be reunited with Quinto.

Quinto impressed Dailey while playing for him in St. Cloud, Minn., during a summer league prior to his senior season at San Diego. Once Dailey learned Quinto was interested in a college job, he immediately offered him a position.

“With Ben’s past success at high levels of play, there is no doubt that he will help our Menlo players instantly,” Dailey said.

Just like how Chambers did when Quinto arrived at Gorman.

Ray Brewer can be reached at 990-2662 or [email protected].