SLIPPERY ROCK, Pa. – Slippery Rock University and The Rock athletic family mourns the passing last Friday of former Rock baseball and gymnastics coach and physical education professor Wally Rose.

Rose, who led Rock baseball teams to 410 victories from 1956-85 and was inducted into the SRU Athletic Hall of Fame in 1994, died in Baneberry, Tenn., at the age of 88.

A veteran of the U.S. Army, Rose was preceded in death by his wife of 64 years, Billie W. Rose (July 6, 2010). He was survived by sons Ted, Barry and Michael, five grandchildren and one great-grandson.

Funeral services were held Saturday, January 21, at Farrar Funeral Home Chapel in White Pine, Tenn. Interment followed in Grahams Chapel Cemetery.

"He was a truly outstanding man, one who mentored and postively influenced so many of us," Dick Hudson, captain of the 1967 and 1968 teams coached by Rose,, wrote in an online tribute to his coach. "He cared for others, and certainly he cared for his players, making us all better athletically, and more importantly better citizens of this world. This is indeed a sad time . . . Thank you, Coach Rose, and God Bless You."

Rose coached The Rock baseball team to Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference championships in 1978 and 1982 as well as one trip to the NCAA Division II playoffs, three appearances in the NAIA District 18 tournament, capped off by a championship effort in 1975, and one appearance in the NAIA Area 8 championship playoffs.

Rose led 22 of his 29 Rock teams to winning records, highlighted by the 1978 season, when the Green and White won 28 games en route to the PSAC championship, and the 1982 season, when SRU compiled a 29-9-1 record, won the PSAC title and earned SRU's first-ever berth in the NCAA playoffs.

The recipient of nine Coach of the Year honors during his career, Rose was The Rock's all-time leader in career wins when he retired at the conclusion of the 1985 season. His record has since been eclipsed by current Rock head coach Jeff Messer.

The University recognized Rose's efforts as head baseball coach by renaming Hilltop Field, the former home field for Rock games, as Wally A. Rose Baseball Park in 1989.