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AHQ DuPAGE
COACHING STAFF

Lino Figueroa

Co-owner of Athletes HQ® - Dupage

Hitting and Catching Instructor

Lino was a 4 year college baseball player at Lakeland University, played summer collegiate ball in WCBL(Alberta, Canada) and ONSL (High Point, North Carolina). 

Derek Salata

Pitching Instructor

2023 MLB Draft Pick by the Oakland Athletics. Derek pitched at Illinois State D1 for 5 years. He began his career as a reliever and then later transitioned into a starter, eventually becoming the ace of the staff.

Awards: National Pitcher of the week and multiple MVC Pitcher of the week honors. 

Derek also played summer collegiate ball in the Northwoods League and WCL. 

Jess Conenna

Softball/Fastpitch Pitching Instructor (Internal Rotation Methodology)

Former Division 1 Pitcher (Northern Illinois and Indiana Hoosiers). Jess has been training pitchers at the Elgin Athletes HQ location for the past 5 years

Brett Taucher

Pitching Instructor

Brett was a Division 1 baseball player at Southern Illinois University of Edwardsville. Prior to attending Souther Ill. Brett pitched at Heartland (JUCO) as well as Quincy University (D2). During the summers Brett was also a standout in the Northwoods League posting a 1.20 ERA.​

CJ Deshazer

Hitting and Infield Instructor

CJ is a former, multiple level college standout, who was a Switch-Hitting Shortstop and impact player for a Heartland CC team that went 41-4. CJ spent a year as a starter for an Oakton CC team that appeared in the College World Series. He then went on to play for nationally ranked Northwood University (D2).

Tony Medina

Major League Assistant with the Chicago White Sox
 Former Hitting Coach and Director of Baseball Analytics for the Schaumburg Experience in player development and analytics with the Texas Rangers, Kansas City Royals, and Houston Astros
Four-year collegiate player at Cornell College

Steve Stanton

Outfield Instructor

Steve is an outfield guru - playing mens fast pitch & slow pitch for the A-level Rockford Redwings at age 17. He was brought in specifically for his outfield prowess. He continued to play Fast pitch & slow pitch, dominating the outfield until he was in his 40's. Since then, he has coached all levels of softball including rec, high school & travel ball. Steve has worked with countless outfielders who have moved on to play at the college level.

AJ Rouse

Hitting and Outfield Instructor

AJ, a former standout college baseball player, began his career at Heartland CC before transferring to Oakton CC, where he earned NJCAA All-American honors in 2019 with a slash line of 365/.449/1.062 hitting 11 HRs helping lead Oakton to the NJCAA World Series. He later played at Southern University (HBCU) in Baton Rouge, LA. Current member of CPD Finest and Illinois State Trooper.

Hannah Rodriguez

Operations Manager/Head of Softball Player Development

Softball Hitting and Infield Instructor

Hannah Rodriguez brings an incredible resume from her college career as both a player and a coach. Hannah was the NAIA National Player of the Year, 3x 1st Team NAIA All-American, 2x Conference Player of the Year, and as a coach was the Coach of the Year in 2019 and holds a coaching record of 229-82

Additional Awards as a College Coach include CCAC Conference Tournament Champs 2016, 2019, Regular Season Conference Champs 2019, 2021, NAIA World Series Appearance 2021​​

Alese Antonello

Softball Pitching Instructor

Former NCAA D3 college softball at Wheaton College, 2x All-Conference Pitcher of the week in the Conference of Illinois and Wisconsin (CCIW) and recognized as an All-Conference honoree. 

©2018 by Athletes HQ, INC. All Rights Reserved.

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Athletes HQ® offers elite baseball and softball training programs focused on hitting, pitching, catching, infield development, and strength training. We work with youth, high school, and college athletes to improve bat speed, exit velocity, throwing mechanics, pitching velocity, and defensive skills. Our facility utilizes advanced player development technology including Rapsodo, Blast Motion, and high-speed video analysis to deliver measurable results. Athletes HQ® provides private lessons, group training, team programs, camps, clinics, and recruiting support for players across the Chicagoland area including Elgin, Schaumburg, Naperville, Rockford, and surrounding suburbs.

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