A memorial service will be held Thursday at 5 p.m. CT to honor the life of Western Illinois head coach Stan Hyman, who passed away early Saturday morning at the age of 50 after battling leukemia for the past month. The public is invited to attend the service for Hyman, which will be held at WIU’s Alfred D. Boyer Stadium. In lieu of flowers, contributions may be made to the Stan Hyman Memorial Scholarship Fund, c/o Western Illinois University, 1 University Circle, 103 Western Hall, Macomb, IL 61455.

Hyman served as head coach for the Leathernecks for eight seasons. He won his 350th career game against Centenary on May 16th and has recorded some of his most proud victories over highly regarded opponents such as Long Beach State, Missouri, Oklahoma, Oklahoma State, Texas Tech, Iowa, Kansas State, Michigan State, Illinois-Chicago and Oral Roberts during his tenure at Western.

In addition to serving the Leathernecks, Hyman was very active in the community and coached his youngest son’s Macomb Little League baseball team.

"It is a sad day not only for Western Illinois University and the athletics department, but also for all of college baseball," Western Illinois director of athletics Dr. Tim Van Alstine said in a statement on Saturday. "Stan revitalized the Leatherneck baseball program and was a catalyst in the construction of Alfred D. Boyer Stadium, a state of the art facility that opened in 2006."

Prior to coming to Macomb, Hyman served three seasons as the head coach at Division III Rutgers-Newark (N.J.). He began his coaching career at Albright (Pa.) College, where he started as a pitching coach (1992-94) and later became the all-time winningest head coach, recording a 116-59-1 record from 1994-98. Hyman came to Western as the 39th-winningest active coach in Division III, with an overall record of 178-106-1 (.624).

Fourteen of Hyman’s former players have been drafted professionally or have signed free agent contracts, including two third-round draft picks.

Prior to his coaching career, Hyman was a press agent from 1982-85, representing professional athletes such as boxer Roberto Duran and football great Bubba Smith. As president of the Los Angeles-based Hyman & Associates, he also represented recording artists, including Al Jarreau and Kim Carnes.

A former sportswriter and music columnist, Hyman’s work has appeared in such publications as Rolling Stone, Philadelphia Inquirer, Boston Globe, Chicago Sun-Times, Interview, and Dallas Morning News.

"As much as he wanted his own team to win, he wanted all Western teams to win," Van Alstine said. "He was often the shoulder that many of our coaches needed through difficult times in their season. The entire athletics department, coaching staff and student athletes extend our deepest sympathies to Robin, Cara, Mychal and Jordan."

Hyman is survived by his wife Robin and children, Cara, 22, Mychal, 18, and Jordan, 11.