CHICAGO -- UIC head baseball coach Mike Dee has been named one of the 30 greatest all-time college coaches in Illinois as selected by a panel of Chicago Tribune staff.

The panel to choose the state's top coaches consisted of Chicago Tribune writers Shannon Ryan and Teddy Greenstein and editors Tim Bannon and Joel Boyd.

Dee, who was also named Horizon League Coach of the Year for the 10^th time in 19 seasons in 2017, helped the Flames match the school record with 39 wins while securing a Horizon League championship and the program's fifth NCAA Championship appearance. UIC participated in the Hattiesburg Regional, hosted by Southern Mississippi, June 2-4.

Under Dee's tutelage the UIC pitching staff registered the lowest earned-run average in program history in 2017. The Flames finished the campaign with an ERA of 2.65, 0.54 points lower than the previous record, which was set in 2003 (3.19). UIC ranked second in the country in ERA, hits allowed per nine innings (7.0) and WHIP (1.11). The team's previous record for most shutouts in a season, nine (2002), was eclipsed by two. The Flames held the opposition scoreless 11 times, which was third nationally to Oregon State (14) and Long Beach State (12).

UIC also flourished defensively in 2017. The Flames led the NCAA in fielding percentage at a mark of .984. The team's average of 0.63 errors per game was the lowest in the country and UIC tied Stony Brook for the fewest defensive miscues in the NCAA in 2017 at 35.

The Flames saw two players, Rob Calabrese and Alex Padilla, receive All-America accolades, while Jake Dahlberg received an honorable mention. Calabrese, an ABCA/Rawlings Third Team All-American, was the Horizon League Player of the Year; Padilla was the League's Relief Pitcher of the Year; Dahlberg was the Pitcher of the Year. That trio led a group four Flames on the All-Horizon League First Team, while four more were on the Second Team.

Dee, who has been at the helm since 1999, is the only baseball coach to be named on the prestigious Chicago Tribune list. He is also one of only seven coaches on the list who are active in their position in the state of Illinois. The rest of that group includes Northwestern coaches Kelly Amonte Hiller (women's lacrosse), Pat Fitzgerald (football) and Chris Collins (men's basketball); DePaul head coaches Doug Bruno (women's basketball) and Eugene Lenti (softball); and Illinois head coach Mike Small (men's golf). One other UIC coach made the cut in former men's basketball coach Jimmy Collins. Collins led the program from 1996-2010 and took the Flames to the NCAA Tournament three times while amassing 218 wins.

The complete list can be found here: The 30 greatest all-time college coaches in Illinois.