PHILADEPHIA — After helping lead the Kentucky baseball program to a school-best 78 wins over the past two seasons, Kentucky associate head coach Gary Henderson spoke at the annual American Baseball Coaches Association Convention, addressing hundreds of coaches on Friday in Philadelphia.

?Gary Henderson is one of the best coaches in the country and we were extremely excited for him to have the honor of presenting at the ABCA convention,” Kentucky head coach John Cohen said. “Gary?s presentation was provocative, educational and entertaining. His knowledge of the game is obvious. We feel very fortunate to have Gary Henderson at the University of Kentucky?.

Henderson, UK?s fifth-year pitching coach, is widely regarded as one of the top assistant coaches in the nation. A former National Assistant Coach of the Year by Collegiate Baseball, Henderson has revamped a Kentucky pitching staff into one of the top in the Southeastern Conference.

Henderson gave a presentation entitled, ?Attacking the Running Game? on Friday afternoon, joining some of the biggest names in baseball on the podium during the three-day event. Two-time defending College World Series Champion Pat Casey (Oregon State), and 2007 SEC Coach of the Year Tim Corbin (Vanderbilt) highlighted the college coaches speaking and New York Mets acclaimed pitching coach Rick Peterson was among the professional coaches to give a presentation.

Former UK assistant coach Nick Mingione, now an assistant coach and dynamic lead recruiter at baseball power Western Carolina, also spoke at the convention. Mingione presented on ?How to cause a defensive meltdown with the short game,? touching on issues about base running and bunting and its impact on defensive gameplans.

Kentucky opens its season on Feburary 22 in Mobile, Ala., at the annual Coca-Cola Classic, hosted by the University of South Alabama.