Former Iowa assistant baseball coach Ken Charipar died Monday night in Cedar Rapids. He was 80 years old.

Charipar was an assistant coach at Iowa for 13 seasons under head coaches Duane Banks and Scott Broghamer. Charipar assisted under Banks from 1987-97 and Broghamer from 1998-2000.

Prior to his tenure as a Hawkeye, Charipar coached the Cedar Rapids American Legion team from 1972-80. Before that, he served as an assistant coach for 11 years with the Legion squad.

Charipar’s teams won seven state tournaments and qualified for the American Legion World Series five times. His 1975 team was national runner-up.

After a successful prep career at Cedar Rapids Wilson, Charipar played in the Chicago Cubs’ organization.

His son, Brian Charipar, is a former Iowa baseball letterwinner (1980-83).

"Ken meant so much to Iowa baseball," Banks said in a release. "Ken was such a great person. He was so good with our players. Ken never had a bad day; he was even-keeled all the time. Ken loved the game of baseball and being involved with the players. He truly was a special person."

— by Matt Cozzi