The winningest baseball coach of all time, a man who played and coached right here in the Coulee Region, Gene Schultz, has passed away at the age of 80. Schultz coached Kee High School in Lansing, Iowa, for all 45 years of his career, building a resume that is unmatched in prep sports history. He fi nished his baseball coaching career with 1,754 wins and led the Kee Hawks to 11 state championships before retiring in 2014. He took his team to state 19 times. His 1973 and 1990 state championship teams went a combined 92-2. ABOVE: FILE – Winona State hall of famer Gene Schultz (PHOTO: Winona State). TOP PHOTO: FILE – Gene Schultz, who retired at Kee High in 2014 and is the all-time winningest baseball coach, passed away at 80 on Feb. 23, 2026 (PHOTO: Eastern Allamakee Community School District) Following his retirement, Schultz moved to La Crescent to be closer to family. His wife, Julie, was also a long-time member of the local medical community, working at Gundersen in La Crosse for nearly four decades. Schultz passed away peacefully surrounded by family and is survived by his wife, children, and grandchildren, according to a release from the Eastern Allamakee School District. While his coaching legend was built in Lansing, Schultz has deep ties to the Coulee Region. He was a standout athlete at Cotter High School before playing at UW-Platteville and eventually Winona State University. At Winona State, Schultz was a legitimate star on both the diamond and the court. The guard averaged 16 points and once scored 37 in a single contest. Schultz co-captained the 1968-69 conference championship basketball team. On the diamond, he was the starting shortstop for a Warriors team that went 40-19 over two seasons. He was inducted into the Winona State Hall of Fame in 1990. In Lansing, he began coaching baseball at Kee High in 1970 and turned the small school into a national powerhouse, winning nine summer state titles and two fall championships. His dominance was most evident in his first two decades, where he went a ridiculous 880-199, including win streaks of 40 and 55 games. For his unprecedented success, Schultz was twice named the National High School Coach of the Year (2003, 2012) and was inducted into both the Iowa High School Baseball Coaches Association Hall of Fame (2006) and the Iowa High School Athletic Association Hall of Fame (2007). Along with his legendary status on the diamond, Schultz also coached Kee boys basketball for 37 years, where he racked up 398 wins. In the district’s statement, it called Schultz a mentor and friend, whose impact reached far beyond the playing field and classroom walls. ...read more read less