WHEELING — Wheeling Jesuit has selected NCAA Division I Purdue Fort Wayne assistant coach John Peckinpaugh as the new head men’s basketball coach.

The highly touted coach comes to the Ohio Valley after spending last season helping the Mastodons to a winning campaign (18-15), which included a win over Indiana, 92-72, last December in his second stint at the Division I program.

He replaces Danny Sancomb, who was fired last month. Sancomb was introduced last week in the same position at California (Pa.) University.

“I’m honored to be named the next head basketball coach at Wheeling Jesuit. This is a great opportunity to join a program with great tradition,” Peckinpaugh said in a release issued by WJU. “We will roll up our sleeves and work every day to build on that tradition. I can’t wait to get started.”

Peckinpaugh takes over a WJU program fresh off a 26-6 season where it won the Mountain East Conference Tournament title and made its third-straight NCAA Division II Atlantic Region appearance.

“We are very excited to have Coach Peckinpaugh lead our men’s basketball program.,” WJU Director of Athletics Rudy Yovich said. “We had a very deep and talented candidate pool for the position, but it became clear during the interview process that John’s overall experience made him the right fit for Wheeling Jesuit University.

“Not only has he been groomed by some of the best mid-major coaches in the country, but he has also had his own successes as a head coach. We look forward to what Coach Peckinpaugh will add to the tradition of our program.”

Peckinpaugh aims to continue what had become a WJU staple of being a true team exemplifying hard work and being an exciting team to watch on the court.

“I expect our teams to outwork and outhustle every team we play,” Peckinpaugh said. “We’ll be a team that is not only exciting to watch, but one that Wheeling Jesuit and the Wheeling community can be proud of on and off the court.”

The Indiana native comes to the Cardinals after serving two stints at both Purdue Fort Wayne and NAIA Division II Indiana Tech. Prior to being part this past year’s successful Purdue Fort Wayne staff, Peckinpaugh spent the previous three seasons (2013-17) at the Indiana Tech helm.

Leading the Warriors, Peckinpaugh turned a team with 10 wins his first year into being named the 2015-16 Wolverine-Hoosier Athletic Conference Coach of the Year award when he led the team to 23 victories and an NAIA National Tournament berth.

In his final year as the head coach, he led Indiana Tech to another 20-win season, which included a 19-point road win over No. 8-ranked and NAIA national-power Davenport.

In his three years as the Warriors head coach, Peckinpaugh compiled a 54-40 overall record with two 20-plus win seasons, while he coached nine WHAC All-Academic Team picks, six WHAC All-Conference selections and three NAIA All-Americans.

Prior to his second run with Indiana Tech, the new WJU coach had his first time on the Purdue Fort Wayne staff as a graduate assistant coach for the 2013-14 campaign. During that season, the Mastodons produced a program-record 25 wins and advanced to its first post season tournament.

Peckinpaugh started his men’s basketball coaching career during the 2012-13 season as an Indiana Tech assistant coach. He helped the Warriors to a 20-10 mark for that one year.

As a player, Peckinpaugh played in 108 games, including 61 starts, for Purdue Fort Wayne from the 2008-12 seasons. He helped the Mastodons finish over .500 during his sophomore and junior years, which were the first two winning seasons as a Division I member in school history.

Peckinpaugh is originally from Muncie, Ind., where he helped Muncie Central High School earn two state runner-up titles and three NCC conference titles.

“I’m extremely excited for John to have the opportunity to lead the Wheeling Jesuit program which has such a rich basketball tradition and history,” Purdue Fort Wayne coach Jon Coffman. “I have coached John, and worked alongside John as a fellow assistant and now under me as head coach. He has attacked and dominated each role in our program and has been vital in helping the Fort Wayne Basketball program become one of the top mid-majors in the country. He takes great pride in what he does and bleeds the characteristics that it takes to build a successful program. He’s loyal, hardworking, bright, is disciplined and communicates well.

“John has a head coach’s mindset and approach every day in our program and was obsessed with trying to make me look good and manage the details that it takes to be consistently successful. He is prepared and will do a great job on the floor and undoubtedly will build strong, genuine relationships across campus and with WJU’s stakeholders.”