Ed Mathey is hanging up his cleats as baseball’s head coach, he announced today.

Mathey had been with the Huskies for the past 12 seasons after coming to NIU from North Central College in Naperville in 2003. He also played at and graduated from North Central College.

“It’s difficult any time you make changes when you’ve been at a place for 12 years,” Mathey said. “We have some great kids, assistant coaches, and those were things to be taken in consideration.”

Ultimately, Mathey said the decision came down to his family. His three children will be of college age in the next few years, and he’ll be able to be at home more often.

With a record of 294-371-2, Mathey is the program’s all-time leader in wins and has the four highest single-season win totals in program history, with 34 wins apiece by the 2003 and 2007 teams. He also guided the Huskies to the 2013 MAC West Division Championship.

Among his top three favorite memories are winning the MAC West in 2013, winning at Mississippi State and playing at U.S.Cellular Field.

“Obviously, 2013, winning the MAC West, and the final out of the game at Ball State will stay in the highlight reel,” Mathey said. “We played at some great venues. Mississippi State University, coach [John] Cohen is the coach down there. He had his first win and first loss against us. That’s a great program, and going down there and winning a game was awesome.

“And then after the shooting in 2008, the game at U.S. Cellular vs. Notre Dame in front of close to 5,000 fans is something no one will forget. The cool thing was the White Sox took all the proceeds and it went to the [Forward, Together Forward] scholarship. It was a humanitarian moment I was very thankful to be a part of.”

Mathey will return to North Central College to serve as the Cardinals’ baseball head coach.

“Coach Mathey’s dedication to NIU and to building this program the right way will be missed,” said Athletic Director Sean Frazier, according to a news release. “We thank him for his many years of leadership and wish him continued success in his new position.”

John Cheney, NIU’s sport administrator for baseball, will lead the national search for a new coach.

For Mathey, going back to North Central College is “a coming home of sorts,” but he won’t soon forget his time at NIU.

“For me as a coach, it’s the players,” Mathey said. “It’ the student-athletes over the years. We’ve had great kids who come in, work hard and care about winning and losing. We’ve had some seasons where we’ve done better than others. I’m forever indebted to them and I’ll take their memories with me.”