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The Official Site of the Charleston RiverDogs Charleston RiverDogs

Front Office Staff

Main Office Contact Information

Phone: (843) 723-7241
Fax: (843) 723-2641
Main Email: admin@riverdogs.com

Ownership

Marv Goldklang, Chairman

Jeff Goldklang, President

Michael Bennett, Local Partner

Gretchen Budig - Local Partner

Al Phillips, Local Partner

Mike Veeck, Local Partner

Bill Murray, Co-Owner/Director of Fun

Management

Dave Echols, President/General Manager

Echols has guided the RiverDogs through some of their most successful seasons since being named general manager in 2004. He led the staff in hosting the highly successful 2004 and 2012 South Atlantic League All-Star games, and has twice earned SAL General Manager of the Year honors. Under his guidance, the RiverDogs have been named recipients of MiLB national awards for excellence in promotions, marketing, and sustained excellence. And, in 2016, the RiverDogs won the inaugural Patriot Award, given to the Minor League team that best exemplifies outstanding support of the military branches and engagement with veterans.

 

He's a member of the Rotary Club of Charleston, the Executive Association of Greater Charleston, and the boards of the Charleston Metro Chamber of Commerce and Trident Technical College. He was a founding member and vice president of the Palmetto Military Support Group, and currently serves as an Air Mobility Command Civic Leader.

 

From 2002-04 Echols served as GM of the Brockton (Mass.) Rox and was named Northeast League Executive of the Year in 2003. The University of Dayton graduate has also worked for teams in Kinston, N.C., and Columbus, Ohio. Echols is active in community affairs and resides on Johns Island with his wife, Debra, and son, Logan.

Ben Abzug, Senior Vice President

Abzug, a native of Cedar Rapids, Iowa, was named the Assistant General Manager of the Charleston RiverDogs in 2013 after spending the previous four seasons with the Burlington Royals of the Appalachian League. With Burlington, Abzug was named the 2012 Appalachian League Executive of the Year and helped increase the Royals' sponsorship sales by 80 percent in two years. Attendance also rose 23 percent in Burlington under Abzug's leadership.

A graduate of Purdue University, Abzug spent two years as an intern with the Cedar Rapids Kernels of the Midwest League. Abzug currently resides in Mount Pleasant with his wife, Jess, and their daughters, Joanna and Hazel.

Andy Lange, Vice President, Corporate Sales

Lange began his career in baseball with the Charleston RiverDogs in October 2001, having joined the sales staff after two years with the historic Francis Marion Hotel in downtown Charleston. During his career, he received 2013 South Atlantic League Sales Executive of the Year honors in his tenth season as Assistant General Manager before his promotion to Vice President.

Originally from LaPorte, Ind., Lange has been in Charleston since 1996. He continues to serve on the Board of Directors for the local chapter of the March of Dimes. He married the former Melissa LaPlaunt on Dec. 31, 2007, and they reside in West Ashley with sons Wrigley, Hayden, and Maddux.

Lance Fletcher, Assistant General Manager

Prior to starting with the RiverDogs, Lance was a hospitality operations manager with a catering company exclusively in the racing world focusing on race teams and VIP clients. He also spent time in Naples, FL, where Lance was the Director of Catering, Banquets and Events for a private country club. While there he received his IEPP, Wedding Planning and Luxury Wedding Planning certifications.

Lance also holds a sommelier certification and a WSET level 1 certification. He holds a diploma in Hospitality management and also hospitality & tourism management. Lance and his wife, Samantha, relocated to Charleston in June of 2021 where he became a Dual Director of Hotel Sales for a local hospitality company.

Mascots

Charlie T. RiverDog, Mascot

Taken with the first overall selection in the June 1994 Minor League Mascot Draft, Charlie has been an integral part of the RiverDogs since their inception. He was the first high school mascot taken with the first overall selection in the storied history of the Mascot Draft, as part of the inaugural season of RiverDogs baseball in 1994. Charlie has helped the RiverDogs become one of the most popular attractions in the Lowcountry, moving into Joseph P. Riley, Jr. Park in 1997.

Charlie has witnessed many of the RiverDogs greats pass through the Lowcountry from his time in Charleston. His favorites to don the RiverDogs uniform include B.J. Pupton, Andy BARKett, Aubrey Ruff, and Rob Ruffsnyder. He is an active member of the Lowcountry community, and attends numerous events year round.

Chelsea, Mascot

Chelsea's been bringing spunk to the Lowcountry since joining the RiverDogs in the early 2000's. She is credited with coming up with the RiverDogs Dog Day concept in a promotional meeting in 2014, deciphered by the rest of the front office after three hours of charades. Her favorite hobbies include watching the RiverDogs hit home runs, long walks on Folly Beach, and digging for her lost bone on the Riley Park warning track to the chagrine of the grounds crew.

Merchandise

Cynthia Linhart, Director of Merchandise

A native Charlestonian and a graduate of St. Andrew's Parish High School, Linhart joined the RiverDogs prior to the 2018 season as the office manager. She is a licensed real estate broker and brings over two decades of experience in the industry in both residential and commercial real estate before her first tenure in baseball.

Linhart resides in the Charleston area with her husband, Corey, and her Spring Spaniel, Beauregard. She is the proud mother of four children, Choral, Ethan, Luke, and Conrad, all pursuing careers and is an active parishioner at St. Mary of the Annunciation.

Ticket Sales

Ashley Kouba, Senior Director of Ticket Sales

Ashley joins the RiverDogs after spending the last four seasons in Madison, Wisconsin most recently as the Assistant General Manager for both the Madison Mallards baseball and 2025 Northwoods League Champion Madison Night Mares softball teams. Prior to her time in Madison, Ashley served as the Ticketing Manager for the American Ultimate Disc League and as the Head of Production for the 2021 Clark Cup Champion Chicago Steel of the USHL. She got her start in baseball in 2019 with the Kane County Cougars.

Ashley studied Electronic Media at the University of Wisconsin-Whitewater (Go Warhawks!) where she was a member of the NCAA women's bowling team taking home a third-place finish in the 2015 NCAA Championship.

In her free time Ashley loves to watch the Boston Red Sox with her golden retriever Fenway. She loves to travel and has attended baseball games at nearly 100 different ballparks! She also enjoys live music and spending time with friends. She looks forward to the warm South Carolina weather and getting to know the RiverDogs fans!

Evan Courtney, Director of Ticket Sales

Evan joined the RiverDogs following the 2021 season. Prior to arriving in the Holy City, Courtney spent three seasons as an account executive with the Tennessee Smokies. His career in professional baseball began as intern for the Jacksonville Jumbo Shrimp.

The Chicago native loves sports in the Windy City except for the Cubs. He enjoys being disappointed by the Bears every year. He received a bachelor’s degree in sport management from Flagler College in St. Augustine, Florida where his flamingo-themed suit was a massive hit.

Evan loves Charleston and cannot wait to discover everything the city has to offer. He is looking forward to providing fantastic service to the incredible RiverDogs fan base.

Keith Millikan, Senior Account Executive

Keith joined the RiverDogs in July of 2023. Prior to arriving in Charleston, Keith spent five seasons with the Evansville Otters baseball team in Indiana, as an account executive and most recently, Director of Group Sales.

He received his bachelor’s degree in Sport Administration from the University of Cincinnati. Keith is passionate for Cincinnati Reds baseball, motorsports and enjoys cycling, running and pumping small iron.

Keith would eventually like to own a sailboat named either “Jenny” or “Nights in Blue Satin”. As you can tell, he needs help in the naming department. Feel free to slow him down when you see him at The Joe and offer a suggestion.

He is excited to learn more about Charleston and engage with the RiverDogs fanbase to provide a great experience for everyone stepping foot within The Joe.

Conor Mitchum, Senior Account Executive

Conor joined the RiverDogs in 2025 after spending the previous 3 years working as an Account Manager for the Columbia Fireflies. He was born in England and raised in Heidelberg, Germany until moving over to the US to attend the University of South Carolina, graduating with a degree in Sport and Entertainment Management.

In his free time, Conor enjoys fishing, hanging out with his Golden Retriever Dexter, and playing sometimes decent golf.

Charles Bridgeman, Ticket Operations Manager

Charles joined the RiverDogs in August of 2024. Prior to arriving in the Holy City, Charles spent three seasons with the Columbia Fireflies where he began his career as an intern before being hired full-time as the Ticketing Operations Assistant. Born and raised in Pickens, South Carolina, he graduated from the University of South Carolina with a degree in Sport and Entertainment Management.

In his free time, Charles enjoys spending time with family, cheering on the Gamecocks, and going to concerts.

Riley Hollar, Account Executive, Group Sales

Colin McKenzie, Account Executive

Colin joined the RiverDogs as a full-time intern in 2023 prior to being hired as a full-time employee in August of the same year. Born and raised in Washington, D.C., he recently graduated from the College of Charleston with a degree in Communications. He attended several RiverDogs games as a fan while in school and is excited to now be a part of the organization.

Colin is the youngest of four children in his family. He has two older brothers and a twin sister who is two minutes his elder. Outside of work, he enjoys fishing, playing sports, candlelight dinners and the beach.

Justin Moore, Account Executive

Justin joined the RiverDogs as a full-time intern in 2024 prior to being hired as a full-time employee in September of the same year. Born and raised in Mount Pleasant, he recently graduated from the University of South Carolina with a B.S. in Sport and Entertainment Management.

Before joining the RiverDogs, Justin spent two seasons with the Columbia Fireflies serving as a Food and Beverage intern.

Outside of work, Justin is an avid fan of watching the Gamecocks on Saturdays, spending time with family, and grilling.

Media Relations & Broadcasting

Business Management/Accounting

A native of Miami, Fla., Stickney has been with the Goldklang Group since 2000 when she ran the Veeck Promotional Seminar. She joined the RiverDogs as Director of Special Events in 2003, coordinating a number of fundraising and community events for the club before transitioning to her current role as business manager in 2008.

Prior to joining the RiverDogs, Stickney spent time working for the National Association of Baseball Leagues and the Hickory Crawdads, another club with membership in the South Atlantic League. She currently resides in Mt. Pleasant with her husband, Jeff, and three children: Miles, Travis, and Sydney.

Carver joined the RiverDogs in October of 2023 after previously serving as Customer Solutions Coordinator at US Foods in Fishers, Indiana. She also spent time as a Retail Manager for Compass Group in several cities. Carver graduated from Indiana State University in 2016 with a major in Food Service Management.

In her free time, Carver loves to travel, bake and watch football (Go Chiefs!). She also enjoys spending time with family, friends and dog London.

Community Relations

Kylee Joined the RiverDogs in October of 2025. She previously worked for the Stockton Ports Baseball Team, Single-A affiliate for the Athletics, as their Community Relations Manager.

She graduated from Michigan State University in December of 2024. Graduating with a bachelor's degree in public relations and sports business management.

When not working Kylee enjoys going on hikes, painting, reading a good book or working out.

Marketing & Promotions

Lindsey joined the RiverDogs in October of 2025. Before moving to Charleston, she spent five seasons with the Knoxville Smokies, AA affiliate of the Chicago Cubs. She worked in the Marketing Department filling various roles such as Social Media, Promotions and Community Relations.

Born in Los Angeles, CA, Lindsey attended the University of Tennessee where she received her degree in Marketing. In her free time, Lindsey enjoys rooting on Los Angeles sports teams, watching movies, reading, and exploring new places.

Ballpark Operations

Special Events

Food & Beverage