Head Baseball Coach- Bobby Pierce
FROM CBB NEWS SOURCE
Fort Wayne, IN – IPFW Director of Athletics has announced that Bobby Pierce has been hired as the Mastodons’ new head baseball coach.
Pierce comes to IPFW after a successful stint at Metro State College in Denver, Colorado.
Pierce led Metro State to Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference (RMAC) tournament berths in each of his two seasons at the helm. The Roadrunners went 55-54 in two seasons under Pierce, including a 43-34 mark in RMAC play. Pierce and Metro State had an outstanding 2008 season, going 38-19, including 30-10 in league play. Reece Gorman and Jake Palmer each earned All-American honors, while 11 Roadrunners earned all-RMAC honors.
“We had a tremendous candidate pool of over 46 people for the Baseball head coaching position,” Bell said. “During the interview process the committee and myself realized that Bobby had all the knowledge and experience to move IPFW Baseball forward to be a consistent contender year in and year out in the Summit League. I am extremely excited bout the leadership and direction Bobby brings to IPFW.”
Prior to arriving at Metro State, Pierce spent three seasons at the University of Arkansas-Little Rock under head coach Jim Lawler. While at UALR, Pierce primarily worked as the hitting coach. In 2006, the Trojans posted an overall record of 24-30, including 5-19 in the Sun Belt Conference. Under Pierce’s tutelage, the Trojans’ hitters increased their team batting average by 19 points from 2004 to 2005 (.276), and by 22 points from 2005 to 2006 (.298). Pierce helped coach nine players that continued their baseball careers as professionals. He also helped put together two nationally-ranked recruiting classes by Collegiate Baseball Magazine in 2004 and 2005.
“I’d like to thank Chancellor Michael Wartell and Tommy Bell for this great opportunity,” Pierce said. “The IPFW baseball program has had a lot of good people put a lot of blood sweat and tears into building this program, and my goal is to see that vision through and compete for a conference championship year in and year out, ultimately making IPFW baseball a regional presence.”
