(Story courtesy of Southwestern University)
GEORGETOWN, Texas - R.J. Thomas, a six-year veteran head coach at Hendrix College, was announced by Director of Athletics Dr. Glada Munt as the new head coach for the Pirate baseball squad.
Thomas revived the Warrior baseball program, pulling in some of the top talent in Division III baseball from around the nation and improved the team each season, highlighted by a 2009 Southern Collegiate Athletic Conference championship in which he was named SCAC Coach-of-the-Year that same season. This past year he guided Hendrix to a second place finish in the SCAC West and into the post season once again. The Warriors were in the top four in the conference in every offensive category, including leading the SCAC in triples with 25.
"I am honored to be at Southwestern University," shared Thomas. "It is a privilege to be a part of a program that has such a long and storied history. I am excited to get started and look forward to rebuilding this program back to the standards you expect with Southwestern baseball."
"This is an exciting new era for Southwestern baseball as we welcome Coach Thomas and his family to our department," states Dr. Munt. "He is a proven dynamic and successful head coach and I am confident that he will lead our baseball program back into contention on both the conference and national level."
Coaching some of the conference's best has become a standard for Thomas, posting 33 players in six years on the All-SCAC Team and at least one player on the All-West Region team in five of his six seasons.
In addition to his coaching duties, Thomas led the fundraising effort for the Warrior Field project that aimed to increase seating by 111% for the start of the 2012 season and served as the Athletic Facilities Coordinator, overseeing construction projects throughout the athletic department.
Thomas is a 2004 graduate of the University of Central Arkansas where he competed on the Bears' baseball team while earning a degree in business administration.
"I want to thank Dr. Munt and President Schrum for the opportunity to be the head baseball coach at Southwestern University," continued Thomas. "Also I want to thank the selection committee for their professionalism and efforts throughout the interview process."
