Wingate's Jeff Gregory named ABCA National Coach of the Year

STORY COURTESY OF WINGATE ATHLETIC COMMUNICATIONS

Greensboro, N.C.----After leading the Bulldogs to the NCAA Division II national title in June, Wingate University head baseball coach Jeff Gregory has been named the NCAA Division II National Coach of the Year by the American Baseball Coaches Association (ABCA). Gregory also nabbed Southeast Region Coach of the Year accolades from the ABCA.

"Coach Gregory is certainly deserving of his recognition as National Coach of the Year," Wingate University Vice-President and Director of Athletics Steve Poston says. "He did a masterful job managing his team throughout the regular season and the NCAA playoffs. His strong leadership was critical as he guided his team to a national championship winning five elimination games to secure the title. His team played with poise and confidence throughout the tournament which was a direct result of his leadership. We are all very proud of Coach Gregory and the Bulldog baseball team. Congratulations, Jeff! Well done!"

Gregory is the fifth Wingate head coach to earn National Coach of the Year honors. Head men's and women's swimming coach Kirk Sanocki was named the men's swimming National Coach of the Year in 2012, while head volleyball coach Shelton Collier earned National Coach of the Year accolades in 2013. Gary Hamill earned national recognition in 2016 after leading Wingate to its first-ever NCAA team national title. Sanocki picked up his second national honor in 2016, this time on the women's side. Head tennis coach Michael Cabana was named the women's tennis National Coach of the Year in 2019. In addition, current head men's lacrosse coach Tim Boyle was named the National Coach of the Year in 2012 when he led Dowling to a national championship.

The 2021 season was a special one for Gregory and the Bulldogs. After going 26-11 in the regular season with a 20-10 record in the SAC, the Bulldogs picked up three trophies over the last three months of the season, closing out the year by winning 16 of their final 18 games which included nine wins over top-25 opponents, finishing the year as the national champions and top-ranked team in the country.

The Bulldogs finished the national championship season at 39-13 overall, the second-most wins during the school's NCAA Division II era. The 'Dogs captured their seventh SAC Tournament title in program history and third in the last 10 years. Wingate earned its fourth NCAA Tournament appearance of the last decade and won the first NCAA region title in program history. The Bulldogs earned their first-ever trip to Cary and despite an opening-round loss, went on to capture not only the first title in Wingate baseball history, but the first in SAC history as well. The Bulldogs ended the season as the number-one ranked team in the country for the first time in program history.

Gregory is in his 11th season with the Bulldogs, collecting three SAC Tournament titles, a regular season SAC championship and now a regional and national title. The championship is the second team national title for the Bulldogs, joining the 2016 men's soccer team. The magical 2021 season also saw Gregory capture his 300th victory as a Wingate head coach. The Bulldogs have won at least 30 games in eight of Gregory's 11 seasons as a head coach, while going 166-110 in league play. He is 331-221 in his 11 years as the Bulldog head coach. After his four-year playing career at Wingate, Gregory spent 10 seasons as an assistant coach on the Wingate staff until being named head coach in June of 2010.

The Bulldogs were the number four seed in the SAC Tournament, opening postseason play with a 10-2 victory over Newberry, but fell to Carson-Newman on day two. Wingate responded by walking off with an 8-7 victory over #13 Catawba in an elimination game, getting the game-winning RBI single from Carson Simpson in the bottom of the ninth to advance to championship Monday. Wingate staved off elimination Monday morning, getting a complete game from Austin Mitchell to prevail 8-2 over Carson-Newman and advance to the title game. Jed Bryant had two homers and five RBI in the title game, with a Simpson three-run triple in the seventh inning blowing things open in the 13-4 victory.

The Bulldogs earned the three seed in the always challenging NCAA Southeast Regionals, facing fourth-seeded and host school North Greenville in the opener. The first swing of the NCAA Tournament for the Bulldogs resulted in a McCann Mellett solo homer in the bottom of the first. He and Simpson drove in two runs each, with Mac Callari tossing four strong innings of relief to earn the save in the 6-4 win over the #19 Crusaders. Wingate then faced #11 Mount Olive in back-to-back games, winning by a combined score of 30-11, getting three homers and seven RBI from Hunter Dula in the two contests along with a homer and six RBI from Mellett. The 'Dogs trailed Columbus State 2-1 in the seventh inning on championship Sunday until a two-out, two-run single from Simpson put the 'Dogs on top. Logan McNeely added an RBI double in the eighth, while Mitchell and Brody McCullough combined to allow just two runs in nine innings of work.

In their first-ever Division II World Series game, the Bulldogs fell 6-2 against #9 Angelo State, sending Wingate to the loser's bracket, meaning the 'Dogs would have to win five straight elimination games in five days, with all five opponents ranked in the top 15. Only three teams had ever won the title after a round-one loss, and no team had done so since Florida Southern in 2005.

Wingate got eight strong innings from McCullough, who allowed just one run while striking out nine to eliminate #14 Southern New Hampshire 3-2 on Tuesday. McNeely led the offense with three hits and an RBI. The following day it was David Nash on the mound, who threw the only complete game of the 2021 World Series, allowing only one run on six hits while striking out seven as the 'Dogs eliminated #4 Seton Hill with a 5-1 victory to advance to the Final Four. Simpson drove in a pair of runs with a triple, while Justin Guy added two hits, an RBI and a run scored.

Wingate faced Angelo State for the second time on Thursday, and two-run homers from Dula and Mellett gave the 'Dogs a 4-0 advantage. Mitchell kept the Rams off the scoreboard through seven innings, but Angelo State scored three in the eighth and one in the ninth to tie it. Wingate loaded the bases in the bottom of the frame, and Dula came to the plate with the bases loaded and two outs. After working the count to 2-2, the rain became too heavy to continue. After a three-and-a-half-hour rain delay, Dula ripped the first pitch he saw through the right side to plate Michael Dansky and give Wingate the thrilling 5-4 win.

The Bulldogs and Rams met for the third time on Friday and once again, the Bulldogs got out to a lead, going up 7-3 in the seventh inning. Once again, the Rams fought back, scoring two runs in the eighth and two more in the ninth to tie it and send it to extra innings. Angelo State had the winning run on second in the bottom of the 10th with a chance to end Wingate's season, but Tommy McCollum entered the game and got a three-pitch strikeout to end the threat. Singles from Dansky and McNeely put runners on first and third in the 11th inning for Bryant, who plated Dansky with the sacrifice fly to put WU back on top. McCollum slammed the door shut in the bottom of the frame, working a 1-2-3 inning to send Wingate to the title game. Working on two days rest after throwing 121 pitches on Tuesday, McCullough worked six strong innings in relief Friday, piling up six more strikeouts.

The championship game once again saw Wingate strike first, with the Bulldogs scoring twice in the bottom of the third to take a 2-0 lead over #2 Central Missouri. The Mules answered with three runs in the top of the third, but that would be all of their damage for the day. A McNeely RBI single in the bottom of the fifth plated Mellett to tie it, while a Gehrig Christopher RBI single drove home McNeely to give Wingate a 4-3 lead. Grayson Chapman added a huge pinch-hit RBI double in the bottom of the seventh to make it 5-3. That was plenty for freshman reliever Sam Broderson, who tossed five no-hit innings of relief, allowing just one baserunner on the day, a two-out walk in the top of the ninth. He rebounded with a three-pitch strikeout to end the game and give Wingate the title.

The ABCA/ATEC Coaches of the Year are selected in all nine divisions: NCAA Divisions I, II and III, NAIA, NJCAA Divisions I, II and III, Pacific Association Division and high school. Coaches of the Year are selected by members of the ABCA All-America and Coach of the Year Committees. The ABCA/ATEC National and Regional Coaches of the Year will be honored on Friday, Jan. 7 in the main clinic hall prior to the start of clinics at the 78th annual ABCA Convention, which will be held Jan. 6-9, 2022, in Chicago, Illinois.

2021 ABCA/ATEC National Coaches of the Year
NCAA Div. I: Chris Lemonis, Mississippi State
NCAA Div. II: Jeff Gregory, Wingate (N.C.)
NCAA Div. III: Troy Brohawn, Salisbury (Md.)
NAIA: Jeremy Sheetinger, Georgia Gwinnett
NJCAA Div. I: Mitch Thompson, McLennan (Texas)
NJCAA Div. II: Jeff Willis, LSU Eunice
NJCAA Div. III: Doug Wren, Tyler (Texas)
Pacific Association Division: Anthony Ferro, Butte (Calif.)

About the ABCA

The ABCA, founded in 1945, is the primary professional organization for baseball coaches at the amateur level. Its over 13,000 members represent all 50 states and 23 countries. Since its initial meeting of 27 college baseball coaches in June 1945, Association membership has broadened to include eight divisions: NCAA Division I, II and III, NAIA, NJCAA, Pacific Association Division, High School and Youth.

WINGATE UNIVERSITY

Founded in 1896, Wingate University is a laboratory of difference-making that serves more than 3,600 students in North Carolina. Wingate offers 37 undergraduate majors as well as eight master's and five doctoral degrees. The University is home to the Cannon College of Arts and Sciences; the Levine College of Health Sciences; the Byrum School of Business; and the College of Professional Studies, which includes the Thayer School of Education and the School of Sport Sciences.
 
Wingate is a leader in healthcare education, and nearly one in five Wingate undergraduate students is preparing to be a pharmacist, physician assistant, physical therapist, occupational therapist or nurse. Student-athletes on Wingate's 23 teams compete in NCAA Division II and have brought home the SAC Echols Athletic Excellence Award for 13 years straight. The University's motto is "Faith, Knowledge, Service." View current news and videos at www.wingate.edu.