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Hill
Denson enters his eighth year as Head Baseball Coach at Belhaven. With
more than 30 years of coaching experience, Denson has compiled a career
record of 910-650-2, including a 695-577-2 collegiate coaching mark.
Under the direction of hill Denson, the Blazer 2006 and 2007 teams won
two regular season GCAC Championships and hosted the Region XIII
Baseball tournament in 2007.
Coach Denson’s
career includes 14 seasons at the helm of the University of Southern Mississippi
baseball program (1984-1997), where he helped establish USM as a nationally
recognized baseball power.
“This season
poses a special challenge for us,” said Denson. “We lost a very special senior
group last year, but we have a talented core this year with a lot of experience.
That core combined with the new talent that we have brought in this year makes
us very confident that we will be able to challenge for another GCAC title.”
Coach Denson
enjoyed many years of success while at USM, including being named Metro
Conference (now Conference USA) Coach of the Year in 1989 and 1990; having 12
consecutive winning seasons (1986-1997); 42 game winning season in 1990 (school
record); NCAA National Tournament bids in 1990 and 1991; Eight USM players being
named NCAA All-Americans; and 35 USM players signed to professional baseball
contracts.
Prior to his
tenure at USM, Coach Denson served as the Director of In-Game Promotions for the
Nashville Sounds, then New York Yankees minor league baseball club. He also
served as an assistant baseball coach at Vanderbilt University.
Coach Denson’s
high school coaching experience included stints at three Mississippi high
schools: Callaway HS, Manhattan HS and Chamberlain-Hunt Military Academy.
A native of Bay
Springs, Mississippi, Hill Denson is a graduate of the University of Southern
Mississippi, where he earned his Bachelor’s degree in Science Education. He
received his Master’s degree in School Administration from Mississippi College.
Clay Smith
begins his sixth season as Assistant Head Baseball Coach for the Blazers. In
2007, Smith oversaw a Blazer pitching staff that posted a 3.67 ERA with 470
strikeouts en route to repeating as the Gulf Coast Athletic Conference regular
season champions.
“We are excited
about the upcoming year,” said Smith. “We have worked hard in the off-season to
recruit the type of players that will make an impact for Blazer Baseball, and
have assembled a team that will compete for the GCAC title."
Prior to
arriving at Belhaven, Coach Smith served as an assistant baseball coach at the
University of Southern Mississippi from 2000-2002. He also served as a student
assistant for the USM baseball program for two seasons.
A native of
Wesson, Mississippi, Coach Smith played catcher for the Copiah-Lincoln Community
College baseball program for two seasons, lettering both years. He received his
Bachelor’s degree in Biology from USM in 1999 and his Master’s degree in Sports
Administration from USM in 2000.
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