One Stevens Point Area Senior High School and University of Wisconsin-Stevens Point graduate is replacing another as the UW-SP baseball coach.
Brian Nelson, a 1999 UW-SP grad and a member of the SPASH boys basketball state championship team in 1994, is the university's new baseball coach. He is replacing Stevens Point native Scott Pritchard, who accepted a full-time position at Division III Westminster College in Fulton, Mo.
"This is a great opportunity for both me and the team," Nelson said. "I know the kids and know what to expect from them. I've seen the program before and after Scott arrived and I believe I understand what it takes to keep our program at this level."
Nelson, 23, played four years in centerfield for the Pointers and led Division III in doubles as a senior in 1998 with 24. He spent the 1999 season as an assistant under Pritchard and played over the summer with the independent Ozark (Mo.) Mountain Ducks of the Texas-Louisiana League.
Pritchard, who was a part-time staff member at UW-SP, will assume full-time duties at Westminster, where he will also oversee the intramural program.
"I'm sad about leaving UW-Stevens Point, having been a player and coach here for the past 11 years," Pritchard said. "My goal was to find a full-time, on-staff position and this is an opportunity for me to move forward in my coaching career."
Pritchard, 29, led UW-SP to the NCAA Division III World Series in 1997 during his first season and compiled a 91-33 career record.