Former Wheaton standout and assistant coach Jimmy Smith is the new head baseball coach at Rivier University. (Photo courtesy of Rivier Athletics)

NASHUA –Rivier University announced on Tuesday that Wheaton College assistant Jimmy Smith will be the next head coach of the Raiders baseball team.

Smith takes over for Louie Bernardini, who was not returning after two full seasons at the helm, plus the partial COVID season of 2020. The Raiders finished 5-26 last spring, 4-14 in the GNAC, but won four of their last six games.

“I am excited to welcome Coach Smith to the Rivier Athletics family,” said Director of Athletics Jonathan Harper. “The search committee quickly recognized his passion for student-athlete development and recruiting. “Jimmy’s experience as a student-athlete and a coach translates well into our baseball community, and the Raider baseball team is energized for the new era of Rivier baseball.”

“I would like to thank Jonathan Harper, the search committee, and the campus community for giving me this opportunity to be the next head baseball coach at Rivier,” Smith said, “I cannot wait to take this next step in my career and build a strong foundation and winning culture on and off the field for our baseball program.”

Smith will be moving from his assistant coaching position at Wheaton, where he has been since 2016. While at Wheaton, he was in charge of their offense as their hitting and third base coach. Smith was promoted to Recruiting Coordinator in 2018.

During his coaching tenure, Smith assisted Wheaton in two NEWMAC Championships (’21, ’22), four Regional Appearances (’17, ’19, ’21, ’22) with two Regional Championships (’19, ’21), and two College World Series Appearances (’17, ’21).

Smith was a four-year student-athlete for Wheaton’s baseball program, with his final year coming in 2016. As a player, he saw his stats increase year after year, with his senior season being the best with a .322 batting average, 20 RBIs, and 55 hits.

Smith’s career saw him in the 100-hit club with 120 hits, 43 RBIs, and a career batting average of .294. During his four seasons with the Lyons, Smith won two NEWMAC Championships (’13, ’16) and was named to First Team All-Conference his senior season.

Graduating in 2016, Smith earned a Bachelor of Arts Degree in Sociology from Wheaton College. Smith added, “I would also like to thank all my former coaches, players, and teammates for assisting me through the early stages of my coaching career. Especially (Wheaton head coach) Eric Podbelski, who helped me to grow and develop into the coach I am today.”

(Telegraph staff writer Tom King contributed to this report.)