Lee to serve as assistant at alma mater

Monte Lee has been on the coaching staff of a college program
in South Carolina for every season since 2001. (Palmetto State Baseball photo)

Former College of Charleston star and head coach Monte Lee has been named an assistant coach on Chad Holbrook's staff at his alma mater, the school announced Thursday afternoon. A source told The Post and Courier that a press conference is scheduled for Monday.

Lee most recently was interim head coach at South Carolina after Paul Mainieri was fired in March. He was informed after the season he would not be retained.

He has a 528-305 record as a head coach, taking teams to NCAA Tournament appearances in eight of 14 full seasons.

The Lugoff native played for the Cougars from 1996-99, compiling a .333 batting average. He was an assistant coach at Spartanburg Methodist and South Carolina before being named head coach at College of Charleston before the 2009 season. He moved from Charleston to Clemson as head coach in 2016. After Lee was dismissed at Clemson, he returned to USC as an assistant.

Lee

Coastal Carolina turns to Lemonis

Chris Lemonis played in a College World Series at The Citadel
and coached Mississippi State to a CWS title. (Coastal Carolina photo)

Coastal Carolina on Thursday announced the hiring of  Myrtle Beach native Chris Lemonis as head coach.

Lemonis replaced Kevin Schnall, who was named coach at South Carolina on Wednesday.

The Socastee High graduate played for The Citadel's 1990 College World Series team and coached Mississippi State to the national championship in 2021 before being fired during the 2025 season. Lemonis also was head coach at Indiana and assistant coach at The Citadel and Louisville, where he was under fellow The Citadel graduate Dan McDonnell.

There was no immediate word about assistants.

Lemonis

Gamecocks announce Schnall's hiring

Kevin Schnall becomes the 33rd head baseball coach in Gamecocks
history. (University of South Carolina photo)

As expected, South Carolina announced the hiring of named Kevin Schnall as its next head baseball coach on Wednesday. The announcement came after the hire was approved by the school's Board of Trustees.

Schnall comes to Columbia from Coastal Carolina, where he was a former player and longtime assistant before taking over as head coach prior to the 2025 season. He led the Chanticleers to a 56-13 record and the College World Series last season and a 37-23 record in 2026.

Speculation on a possible replacement after Paul Mainieri was fired in March quickly included Schnall. There were premature reports of his hiring earlier this month, but John Whittle of TheBigSpur.com and others finally confirmed the deal earlier this week.

Several members of Schnall's staff at Coastal - including pitching coach Matt Williams - are expected to join him at USC. Williams was Carolina's pitching coach under Mark Kingston in 2024, but was not retained when Paul Mainieri took over.

South Carolina had a program-worst 22-35 record in 2026, losing its final 13 games. Monte Lee served as interim head coach after Mainier's firing, but he is not being retained.

One of Schnall's challenges will be building a roster. Many Gamecocks players entered the transfer portal, although their return is possible if there is mutual interest. Several members of the 2026 Chanticleers roster have announced intentions to join Schnall in Columbia.

A welcome celebration is planned for 7:30 p.m. Friday at Founders Park.

There was no immediate word on a possible replacement for Schnall at Coastal Carolina. FAn speculation on social media has included current Chants assistants Chad Oxendine and Matt Schilling, as well as North Greenville coach Landon Powell, former Mississippi State coach Chris Lemonis, Troy coach Skylar Meade and former Chanticleer Mike Morrison, among others.

Schnall

Celebration

State scoreboard, Sunday, May 31

Christian Stratis hit safely in 10 of his
last 12 games. (The Citadel photo)

Player of the day: Christian Stratis, The Citadel 1B, HR, 4 RBI 

Atlanta Regional
* Oklahoma 15, The Citadel 5 - The Sooners (34-22) scored five runs in the third inning and seven in the fourth to eliminated the Bulldogs (36-26).

Oklahoma 15, The Citadel 5 - Cit: Michael Gibson 1B, 2B, R

Game 6: Georgia Tech vs. Oklahoma, 6 p.m.

Tallahassee Regional
* Florida State 2, Coastal Carolina 1 - Trey Beard struck out nine batters in four innings and the Seminoles (39-18) held off the Chanticleers (37-23) to avoid a two-and-out on their own field by eliminating the Chanticleers. The game was suspended by rain in the sixth inning on Saturday, and there was no additional scoring on Sunday. Coastal was held to three hits - two of them by Trace Mazon. The Chanticleers struck out 18 times.

Florida State 2, Coastal Carolina 1 - Coa: Luke Jones 3 IP, 3 H, 0 R, 4 K

St. John's 21, Northern Illinois 8

Game 5: Florida State vs. Northern Illinois, 6 p.m.

Tuscaloosa Regional
* Oklahoma State 12, USC Upstate 1 - Reno Indomenico and Campbell Smithwick hit two home runs apiece and the Cowboys (39-21) ended the season for Upstate (34-30). 

Oklahoma State 12, USC Upstate 1 - Up: Trey Bentley 1B, 2B, RBI

Game 6: Alabama vs. Oklahoma State, 8 p.m.
Complete NCAA Regional schedule
(3/1343)

State scoreboard, Saturday, May 30

Zach Hunt leads the Bulldogs with 11 homers
and 51 RBI. (The Citadel photo)

Player of the day: Zach Hunt, The Citadel, HR, walk-off  two-run single

Atlanta Regional
* The Citadel 9, Illinois Chicago 8, 10 innings - Zach Hunt's 10th-inning single scored two runs and gave the Bulldogs (36-25) a come-from-behind win over Illinois Chicago (27-29-1). The Citadel took a 7-3 lead with a five-runs seventh, but the Flames hit two homers in the eighth and one in the ninth to force extra innings. Ashton Kampa gave UIC the lead in the top of the 10th with his second homer of the game. T.J. Anderson and Michael Gibson drew walks to lead off the bottom of the frame,. After Matthew Lively bunted the runners over,  Hunt slapped the winner up the middle to give them their first NCAA Tournament win since 2010 and send them to an elimination game on Sunday against Oklahoma.

*Oklahoma 8, The Citadel 3 - Earlier Saturday, the Sooners scored the game's final seven runs to win a first-round game postponed from Friday because of rain. The loss snapped an eight-game losing streak for The Bulldogs.

Oklahoma 8, The Citadel 3 - Cit: Michael Gibson 1B, 2B, HR, BB, 2 R

The Citadel 9, Illinois Chicago 8, 10 innings - Cit: Sam Dansky 1B, 2B, HR, 2 R
Georgia Tech 9, Oklahoma 3
 

Tallahassee Regional 

* Florida State 2, Coastal Carolina 1, T6 suspended until Sunday - Rain forced the elimination game to be suspended until Sunday at 11 a.m.

Suspended until 11 a.m. Sunday
Florida State 2, Coastal Carolina 1, T6
Postponed until 2 p.m. Sunday
Game 4: St. John's vs. Northern Illinois, 7 p.m.

Tuscaloosa Regional
* Alabama 7, USC Upstate 5 - Justin LeBron singled twice and homered as Alabama moved into Sunday's regional championship round. Eric Hines had a three-run homer as part of a four-run third inning for the Crimson Tide. Johnny Sweeney's two-run homer brought Upstate within three runs, and Trey Bentley added an RBI double in the ninth. The game ending with the potential tying run on second. Upstate plays Oklahoma State at 3 p.m. Sunday for a chance to meet Alabama Sunday night.

Oklahoma State 8, Alabama State 7, 11 innings

Alabama 7, USC Upstate 4 - Up: Trey Bentley 1B, 2B, R, RBI

Complete NCAA Regional schedule
(3/1340)

State scoreboard, Friday, May 29

Max Bianchini helped the Spartans hold their
lead over the Cowboys. (USC Upstate photo) 

Player of the day: Max Bianchini, USC Upstate, 3 IP., 2 H, 0 R, 2 BB, 2 K

Atlanta Regional
* Bulldogs rained out - The Citadel's opener with Oklahoma was rained out and will be played at 10 a.m. Saturday. That game's loser plays Illinois Chicago at 2 p.m. and the winner meets Georgia Tech at 6 p.m.

Georgia Tech 22, Illinois Chicago 5

Postponed until 10 a.m. Saturday 
No. 2 Oklahoma (32-21) vs. No. 3 The Citadel (35-24),  10 a.m.

Tallahassee Regional
*Northern 12, Coastal Carolina 10 - The Huskies (36-17) rode an eight-run fourth inning to their first NCAA Tournament win and knocked the Chanticleers (37-22) into an elimination game against Florida State on Saturday. Coastal Carolina scored a run in the first and three in the second, but NIU put up two runs in the third and eight in the fourth to go up 10-4.  The Chanticleer cut the deficit to three with a three-run fifth. The Huskies got two runs with two outs in the ninth, and they came in handy when Dean Mihos' three-run, two-out homer closed the deficit.

St. John’s 6, Florida State 5

Northern Illinois 12, Coastal Carolina 10 - Coa: Dean Mihos 1B, 2B, HR, 4 RBI

Tuscaloosa Regional
* USC Upstate 8, Oklahoma State 5 - The Spartans (34-28) scored scored three first-inning runs without a hit and that was the margin of victory against the Cowboys (37-21) in Upstate's first NCAA Tournament win. Upstate's first three batters drew walks. A wild pitch, a passed ball and a double play produced the three runs. OSU tied the score at 4-4, but Jake Armsey broke the deadlock with an RBI single in the fourth and Upstate never trailed again. Wylie Waters scored from second on a misplaced sac bunt in the fourth and  Preston Luca had a two-run single in the eighth. Brent Stukes (8-3) pitched the first five innings. Max Bianchini went three scoreless innings and Jacob Kirby left the bases loaded in the ninth for his third save. Upstate plays Alabama on Saturday.

USC Upstate 8, Oklahoma State 5 - Up: Maloy Heaghney 2-4, BB, 2 R

Alabama 21, Alabama State 3
Complete NCAA Regional schedule

(2/1337)

State teams stay in Southeast for NCAA

South Carolina's three teams in the NCAA Tournament won't have to leave the Waffle House footprint.

The Citadel is playing in the Atlanta Regional, Coastal Carolina is in the Tallahassee Regional and USC Upstate is in the Tuscaloosa Regional.

The 64-team NCAA Tournament field was announced Monday, There are 12 teams from the SEC, 9 from the ACC and 5 from the Sun Belt. The 16 regionals all have a four-team, double-elimination format. The 16 regional winners advance to one of eight best-of-three super regional the following weekend. Those eight super regional survivors go the the College World Series in Omaha. 

The Citadel (35-24) earned the Southern Conference's automatic bid and will be the No. 3 seed in Atlanta, playing Oklahoma (32-21) at 5 p.m. Friday at Russ Chandler Stadium on the Georgia Tech campus. The game will be on ESPN+

Coastal Carolinas (37-21) earned an at-large bid from the Sun Belt Conference and will be the No. 2 seed in the Tallahassee Regional at Dick Howser Stadium. The Chanticleers will play Northern Illinois (35-17), which is making its first NCAA appearance since it moved from district to regional competition in the 1970s. The game is scheduled for 8 p.m. Friday on ESPN+. Coastal was believed to be in contention for a regional host spot before going 11-13 over its final 24 games.

USC Upstate (33-28) qualified by winning its second straight Big South Conference Tournament. The Spartans are the No. 3 seed at Tuscaloosa and will play Oklahoma State (37-20) in the first round. First pitch is scheduled for 2 p.m. Friday on ESPN+.

Top 16 national seeds

1. UCLA (51-6), 2. Georgia Tech (48-9), 3. Georgia (46-12), 4. Auburn (38-19), 5. North Carolina (45-11-1), 6. Texas (40-13), 7. Alabama (37-19), 8. Florida (39-19), 9. Southern Mississippi (44-15), 10. Florida State (38-17), 11. Oregon (40-16), 12. Texas A&M (39-14), 13. Nebraska (42-15), 14. Mississippi State (40-17), 15. Kansas (42-16), 16. West Virginia (39-14).

Super Regional pairings
No. 16 Morgantown vs. No. 1 Los Angeles
No. 15 Lawrence vs. No. 2 Atlanta
No. 14 Starkville vs. No. 3 Athens.
No. 13 Lincoln vs.  4. Auburn.
No. 12 College Station vs. No. 5 Chapel Hill.
No. 11. Eugene vs. No. 6 Austin.
No. 10 Tallahassee vs. No. 7 Tuscaloosa.

No. 9 Hattiesburg vs. No. 8 Gainesville.

ATLANTA REGIONAL

Friday
No. 1 Georgia Tech (48-9) vs. No. 4 Illinois Chicago (27-27-1), Noon, ACCN

No. 2 Oklahoma (32-21) vs. No. 3 The Citadel (35-24), 5 p.m., ESPN+

Saturday
Game 3: Game 1 winner vs. Game 2 winner

Game 4: Game 1 loser vs. Game 2 loser 
Sunday
Game 5: Game 4 winner vs. Game 3 loser
Game 6: Game 3 winner vs. Game 5 winner
Monday
Game 7: if Game 5 winner wins Game 6

TALLAHASSEE REGIONAL
Friday
No. 1 Florida State (38-17) vs. No. 4 St. John’s (NY) (33-24), 3 p.m., ACCN

No. 2 Coastal Carolina (37-21) vs. No. 3 Northern Illinois (35-17), 8 p.m., ESPN+

Saturday
Game 3: Game 1 winner vs. Game 2 winner

Game 4: Game 1 loser vs. Game 2 loser 
Sunday
Game 5: Game 4 winner vs. Game 3 loser
Game 6: Game 3 winner vs. Game 5 winner
Monday
Game 7: if Game 5 winner wins Game 6

TUSCALOOSA REGIONAL

Friday

No. 2 Oklahoma State (37-20) vs. No. 3 USC Upstate (33-28), 2 p.m., ESPN+

No. 1 Alabama (37-19) vs. No. 4 Alabama State (34-21), 7 p.m., ESPN+

Saturday
Game 3: Game 1 winner vs. Game 2 winner

Game 4: Game 1 loser vs. Game 2 loser 
Sunday
Game 5: Game 4 winner vs. Game 3 loser
Game 6: Game 3 winner vs. Game 5 winner
Monday
Game 7: if Game 5 winner wins Game 6
Complete NCAA Regional schedule

Team of the week, May 18-24 (tie): The Citadel and USC Upstate

The Citadel (5-0 for the week)

(beat VMI, Wofford, Mercer - twice - and Samford in the SoCon Tournament)

The Bulldogs picked up their first Southern Conference Tournament championship since 2010 with a dominant run through the event. Coach Russell Triplett's excelled both at the plate and on the mound, surviving a play-in game to reach the double-elimination portion of the event and claim the championship from the fifth seed.

USC Upstate (4-1 for the week)

(beat Winthrop, High Point, went 2-1 vs. Longwood in the Big South Tournament)
Coach Kane Sweeney's team beat the two teams to finish above them in the regular season and didn't let a weather-induced venue change from Asheville to Boiling Springs stop them from repeating as tournament champion.

Up next for both: NCAA regionals. Destination and opponents to be announced Monday

Previous winners

Jan. 23-Feb. 1: North Greenville
Feb. 2-8: Anderson
Feb. 9-15: Francis Marion 

Feb. 16-22: Charleston Southern
Feb. 23-March 1: Benedict
March 2-8: Clemson

March 9-15: Coastal Carolina
March 16-22: Florence-Darlington Tech

March 23-29: Winthrop

March 30-April 5: North Greenville
April 6-12: Wofford
April 13-19: Winthrop
April 20-26: Coker

April 27-May 3: The Citadel
May 4-10: (tie) Charleston Southern, Claflin, Lander

May 11-17: Francis Marion