Merrill set to take over NIACC baseball program
By KIRK HARDCASTLE
NIACC sports information director
MASON CITY – Josh Merrill knows about the recent success of the NIACC baseball program.
Merrill, who was an assistant coach at the University of Southern Indiana in 2022, has been hired as NIACC's head baseball coach and he looks to continue that success.
"There's been success and I know why that success is happening," Merrill said. "There's support for the baseball program here.
"What I took away from my on-campus visit is that this program is ready to take off."
Merrill takes over for interim coach Lincoln Hochmuth, who was the 2022 ICCAC coach of the year and led the Trojans to a record of 34-19.
"With the recent history of success, I'm just looking to enhance that," Merrill said. "It's not something that needs to be rebuilt. NIACC baseball doesn't need fixing."
In the last 10 seasons, the NIACC baseball team has accumulated a record of 323-198-1, including three trips to the NJCAA Division II World Series (2013, 2015, 2016).
Merrill will be the third NIACC head baseball coach since Travis Hergert left after the 2019 season. Drew Sannes coached the Trojans in 2020-21 and Hochmuth was the interim coach in 2022.
Before Merrill's one season at Southern Indiana, he spent a year as an assistant coach at Neosho County Community College in Chanute, Kan.
Merrill says he's looking forward to returning to junior college baseball.
"My philosophy is that if I can teach them how to run, hit and throw, that's great," Merrill said, "but I want to teach them how to be men, as well. Junior college baseball allows me to do that.
"I'm looking forward to being able to mentor young men, not only on the baseball field, but in life, as well."
At Southern Indiana, Merrill worked with hitters, catchers, outfielders, as well as recruiting. He also worked with hitters, catchers and outfielders at Neosho County.
Merrill, a Wichita, Kan. native, was a right-handed pitcher in his collegiate days at Neosho County CC, Arkansas-Little Rock and King University.
Merrill graduated from King with a bachelor's degree in criminal justice in 2015 and from Oklahoma State University with a master's degree in Healthcare Administration in 2019.
"I'm big on individual development," Merrill said. "I want guys to get better.
"From what you will see on the field, I have a balanced approach. We're going to steal some bags. Hopefully, we're going to hit some balls out of the yard. But at the end of the day, it comes down to pitching and defense.
"We'll be big on the fundamentals. We'll do what we can to win games whether that be laying down a bunt or hitting the ball out of the ballpark. All rules apply."
Merrill says he knows that he will be coaching in a very competitive league in the ICCAC.
"There's some really good teams in the conference," the coach said. "At the Division I level, you have Indian Hills and Iowa Western.
"At the Division II level, you have Kirkwood and DMACC. It'll be very tough and I wouldn't want it any other way. You want to have good competition and want to have good games. My philosophy is that I don't care if it's the New York Yankees or Iowa Western in the other dugout, we have to take care of what we do. We have to handle what we can handle and then usually good things happen."
Merrill said he will be busy in the summer months before school starts in the fall with recruiting and finalizing the roster and schedule.
"I'm very excited," the coach said. "I'm excited for the opportunity. Hopefully the committee and everyone saw my enthusiasm and what I can bring to the table. I'm excited to hit the ground running."
