Hardin-Simmons University

Mitch Wilson heads into the third season as the head coach of Hardin-Simmons' baseball program with momentum after finishing second in the American Southwest Conference in 2026.

Wilson and his staff were named the ASC Coaching Staff of the year in 2026. 

The Cowboys went 26-16 in 2026, the most wins at Hardin-Simmons since 2016. The Cowboys also set the school record for batting average (.346), on-base percentage (.422) and stolen bases (81). 

Caleb Reynolds also set the school record for strikeouts in a season with 86 and went 8-2 on the mound to earn first-team All-ASC and all-region honors. 

Catcher Ridings hit .425 with six home runs and 38 RBIs and was named an All-American by D3baseball.com. Ridings was also a first-team Academic All-American. 

Reynolds, Ridings, Gavin Bruning and Paul Samaripa all earned all-region honors. 

HSU also had 13 players named All-ASC. Bruning, Benji Fielder, Jacob Hollingsworth, Hunter Molinar, Reynolds and Hunter Trojacek were named first-team All-ASC. 

The Cowboys had a 3.39 GPA and had nine players with a perfect 4.0 GPA in the spring semester. 

In his first year, his team showed continued improvement throughout the season and won a pair of games in the American Southwest Conference tournament. The Cowboys finished the year with a record of 13-26. 

In his inaugural campaign, the Cowboys set a school record with 61 stolen bases. The Cowboys had six all-ASC selections including three of his recruits that he was able to secure after getting the job in July. Quincy McGraw, Jake Trapani, Baylan Vaughan and Brock Calvillo were all named first-team All-ASC. Trapani was named all-region by D3baseball.com and the ABCA.

His team also posted a 3.35 team GPA in the spring. 
 
Wilson has spent five years as the head assistant coach and recruiting coordinator at Mary Hardin-Baylor.

During that time, he coached 15 all-ASC performers, including the ASC player of the year in 2022 and 2024. In four full seasons (the first year was the COVID-shortened season), UMHB more than doubled its wins from the previous four years 85-39. UMHB reached as high as No. 17 in the country in 2024. His teams led the conference in stolen bases each of the last three years.

As a player, he was a standout at Concordia University-Chicago. He was a four-time all-region and all-conference selection and was an All-American in 2017. He led CUC to two trips to the Division III College World Series (2017 and 2018). He was named to the all-decade team by D3baseball.com for the 2010s. He was a Gold Glove winner at second base and finished his career with a .351 batting average and as the school’s all-time hits leader.
 
He is a native of Oswego, Ill., and graduated from Concordia University (Chicago) with a bachelor's degree in marketing in 2018. He graduated summa cum laude.

Wilson married Justice Hayes in November of 2024.