Bolivar, Mo. – Southwest Baptist University Director of Athletics Clark Sheehy has announced the hiring of Charles Bradley as the new Head Coach of the baseball program.
 
"We are excited to add Coach Charles Bradley to lead our baseball program!" Director of Athletics, Clark Sheehy said. "Coach has had great experience with winning programs at Ouachita Baptist, Queens University of Charlotte, and at Division 1 program Murray State. He brings a passion for excellence and wants to see his players grow in their faith and in their academic and baseball abilities.  We are fired up he and his family are Bearcats!"
 
"It's a great day to be a Bearcat! My family and I would like to thank President Melson, Director of Athletics Clark Sheehy, and the entire SBU community for the opportunity to lead this program. I'm excited for the future of SBU baseball and can't wait to get the coaches and players together on the field!"
 
Coach Bradley comes to SBU after serving as an assistant coach for the Ouachita Baptist Tigers from 2021-2022.  He was the Tigers hitting coach, recruiting coordinator, and third base coach. The Tigers finished 33-24, earning an NCAA tournament bid; their first since 2008. They also broke a school record in conference wins (20) and qualified for their first Great American Conference tournament since 2017.

Previously he served as an assistant coach at Murray State University from 2020-2021. He was the Racers' third base coach while coordinating the team defense and assisting with recruiting, travel and game-day operations. The Racers finished 33-25 and set a school record for wins in the Ohio Valley Conference (18). Murray State also led the OVC in slugging percentage, runs scored, doubles, home runs, and runs batted in. Their 84 total team home runs were good for 10^th most in the country.
 
After the shortened 2020 season, Bradley joined the staff at Queens University of Charlotte as an assistant coaching and recruiting coordinator. He also served as the team's infield coach. Queens' 2021 recruiting class ranked No. 3 in the country according to Perfect Game.
 
Bradley spent the 2019-2020 season as an assistant coach at Ouachita Baptist University, where he was responsible for Junior College recruiting, instructed the team defense and base running development. The 2019-2020 season was cut short due to Covid-19.
 
Bradley spent the 2015-2017 summers as an assistant coach for the Gastonia Grizzlies, a wood-bat summer league team in the Coastal Plain League. In 2017, the Grizzlies won the Coastal Plain League Championship. He served as Head Coach for the Grizzlies for both the 2018 and 2019 seasons. In 2019, the Grizzlies won both the First Half and Second Half Western Division title while setting the league record with 200 stolen bases.

From 2013-2015 Bradley was a graduate assistant baseball coach at Lenoir-Rhyne University. Four former players were eventually selected in the Major League Baseball draft- Ivan Vieitez (2015, 27^th round Dodgers), Matthew De La Rosa (2016, 28^th round Orioles), John Luke Curtis (2017, 8^th round Braves), and Thomas St. Clair (2017, 24^th round Cardinals).

As a player, Bradley was a shortstop for Harding University from 2007-2011. In 2011, the Bisons' won the Gulf South Conference West Division, setting a school record for wins in a season (42) and advancing to the first NCAA Regional Tournament in school history. He left Harding as the program's all-time leader in sacrifice hits, while finishing second in career double-plays turned and fourth in assists.

Bradley is originally from Charlotte, N.C. He received his Bachelor of Arts in sport management from Harding University in 2011. In 2015, Bradley received his Master of English degree in liberal studies from Lenoir-Rhyne University. He resides with his wife, Swati and daughter, Ahlia.