Scott Berry wins 500th game as head baseball coach of Southern Miss

NORFOLK, Va. (WLBT) - Legendary Southern Miss head baseball coach Scott Berry has again put his name in the university’s record books.

Coach Berry secured his 500th as the head coach of Southern Miss after the Golden Eagles claimed a 4-2 road victory over then Sun Belt Conference leaders, the Old Dominion University Monarchs, Thursday evening.

Berry won his 499th game Tuesday night against Southeastern Louisiana in Hattiesburg.

“The longevity of being able to stay in this sport and do what I love to do, but more importantly, [I thank] the people that I’ve crossed paths with in my life that helped with every one of these wins,” Coach Berry said after the win. “Nobody does anything by themselves. There’s always people that help you along the way. I think that’s something we sometimes take for granted... But I think about the players, the coaches, and everybody that has invested in our program. I’m just blessed and fortunate and feel very humbled by it.”

“I think about the players, coaches, everybody's that's invested in our program."#USM coach Scott Berry quick to credit everyone that played a small part in his 500 career wins.@SouthernMissBSB #SMTTT

Big shoutout to my friends at WAVY for the video! @bpar73 @CraigLoperWAVY pic.twitter.com/1WZBW8MIUi
— Taylor Curet (@TaylorCuret) April 7, 2023

Berry is in his fourteenth season as the head coach of Southern Miss. He has registered a winning record in every season at the helm of the baseball program and has achieved more than 40 wins the last six seasons, which is the longest streak in NCAA Division 1 baseball.

2022 All-American pitcher Tanner Hall led the charge from the mound for the Golden Eagles’ hunt for Coach Berry’s milestone victory. Hall pitched 7.2 innings and allowed just four hits and one earned run while fanning seven Monarch batters.

Designated hitter Slade Wilks continued to stay on fire at the plate, hitting a timely home run in the top of the fourth inning to get Southern Miss on the board early. His home run Thursday night was his fourth home run hit in his last five games played.

Wilks also extended his hitting streak to eight straight games.

Coach Berry and the Golden Eagles will look to clinch their third straight league series Friday night with a win against the Monarchs. First pitch is set for 5 p.m. and the game will be aired on ESPN Plus.

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