Tyler Bender will enter his third season as UC's pitching coach in 2021.
Bender's collegiate career began at LIU Brooklyn in 2013, before moving on to South Florida State College in 2014. Bender's next stop would be for NCAA Division 1 Alabama State University where he spent the 2015 and 2016 seasons.
In 2016, Bender graduated from Alabama State with a Bachelors of Science. Bender later obtained his Master's of Science from University of the Cumberlands in 2020.
Professionally, Bender had stops at Ida Baker High School and Indian River State College before becoming a part of the Patriots staff. At Ida Baker High School, Bender spent a season as an assistant coach in 2016. He spent the following season as assistant coach at Indian River State College where he was part of a staff that coached three MLB draft picks in 2018 . In July of 2018, Bender was named to the Patriots staff as the pitching coach.
In two seasons, Bender has played a huge role in elevating the Patriots pitching staff. In 2019, Patriots right hander Zach Hurley was a nationally recognized powerhouse, going on to win MSC Pitcher of the Year, among various other accolades. Hurley holds program records for innings pitched and strikeouts and was a critical piece in the Patriots post-season success. Other members of Bender's staff include seniors Nathan Geissler and Colton Easterwood who both earned MSC player of the week honors in the 2020 season, among others. The Patriots pitching staff ranked in the top ten in the NAIA in both Opponent Batting Average (.215) and Earned Run Average (3.080) last season while ranking 23rd in total batters struck out before the COVID-19 shutdown.
