NORMAL – Two familiar faces to Bloomington-Normal baseball have been hired to coach the Normal CornBelters for the upcoming Prospect League season.
Former Normal Community and Normal West coach Andy Turner has been named Normal manager, while current Normal West coach Chris Hawkins will be Turner’s assistant.
Turner also has served as the athletic director at NCHS, Rochester, Maine South and Glenbrook South high schools.
“I think the best part of the job is developing relationships with this type of player,” Turner said. “The college player has so many decisions to make in a short period of time. Hopefully, Coach Hawkins and I can provide some good information on our past experiences.”
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Hawkins started as the assistant coach at Normal West in 1998. In his 21 seasons as Wildcats head coach, Hawkins has an overall record of 537-230 and has guided the Wildcats to 12 regional championships and seven Sweet 16 appearances.
Hawkins directs annual baseball clinics and camps, as well as coaching for Parkside Junior High, Kingsley Junior High, the 15U BNBA Gold squad, and the 14U All-Star team from Illinois. He is currently a member of the Illinois High School Baseball Coaches Association Board of Directors.
“Andy Turner and I first coached together nearly a quarter of a century ago for two years,” said Hawkins. “During that span, we were fortunate to finish as one of the top teams in Illinois both seasons. After years of friendship, we are excited to get ‘the band back together again to compete for a championship.”
Normal’s season begins June 1 with the home opener on June 4.