Former Hillcrest baseball coach Dale Nelson announced as Rams athletic director

Retired?

Not so fast, said former Hillcrest baseball coach Dale Nelson.

Nelson, who retired last month from coaching baseball at the high school level -- concluding more than 20 years as a coach in the area -- was announced as the athletic director at Hillcrest High School on Wednesday afternoon. The news comes just a few weeks after Thomas Fredrickson was let go as athletic director at Hillcrest following his only year in the position.

Hillcrest announced the news in a post on Twitter.

"I don't know what the future holds past this year," Nelson said Thursday. He said he isn't sure if he would remain in the position beyond the the 2022-23 academic year. But he said he is excited to take on the role.

Nelson was the baseball coach and assistant athletic director at Laurens for more than a decade before coming to Hillcrest and coaching the Rams to the 2021 Class AAAAA baseball championship.

More: Thomas Fredrickson out as athletics director at Hillcrest

Hillcrest: Hillcrest baseball coach Dale Nelson, who led Rams to first state title, retiring

A 1989 graduate of Laurens, Nelson was hired as an assistant in 1994 before being promoted in 2006. He left Laurens in 2016 and spent two seasons as an assistant at J.L. Mann before coming to Hillcrest in 2018. During his tenure at Hillcrest, the Rams were 65-30-2.

Hillcrest went 13-12-2 in 2022, one season after going 24-8 on its way to the AAAAA state championship. Nelson finished his baseball coaching career with a 262-134-2 record.

Nelson said he hopes to enrich the experience of coaches and athletes at the school. He also said having two assistant ADs will help him transition in to the role. 

"I'm very excited about the opportunity," Nelson said. "Hillcrest has a very rich tradition in athletics."

Joe Dandron covers high school sports for The Greenville News. Contact him at jdandron@greenvillenews.com and follow him on Twitter: @JoeMDandron.