The University of Minnesota Crookston baseball program announced the addition of Max Casper as an assistant coach. Casper comes to the Golden Eagles after spending the 2019 season as a volunteer assistant coach at NCAA Division I affiliate North Dakota State University. Casper was previously a graduate
assistant in the NSIC at Augustana University for the 2017 and 2018 seasons, where he was a part of the 2018 NCAA Division II National Championship won by the Vikings.
“We are excited to have Max join our staff,” said Head Coach Steve Gust. “He has the experience and intangibles we are looking for in a coach. Max has been around some good programs and worked with some great players and coaches. He has the experience to really take our program to the next level, especially with our hitters, infield defense and base running. He has paid his dues both as a player and a coach, and we are excited to see him excel as a coach at Minnesota Crookston.”
Prior to arriving at Augustana, Casper spent two years at North Dakota State as a volunteer assistant in 2015 and 2016. The 2016 Bison squad won 29 games on the season and finished the year with 64 stolen bases. In 2015, NDSU put up 20 wins and tallied 36 stolen bases on the campaign.
As a player, Casper competed for North Dakota State, where he became NDSU’s all-time leader in sacrifice hits (33) and defensive assists (623) and is tied with former Bison standout outfielder Tim Colwell for most career starts (208). He made 169 straight starts in his three-plus years as part of the infield for the Bison, compiling a .292 career batting average with 205 hits, 16 doubles, five triples, 81 RBI and 33 walks.
After his collegiate career, Casper went on to play professional baseball for parts of seven seasons. Casper has competed for the Sioux Falls Pheasants (now Canaries) and Fargo-Moorhead Redhawks of the American Association, the Lake Erie Crushers and Joliet Slammers of the Frontier League, and the New Jersey Jackals of the Canadian-American Association (Can-Am). Casper played as recently as 2019 in one game for the Redhawks. He played 434 overall games of professional baseball with 158 runs scored and 120 RBIs.
He earned a bachelor’s degree in sport and recreation leadership with a minor in public relations and advertising from North Dakota State. In addition, he obtained his master’s degree in sport administration and leadership from Augustana in 2018. He is originally from Mendota Heights.
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