Ave Maria

Nicholas McCormick is in his fifth season with the Ave Maria University baseball program, and his second as head coach. He served as the hitting coach and recruiting coordinator from 2021-2023 before being promoted to head coach. 

The 2023 season was a historic one for the Ave Maria baseball program. The Gyrenes finished second in the nation’s best baseball conference, and earned the program’s first postseason win in a decade. The Gyrenes earned an at-large berth into the NAIA Tournament for the first time in ten years, and earned two victories in the Hattiesburg Regional to advance to the first Opening Round final in program history. The Gyrenes shattered numerous offensive records during the 2023 season, saw five players named All-Sun Conference, and a Gold Glove winner for the conference at SS.  

While serving as the hitting coach the single season records that have been broken include runs scored (444), doubles (112), triples (14), home runs (50), runs batted in (381), stolen bases (201), walks (261), slugging percentage (.456), on base percentage (.408), and total bases (780).

Prior to his arrival at Ave Maria, Nicholas was a hitting trainer at the Driveline facility in the state of Washington. While at Driveline, he worked with high school, collegiate, and professional hitters. During his time there he was able to learn under the likes of Tanner Stokey, Max Gordon, Collin Hetzler, Andrew Aydt, and more.  

Before becoming a coach, Nicholas had a successful playing career. A native of Speedway, Indiana he was selected to represent the Sparkplugs in the IHSBCA All-Star game and is a member of the Wall of Fame at Speedway High School. He began his collegiate career at Lincoln Trail College, and after his freshman year transferred to Eastern Illinois University. Nicholas spent two years at EIU, and finished his collegiate career at Arizona Christian University. He graduated from ACU in 2018 with a degree in business administration and a minor in biblical studies, and received his master's in business administration from Ave Maria University in 2023.  

Nicholas resides in Naples with his wife Allisa and daughter Josie Ann.