BOILING SPRINGS – Gardner-Webb baseball announced today at Ryan Sloniger has been named Pitching Coach for the Runnin' Bulldogs.

Sloniger comes to Boiling Springs from Kent State University, where he served on staff as Assistant Pitching Coach for the 2022 season. Sloniger also spent time with the Kent State program as Director of Player Development last fall. He begins his new role at Gardner-Webb on July 1.

"We are excited to welcome Ryan and Alyssa to the Gardner-Webb baseball family. Ryan is blue-collar and committed to player development," said head coach Jim Chester. "His knowledge and implementation of analytics will help our staff reach a new level of success. Ryan's success as a player and as a coach at Kent State paves the way for a bright future on the mound for the Runnin' Bulldogs."

Sloniger played collegiately at Penn State, where he started as the Nittany Lions' catcher from 2016-2019. His best season at the plate came in 2018 as a junior, when he batted a team-high .306 with fie home runs, 13 doubles and 31 RBI. Sloniger finished his career ranked in the top-10 in Penn State history in career putouts.

He went on to play professionally after being selected in the 38th round by the Toronto Blue Jays in the 2019 MLB Draft. He spent three seasons in the pro ranks. He batted .327 in his first assignment with Bluefield in 2019 and was called up after 30 games to Vancouver in the Northwest League. Sloniger finished the 2019 season with a .304 batting average and 10 home runs in 43 total games. His final season came with the Dunedin Blue Jays in 2021 in the Florida State League. He saw valuable time in 65 professional games and hit 12 home runs, drove in 39 runs and forged a solid .356 career on base percentage.

During his college coaching debut at Kent State in 2022, Sloniger worked as the team's catching coach, assistant pitching coach and first base coach, He also tossed batting practice for the Golden Flashes, handled in game pitch selection and worked as the program's camp coordinator.

Sloniger joins a Gardner-Webb program on the rise, with a strong core group returning on the mound and at the plate for the 2023 season.