BY SPENCER CAMPBELL
BRISTOL HERALD COURIER
BRISTOL, Tenn. – After three years and one National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics Region XII tournament appearance, King College baseball coach Mark Conkin has resigned, the school announced Wednesday.
“It’s something I need to do personally,” Conkin said. “The folks at King College were very good to me, but there were issues I had to consider based on my family. I had to evaluate where the program would be three to four years out and where I would be three to four years out. It seemed to me that I had to make a move.”
Conkin accepted the King College position in 2007 after teaching baseball and basketball at Colonial Heights Middle School in his hometown of Kingsport, Tenn., for eight years. Conkin also served as a scout for the San Francisco Giants and the Oakland Athletics after graduating from East Tennessee State.
In three seasons with the Tornado, Conkin’s teams went 94-55 and earned a bid in the NAIA Region XII tournament in 2008. Two pitchers off that team, Jace Smith and Eric Allen, were signed to minor-league contracts.
“We hate to see him go,” King College athletic director Dale Burns said. “He’s been with us for three years, and he’s done a good job. If you stay in this business long enough, this stuff happens.”
King College is attempting to make the transition from the NAIA into NCAA Division II play. Burns said that he has a list of seven prospective replacements, and that the search will focus on finding a coach with NCAA experience at either the Division I or II levels.
Conkin, told athletic officials on June 9 that he would resign, formally submitted his resignation on Monday.
Both Burns and Conkin say that the resignation is amicable. Conkin said that he hopes to return to public education for family reasons.
scampbell@bristolnews.com|(276) 645-2543
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