Clarksville, Ark.-University of the Ozarks has announced Tucker Hughes as the new assistant baseball coach, it was released Thursday (August 15) by Athletics Director Jimmy Clark.

A native of Sabina, Ohio, Hughes served most recently as the head coach of the Franklin Duelers in the Ohio Valley Collegiate Baseball Summer League. Hughes was a graduate assistant coach at Waldorf University and additionally served as the head coach of the Wellsville Nitros of the New York Collegiate Baseball League and Crown Point Sharks of the Mid-Atlantic Collegiate Summer League. His vast experience as a pitching coach includes time at Clark State Community College, Ohio Christian University and Miami Trace High School. 

"I'm very excited to have Coach Hughes join our program," said head coach Aaron Gentry. "He's a motivated coach and will bring new ideas for player development. I can't wait for our guys to start working with him."

He worked as an area scout for the Rockland Boulders of the Can-Am Independent Professional League and as a camp instructor with the Cincinnati Reds. Collegiately, he pitched at NCAA II Old Dominican University for two seasons and then at Ohio Valley University where he led the team to the conference championship by starting two games in three days, throwing 218 pitches and 17 1/3 innings. Hughes competed for the Queen City Legends collegiate summer baseball program where he ranks among the top-five all-time in earned run average, innings pitched, strikeouts and appearances.

He earned his bachelor's degree in English from Thomas Edison State University and his master's degree from Waldorf University in organizational leadership.