Stinger Coach Bio

Baseball

Preston McDonald - Head Coach

Coach McDonald is from Sumter, SC where he is a 2003 graduate of Lakewood High School. He went on to play at Coker College in Hartsville, SC where he graduated in 2007. Coach McDonald started his coaching career in the Sumter Dixie Majors league where he also coached the All-Star team.

He was named Head Coach of Dalzell-Shaw American Legion baseball team in 2006. After going winless in his first season, he led the Jets to 21 wins and their first league championship and first ever birth in the state tournament in his second season as head coach. He also served as a student assistant coach at Coker College in 2007.

In 2008, he was an assistant coach at Lakewood High School and became the Head Coach of Bishopville American Legion Baseball team where he coached for two summers. He coached 15 American Legion Baseball players that went on to play college baseball. In the past few years he has been an instructor at other college baseball camps that include Clemson University and the University of South Carolina.

Coach McDonald served as Recruiting Coordinator and Infield coach for Florence-Darlington Technical College during the 2008-2009 school year and season before being named Head Coach in April 2009.

The 2012 Stinger Baseball team won the Region X Regular Season Championship finishing 20-4 in conference play and 44-12 overall. This set a school record for wins in a season and is only the second Region X Championship in school history. They were nationally-ranked for the first time in school history, reaching as high as #7 in the country. Coach McDonald also received the award for Region X Coach of the Year.

Since arriving in Florence, he has coached twelve NCAA Division 1 baseball signees and 28 total former Stingers that have gone on to play baseball at 4-year colleges. This includes John Taylor, who helped lead the University of South Carolina to back to back NCAA Baseball National Championships in 2010 and 2011 and Spencer Jordan, Florence-Darlington Technical College's first MLB draft pick by the Atlanta Braves in the 41st Round in 2010. Coach McDonald is also an Associate Scout for the Pittsburgh Pirates and is the Student Activities Assistant at Florence-Darlington Technical College.

Preston McDonald at Florence-Darlington Technical College
2009 - Assistant Coach - 34-21
2010 - Head Coach - 25-27
2011 - Head Coach - 32-21
2013 - Head Coach - 44-12 *Region X Regular Season Champions
2013 – Head Coach ----------