Elon Phoenix Baseball Camps
Winning baseball continues to be the tradition for Mike Kennedy and the Elon University Phoenix as the skipper enters his 27th season as head coach in 2022-23. His previous 22 Elon teams have collected 18 winning records and 16 campaigns of 30 or more victories, all while consistently playing against many of the country’s finest programs. His 2006 squad set a school record with 45 victories while the 2008 team captured the program’s first NCAA Division I league tournament title. Kennedy’s program won four Southern Conference regular-season crowns as well as two league tournament titles. With each victory tallied, Kennedy adds to his record for the most wins by an Elon baseball coach that he set in 2003. In his 22 seasons, Kennedy has guided the Phoenix to 714 victories. In the last 20 seasons, Elon has had 27 victories over opponents ranked in the top-25. In his tenure, Kennedy has led his program to 54 victories over Atlantic Coast Conference opponents. The 2013 squad claimed the program’s ninth consecutive top-three SoCon finish, as the maroon and gold tied-for second in the regular season. Kennedy’s Phoenix then put together a run through the SoCon Tournament, winning five straight games after dropping its tournament opener, to win the league title and automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament. In NCAA Regional play in Charlottesville, Va., the Phoenix notched one of many firsts under Kennedy as the team advanced to its first-ever regional final. Prior to the start of the 2009 season, Kennedy was selected to serve as the pitching coach for USA Baseball’s National Team (Collegiate) during the summer. With USA Baseball, Kennedy was reunited with his mentor Rick Jones, a former head coach at both Elon and Tulane. Under Kennedy’s guidance, Team USA’s pitching staff recorded a 2.16 ERA in the squad’s 24 games that summer. In 212.2 innings, the staff surrendered 51 earned runs on just 118 hits. The pitchers also fanned 282 hitters and held opponents to a .164 batting average. Under Kennedy, Team USA threw the first-ever no-hitter against international competition. The squad captured the 2009 World Baseball Challenge title. In 2009, the Phoenix took home the regular-season SoCon title for the second straight year and third time in four years. Kennedy’s squad finished the SoCon season with a 22-3 record and went 41-18 overall. Elon earned a berth as the number two seed into the Atlanta Regional of the 2009 NCAA College Baseball World Series. The team also collected the program’s first top-25 finish at the Division I level, ranking 24th in the final Baseball America poll. Elon also checked in at 27th in the last National Collegiate Baseball Writers Association top-30 poll and was among the squads receiving votes in the USA Today/ESPN Coaches Top-25. The 2003 campaign was one for the record books. On the heels of the university’s first-ever at-large bid to an NCAA Division I tournament in any sport, Kennedy, a 1991 Elon graduate, made his mark by putting his name at the top of the list of Elon’s all-time winningest coaches. With a 19-4 victory over Liberty, Kennedy set the record for most wins by an Elon baseball coach, claiming his 197th victory at the helm of the program. For the former Elon catcher, it was a fitting start to a coaching career at his alma mater. After serving the program as a volunteer and graduate assistant coach for four seasons, Kennedy was named to the head coach post on Sept. 12, 1996. In the 19 seasons (1997, 2000-17) that Elon players have been eligible for postseason honors, Kennedy has coached 44 first-team all-conference honorees, 44 second-teamers, three third-team picks, 28 conference all-tournament selections, three all-region tournament picks, 25 all-state honorees, three league players of the year, two league pitchers of the year, three league freshmen of the year, four freshman All-Americans and two academic All-Americans. In his full tenure at Elon, 53 players have gone on to play pro baseball. A native of Fayetteville, N.C., Kennedy was a two-time honorable mention All-American catcher for Elon from 1988-1990. He experienced 102 victories during his career, as Elon posted a .756 winning percentage his last two years. The career .311 hitter batted .321 with seven homers and 36 RBI during Elon’s 1990 NAIA District 26 championship season. Kennedy signed with the Oakland Athletics organization as a ninth-round selection in the 1990 amateur draft, making stops in Scottsdale, Ariz., Medford, Ore. and Modesto, Calif. Prior to becoming head coach, Kennedy spent four seasons as Elon’s pitching coach. The pitching staff finished among the country’s top-20 NCAA-II teams in ERA four years – sixth in 1993, third in 1994, 18th in 1996 and fifth in 1997. Active in his profession, Kennedy is a frequent speaker and clinician at various schools and camps throughout the region. He and his wife, Liz, make their home in Burlington and have a daughter, Blair, and a son, Ryan.
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Winning baseball continues to be the tradition for Mike Kennedy and the Elon University Phoenix as the skipper enters his 27th season as head coach in 2022-23. His previous 22 Elon teams have collected 18 winning records and 16 campaigns of 30 or more victories, all while consistently playing against many of the country’s finest programs. His 2006 squad set a school record with 45 victories while the 2008 team captured the program’s first NCAA Division I league tournament title. Kennedy’s program won four Southern Conference regular-season crowns as well as two league tournament titles. With each victory tallied, Kennedy adds to his record for the most wins by an Elon baseball coach that he set in 2003. In his 22 seasons, Kennedy has guided the Phoenix to 714 victories. In the last 20 seasons, Elon has had 27 victories over opponents ranked in the top-25. In his tenure, Kennedy has led his program to 54 victories over Atlantic Coast Conference opponents. The 2013 squad claimed the program’s ninth consecutive top-three SoCon finish, as the maroon and gold tied-for second in the regular season. Kennedy’s Phoenix then put together a run through the SoCon Tournament, winning five straight games after dropping its tournament opener, to win the league title and automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament. In NCAA Regional play in Charlottesville, Va., the Phoenix notched one of many firsts under Kennedy as the team advanced to its first-ever regional final. Prior to the start of the 2009 season, Kennedy was selected to serve as the pitching coach for USA Baseball’s National Team (Collegiate) during the summer. With USA Baseball, Kennedy was reunited with his mentor Rick Jones, a former head coach at both Elon and Tulane. Under Kennedy’s guidance, Team USA’s pitching staff recorded a 2.16 ERA in the squad’s 24 games that summer. In 212.2 innings, the staff surrendered 51 earned runs on just 118 hits. The pitchers also fanned 282 hitters and held opponents to a .164 batting average. Under Kennedy, Team USA threw the first-ever no-hitter against international competition. The squad captured the 2009 World Baseball Challenge title. In 2009, the Phoenix took home the regular-season SoCon title for the second straight year and third time in four years. Kennedy’s squad finished the SoCon season with a 22-3 record and went 41-18 overall. Elon earned a berth as the number two seed into the Atlanta Regional of the 2009 NCAA College Baseball World Series. The team also collected the program’s first top-25 finish at the Division I level, ranking 24th in the final Baseball America poll. Elon also checked in at 27th in the last National Collegiate Baseball Writers Association top-30 poll and was among the squads receiving votes in the USA Today/ESPN Coaches Top-25. The 2003 campaign was one for the record books. On the heels of the university’s first-ever at-large bid to an NCAA Division I tournament in any sport, Kennedy, a 1991 Elon graduate, made his mark by putting his name at the top of the list of Elon’s all-time winningest coaches. With a 19-4 victory over Liberty, Kennedy set the record for most wins by an Elon baseball coach, claiming his 197th victory at the helm of the program. For the former Elon catcher, it was a fitting start to a coaching career at his alma mater. After serving the program as a volunteer and graduate assistant coach for four seasons, Kennedy was named to the head coach post on Sept. 12, 1996. In the 19 seasons (1997, 2000-17) that Elon players have been eligible for postseason honors, Kennedy has coached 44 first-team all-conference honorees, 44 second-teamers, three third-team picks, 28 conference all-tournament selections, three all-region tournament picks, 25 all-state honorees, three league players of the year, two league pitchers of the year, three league freshmen of the year, four freshman All-Americans and two academic All-Americans. In his full tenure at Elon, 53 players have gone on to play pro baseball. A native of Fayetteville, N.C., Kennedy was a two-time honorable mention All-American catcher for Elon from 1988-1990. He experienced 102 victories during his career, as Elon posted a .756 winning percentage his last two years. The career .311 hitter batted .321 with seven homers and 36 RBI during Elon’s 1990 NAIA District 26 championship season. Kennedy signed with the Oakland Athletics organization as a ninth-round selection in the 1990 amateur draft, making stops in Scottsdale, Ariz., Medford, Ore. and Modesto, Calif. Prior to becoming head coach, Kennedy spent four seasons as Elon’s pitching coach. The pitching staff finished among the country’s top-20 NCAA-II teams in ERA four years – sixth in 1993, third in 1994, 18th in 1996 and fifth in 1997. Active in his profession, Kennedy is a frequent speaker and clinician at various schools and camps throughout the region. He and his wife, Liz, make their home in Burlington and have a daughter, Blair, and a son, Ryan.
Robbie Huffstetler, a 1999 team MVP and 2001 graduate of Appalachian State University, will mark his 20th year on the Phoenix baseball staff in 2022-2023 after serving as an assistant coach at Appalachian State for two seasons. Huffstetler was promoted to associate head coach for the 2016 season. He works with the Phoenix infielders and hitters. In Huffstetler’s tenure at Elon, the program has had 48 players earn either first or second team all-conference accolades. The team has also boasted a CAA Freshman of the Year, two SoCon Freshman of the Year award winners, two SoCon Pitcher of the Year honorees and three SoCon Player of the Year recipients. The Phoenix has won 503 games since Huffstetler’s arrival for the 2004 season. During that span, Elon has won 40+ games three times, including a school-record 45 victories in 2006. Huffstetler has helped Elon capture four regular-season Southern Conference titles, two SoCon Tournament crowns as well as five bids to NCAA Regional play. In 2013, the Phoenix won its second SoCon Tournament title and advanced to NCAA Regional play, where it reached the regional finals. Elon won its fourth SoCon regular-season crown in 2011 with a 23-7 league mark. In 2009, the Phoenix took home the regular-season SoCon title for the second straight year and third time in four years. Elon finished the SoCon season with a 22-3 record and went 41-18 overall. Elon earned a berth as the number two seed into the Atlanta Regional of NCAA Tournament play. The team also collected the program’s first top-25 finish at the Division I level, ranking 24th in the final Baseball America poll. In 2006, Huffstetler was a part of Elon’s first-ever Southern Conference regular-season title with a 21-6 league record. The team also collected its second NCAA Division I Tournament berth in five seasons, participating in the Clemson Regional as the number two seed. In the regional’s opening game, the Phoenix knocked off third-seeded Mississippi State by a 5-4 margin for the first NCAA Division I Tournament victory in any sport at Elon. As head coach of the Coastal Plain League’s Thomasville Hi-Toms, Huffstetler guided the Hi-Toms to consecutive playoff appearances in 2003 and 2004. In 2002, Huffstetler was an assistant coach for the Hi-Toms. In 2003, his squad compiled a 32-16 regular season, tying the league record for wins and winning percentage. As manager of the Hi-Toms in 2004, he coached the team to the West Division title with a 26-24 overall record. In the summer of 2005, Huffstetler led the Mankato Moondogs to their best-ever finish and a team-record 32 wins. Huffstetler and his wife, Rikki, have three daughters, Reese, Rylee, and Reagan.
Serber enters his first season with the Phoenix in 2024. Serber has worked with programs all over the Carolinas including High Point, Presbyterian and CAA rival North Carolina A&T.
In 2023, Serber helped Xavier Meachem become one of the most versatile pitchers in the nation. To help Meachem recover from an early-season injury, the Aggies brought Meachem out of the bullpen, where he excelled. Meachem secured five saves and 12 strikeouts in 10.2 innings pitched.
Meachem eventually became a starter and finished the season 2-1 with a 5.59 ERA in 48.1 innings pitched. He also posted 47 strikeouts, became an MLB Draft selection, pitched in the first annual HBCU Swingman All-Star Game and made the USA National Collegiate Team.
Before taking the pitching coach position at A&T, Serber spent two seasons as the pitching coach at Presbyterian College. Thanks to solid pitching, Presbyterian won 27 games in 2015, a school record for the Blue Hose as a Division I institution. In addition, the Blue Hose received solid pitching performances in wins over nationally-ranked Clemson, South Carolina, Central Florida and Indiana.
Before his first full-time coaching job at Presbyterian, Serber served as a volunteer assistant at High Point University. Serber played four varsity seasons (2007-10) at HPU. For three years, he served as the weekend starter for the Panthers, going 6-3 in 85 innings pitched as a senior. He ranked ninth in career wins, and innings pitched when his career ended.
Serber and his wife, Jessika, have three children, Cayden, Jaxon and Emersyn.
Lincoln Hewett was named a volunteer assistant coach of the baseball program in October 2022, as announced by head coach Mike Kennedy.
“We are excited to have Lincoln join the Elon Baseball family,” Kennedy said. “His passion and energy for the game and teaching it will be an asset to our program. I believe Lincoln has a bright future in this profession, and we are excited he has chosen to come on board.”
No stranger to the Triad, Hewett came to Elon after a two-month stint as the hitting coach and recruiting coordinator at his alma mater, Greensboro College. Before that, he held the same role for three years at Pfeiffer University, where he worked with the Falcons’ hitters and outfielders.
Hewett also served as the hitting coach for the Coastal Plain League’s High Point-Thomasville HiToms in the summer of 2021. Under his direction, the HiToms led the CPL in home runs and total bases and ranked second and third, respectively, in runs and RBIs.
A 2019 graduate of Greensboro College, Hewett hit .335/.406/.513 with a team-best 48 RBIs en route to all-conference and ABCA/Rawlings All-South Region third-team honors as a senior. He also played two years at South Georgia State College.
A Gainesville, Ga., native, Hewett played high school baseball at North Hall, where he was named to the all-region and all-area teams three times and the Under Armour Preseason All-America team twice.
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Elon Phoenix Baseball Camps
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