CLEVELAND, Ga. (Jan. 29, 2021) – On Tuesday, the Truett McConnell University baseball team is set to host Toccoa Falls College at the TMU Baseball Complex at 3:00 p.m., to open their 2021 season. Furthermore, this will be the first official contest at the baseball complex with the new LED Ephesus Lighting System installed by Georgia Power.

The Bears will be coming off a 12-11, 4-2 AAC record from the 2020 season, which was cut short at the beginning of March due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Most notable from the 2020 season was TMU's Appalachian Athletic Conference series win over the previous reigning NAIA national champions, No. 1 Tennessee Wesleyan University. In 2019, the Bears recorded one of the best overall season records the program has seen (33-19) and received a national ranking as high as No. 18.

"The coaching staff is very excited about the team we have returning, and the new additions to the program," Head Coach Mike Croley said. "The fall and preseason practices have been solid, and the effort has been outstanding. We are very excited to see the team out on the field competing to the best of their God given talents and abilities. We have a solid group of players that are strong in their faith and understand the culture of the program, and have already made a positive impact on the newcomers."

TMU will feature a handful of key returners, including Josh Johnston, who was named to the NAIA All-America Honorable Mention Team following the 2019 season. Johnston has a career batting average of .345 with 211 total hits, 150 runs and 123 RBI's. The Bears will also be returning the bulk of their pitching staff in Craig Barton, Cason Brown, Andrew Fry and Brooks Rosser.

TMU's AAC opener will be against Milligan University on Friday, Feb. 26 – Saturday, Feb. 27. Keep track of when the Bears are in action throughout the 2021 season here: https://bit.ly/2MdqaRW.