Ross Steedley joined the Queens baseball program as head coach on April 16, 2020. He joined the Royals after spending one year as an assistant coach at NCAA Division I Jacksonville University.
In his third season with the Royals, and the first as a Division 1 program, Steedley guided the team to a 17-38 overall record. Queens navigated a difficult schedule that featured nationally ranked opponents in #23 South Carolina, #12 East Carolina, #15 FGCU, and #13 North Carolina. Steedley produced the ASUN Scholar-Athlete of the Year and Second Team All-Conference performer Riley Cheek who hit a team-high .324 with 31 extra-base hits, including 12 home runs. Fellow senior Nick Brassington also landed ASUN All-Academic Team honors as the Royals posted a 3.3 team GPA for the year.Â
During his second season with the Royals, Steedley led the team to new heights setting multiple records. The Royals tripled their win total from the previous season while making their first ever postseason appearance as a No. 4 seed in the South Atlantic Conference tournament. Queens took down four nationally ranked opponents in a season in which the Royals boasted a top 40 strength of schedule. Steedley was instrumental in the development of First Team All-Region Outfielder and CoSIDA Academic All-American, Nick Brassington. Brassington torched opponents at the plate hitting a team-best .370 while belting a conference-high 16 home runs. As a team, the Royals displayed one of the best offenses in the country ranking top 40 in doubles (30), hits (36), and home runs (39).On the bump, the pitching staff was 32nd in the nation in WHIP.
Steedley spent seven years as an assistant coach in the college ranks, including six years at the Division I level coaching for Gardner-Webb University, UNC Charlotte, and Jacksonville. With knowledge that spans all facets of the game, Steedley has served as a recruiting coordinator at each stop of his coaching career, evaluating and recruiting potential student-athletes. Eight players under Steedley's instruction have gone on to play professional baseball including Jeremy Walker, Chandler Redmond, and Tanner Jacobson. Walker was a fifth-round pick in the 2016 MLB Draft and made his major league debut in 2019 with the Atlanta Braves. Redmond, the 2019 Big South Player of the Year, was drafted by the St. Louis Cardinals in 2019 and Jacobson joined the Cardinals organization after being selected in the 2022 MLB Draft.
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During his time as the top assistant at Gardner-Webb, Steedley also worked as the team's hitting coach and was responsible for the development of the Runnin' Bulldog catchers. He helped guide GWU to two 30-win seasons and saw the team hit a program-record 71 home runs during the 2017 season.
Steedley played collegiately at nearby UNC Charlotte from 2008-12 where he was an All-Atlantic 10 First Team catcher and guided the 49ers to a 43-win season in 2011 that resulted in a conference championship and a berth in the Tempe, Arizona Regional. Steedley holds a bachelor's degree in communications from Charlotte.
COACH'S SUMMARY
Institution      Seasons Coached      Record
Queens            2                   55-81 (.404)
Year          School          Record
2023          Queens          17-38
2022          Queens          29-22
2021          Queens          9-21
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