GREENSBORO, N.C. -- Tim Huber, the head coach of the 2018 National Champion Augustana Baseball team, has been named the 2018 ABCA/Diamond Central Region Coach of the Year.

Huber not only guided the Vikings to a 2018 NCAA Division-II College World Series National Championship for the first time in school history, but won a program record 52 games including an NSIC Tournament and Central Region tournament championship.

"Coach Huber is so deserving of this award and not just because of the National Championship," Director of Athletics Josh Morton said. "It's the work he has done to truly build a program the right way. His student-athletes excel in the classroom, in competition, and in the community."  

To go along with the 52-9 record in 2018, 12 of Huber's student-athletes were named Academic All-NSIC, seven were named All-NSIC, while Jacob Blank (Minnesota Twins), Tyler Mitzel (Miami Marlins), Zach Reeg (Texas Rangers) and Austin Orvis (Lake Erie Crushers) have been given the opportunity to play professional baseball.

"It is an honor to be recognized by the ABCA," Huber said. "I became a member of the organization at the very beginning of my coaching career and tro to get to the national convention each year. They asked me to speak this upcoming year in Dallas and it will be a career highlight for me to be on stage in front of thousands of my peers talking about our program here at Augustana."

Huber will be honored on Friday, Jan. 4 on the main stage of the clinic hall prior to the start of clinics at the 75th annual ABCA Convention, which is held Jan. 3-6, 2019 in Dallas, Texas.

About the ABCA: The ABCA, founded in 1945, is the primary professional organization for baseball coaches at the amateur level. Its nearly 10,000 members represent all 50 states and 23 countries. Since its initial meeting of 27 college baseball coaches in June 1945, the association's annual awards program has grown to include nine divisions: NCAA Division I, II and III, NAIA, NJCAA Division I, II, III, Pacific Association Division and High School.