Courtesy of Florida A&M Athletic Communications


TALLAHASSEE, Fla. | For one Florida A&M University baseball student-athlete, the chance to play baseball again after a pandemic-shortened season was much needed.
 
Kyle Coleman, a 6-foot-7 senior right-handed pitcher, participated in the Collegiate Summer Baseball Invitational (CSBI) in Bryan/College Station, Texas earlier this summer.
 
"It was a great experience," Coleman said. "When you get to see a bunch of guys and pitch against players from a bunch of big schools, it's eye-opening because you realize you're not very far off from where they are."
 
The CSBI is an invitation only, four-team regionally formatted tournament that features rosters composed of players from elite universities all around the country, hand-picked by the CSBI coaching staffs.
 
Coleman began the tournament on Team Unity, but was traded to Team Liberty. The St. Cloud, Fla. native started in the championship game and helped lead his squad to the tournament title. In the finale, Coleman pitched 2.2 innings, with three strikeouts and one walk, and surrendered just one earned run.
 
"It was just solid hitting all-around," Coleman said. "I didn't get very many hard balls hit off of me, but they were just really good hitters."
 
"We're just proud of him. He's just a go-getter," Florida A&M head baseball coach Jamey Shouppe said. "He's a good kid and just represents everything that college athletes should represent."
 
Coleman was selected to the CSBI based on a referral by Florida A&M assistant baseball coach Bryan Henry.
 
"Coach Henry was the one that got me into the program," Coleman said. "He put my name into a hat and I got accepted. He and Coach Shouppe were very happy for me … it made me feel really good to have their support."
 
"It's awesome. When I got contacted about whether we had any players who would be a good fit for that tournament, K.C. (Coleman) was one of the first guys I thought of," Henry said. "It was a chance for him to go out and pitch against some of the best players in the country."
 
Of course, with the threat of COVID-19 still lurking, all players participating in the tournament had to adhere to strict safety guidelines in an effort to prevent the spread of the virus.
 
"We took all the precautions. As soon as we showed up we got a COVID-19 test and we got our fingers pricked for the antibodies," Coleman said. "We were quarantined for the entire week."
 
Although his 2020 senior season was cut short, Coleman plans to enroll in graduate school at Florida A&M and return for one more season. Due to the pandemic, the NCAA granted an additional year of eligibility for all seniors participating in the spring sports.
 
As for his experience in the CSBI, Coleman said he would love the opportunity to do it over again.
 
"I would 100-percent do it again if I was able to," Coleman said. "It was extremely eye-opening to see the amount of competition there is in the country and how people can play baseball, come together and act like they've been brothers for a long time."