Radford University Men's Baseball

Christian Bourne enters his fourth season as an assistant coach with the Highlanders, a position he took over in August 2022 becoming one of the youngest pitching coaches in the country at the Division 1 level.  In just his second season, the Highlanders broke the school record for K’s per nine, achieved back to back 400 strikeout seasons for the first time since 2015, and signed the #1 recruiting class in the conference for the first time in school history. In addition, the Highlanders saw their highest draft pick selected since 2017 in right handed pitcher Dylan Howard. Since then, the Highlanders have been on a steady rise back to relevance taking the team from 10 wins in 2023 to 28 in 2025. Bourne made his way to the New River Valley by way of Georgia Southern where he served as the Director of Baseball Operations and Player Development under head coach Rodney Hennon. Over the course of a 41-20 season, that resulted in the hosting of a NCAA Regional, Bourne oversaw all aspects of Georgia Southern player development, using technology and innovation to design and research player development models to assist the coaching staff. The Eagles finished with their best season in school history and placed numerous players with postseason awards, including big league pitcher Hayden Harris. Prior to joining the Eagles, Bourne was with his alma mater of James Madison University as the Director of Pitching development alongside current Radford head coach Alex Guerra. The Dukes finished the 2021 season with three student-athletes earning All-CAA post season honors. Recent 2022 MLB first round draft pick Chase DeLauter (16th overall to the Cleveland Guardians) earned First Team and All-Rookie Team nods while fellow pitcher Liam Grubbs was an All-Second Team selection. Bourne joined the coaching ranks following a four-year career at James Madison, where he made 55 appearances for the purple and gold. Following his playing career at JMU, Bourne started his career in Nashville, Tennessee at Mount Juliet High School. Before the COVID-19 pandemic ended their season, Bourne guided an undefeated Mount Juliet staff to a team ERA of just 2.50. He helped coach nine student-athletes that committed or signed to play at the collegiate level and one MLB draft pick.  

Brandon Romans was hired as the program's Associate Head Coach in August 2025, and is entering his first season in the role.   "My family and I are excited for this opportunity to work with the Highlanders," commented Romans. "I would like to thank Head Baseball Coach Alex Guerra, Athletic Director Robert Lineburg and the administration at Radford throughout this process. I am excited to start working with our players and staff to help bring championships back to Radford!"   Throughout his 16 seasons coaching on the collegiate scene, Romans has showcased a wealth of baseball excellence at every level. Overall, teams that Romans have coached have seen 5 championships, 70 MLB Draft picks, 10 players that made MLB debuts, 13 All-Americans, 70 all-conference selections, 3 Players of the Year and over 500 victories.   "Today is a great day for Radford Baseball as we welcome one of the nation's premier recruiters and hitting coaches, Brandon Romans, as our associate head baseball coach," added Guerra. "I've known Brandon for 15 years and have seen firsthand his ability to recruit and develop elite players who have gone on to tremendous professional success. He builds strong, lasting relationships with his players. His passion, knowledge and energy will be contagious to our team. We're thrilled to welcome Brandon, his wife Emily, and their son Landon to the Highlander Family as we continue our pursuit of championships."   Romans joins the Highlanders after spending the last two seasons with the Pitt baseball program as an assistant coach recruiting coordinator working primarily with hitters, outfielders and leading the Panthers' recruiting efforts. In year one, multiple Panthers achieved career highs at the plate as the program scored their most runs (382) and second-highest batting average (.282) since 2013.   Pitt's leadoff man for a majority of 2024, Dom Popa, had the best offensive season of his career in his first year with Romans. Pitt's first baseman, Luke Cantwell, was second in all of the ACC in on-base percentage and third in the ACC in hit-by-pitches during his first season with Romans.   Prior to his time in Pittsburgh, Romans spent six seasons at Florida Gulf Coast as the program's assistant coach and recruiting coordinator. Romans was crucial in guiding the Eagles to break multiple single-season program records. In 2023, the team set their single-season home run (142), RBI (550), walk (310), runs scored (578), total bases (1,252) and slugging records (.592). Six players broke individual season and career records under Romans as well. At the end of 2023 conference tournament play, Florida Gulf Coast led the nation in home runs and slugging.   From 2013 to 2015, Romans was the first assistant coach at Jacksonville State. During his tenure, the Gamecocks saw 98 wins overall, 55 conference wins and a conference tournament championship in 2014. In his first season, Romans coached two All-Americans for the Gamecocks.   Romans got his start in coaching at UCF as a volunteer assistant from 2010 to 2012, immediately following his playing career which ended in 2009. Romans would return briefly to UCF in 2016 as an assistant coach. During his time in Orlando, Romans helped coached back-to-back NCAA Tournament appearances in 2011 and 2012. The Knights would lead the conference in home runs, doubles, runs scored and slugging while clinching their first Tournament berth since 2004.   During his playing career at UCF, Romans spent three seasons as an outfielder totaling a career .314 batting average with 17 home runs and 77 RBI. As a senior in 2019, he hit .333 while leading the team in home runs (14) and RBI (49). The performance earned him Conference-USA Second Team All-Conference honors and a selection on the Johnny Bench Award Watch List.   WHAT THEY'RE SAYING Dave Tollet – Head Baseball Coach at Florida Gulf Coast & Head Coach of Team USA "Brandon Romans is one of the premier offensive coaches in the country. During his time with us in 2023, we led the nation with 142 home runs, averaged 9.2 runs per game and posted an impressive .578 slugging percentage. In addition to his on-field success, Brandon is an outstanding recruiting coordinator with strong relationships across high school and travel baseball programs. His ability to connect with players and coaches alike, combined with the respect and trust he earns from everyone he works with, makes him an invaluable addition. He will make a tremendous impact on Radford Baseball."   Terry Rooney – Pitching Coach/Recruiting Coordinator at University of South Carolina "What a hire for Radford! Brandon is one of the best hitting coaches and recruiters in college baseball. His ability to relate to players and maximize their potential is elite. As a recruiter, his work ethic, evaluation skills, and relationship building will continue to elevate the Highlanders. As an alum and having worked with Brandon, this is a great day for Radford and another big step for the program and Coach Guerra.