Mayville State baseball coach Scott Berry to retire after 42 years with the Comets
Feb. 16—MAYVILLE, N.D. — Mayville State baseball coach Scott Berry said it's just time.
The 42-year veteran head coach of the Comets, who has led his program to 29 appearances in the NAIA national playoffs, has decided to retire after this season.
"It's not one thing; it's lots of things," the 67-year-old Berry said. "Life changes. I get older and the energy level is different. There's a lot of rubber off these tires. It's time to move on. My wife and I would like to do some traveling. I have eight grandchildren I'd like to see more frequently and my own children, too."
Berry plans to be with the Mayville State baseball program next season in a volunteer role.
Berry's teams have won 23 regular season conference championships including 17 in a row from 1986 to 2002. The program has won three regional titles under Berry and placed fifth at the NAIA World Series in 2002.
"To have been provided an opportunity and privilege to coach the team I played for and the school I got my degree from was a dream come true for me," Berry said. "After a while, the roots get deeper and your kids like where they're at and pretty soon the years go by and, holy smokes, it's been a long time."
Berry's overall record is 1,172-674-1. He was named conference coach of the year 24 times, district coach of the year 12 times and NAIA region coach of the year four times.
Berry grew up in LaMoure, then played baseball at Mayville State, earning all-conference honors as a junior and senior.
In 1981, after a few years coaching high school teams in North Dakota, Berry returned to his alma mater and became head coach in 1982.
Berry has been inducted into the Mayville State Athletic Hall of Fame (1996), the NAIA Hall of Fame for Baseball (2002), the North Dakota Amateur Baseball Association Hall of Fame (2003), the American Baseball Coaches Association Hall of Fame (2017) and the North Dakota Sports Hall of Fame (2018).
In 2010, the Mayville State baseball field was named in his honor.
"I've been blessed with a lot of good things in this program," Berry said. "Realistically, I'm in the education business. To work with young men like I have been has been the thrill. To think you had hundreds of kids over the years who by and large have bought in to your vision of success at Mayville State ... I applaud all of the players. They're my heroes.
"I'm just grateful and thankful for the support I've received over the years. I'm a very lucky and blessed man. You don't do this without people's help and support. I'm very grateful to my family, friends, alumni and community for supporting me and supporting the kids in our program."
