Matt Burns - Associate Head Coach / Recruiting Coordinator - Staff Directory

Staff Directory

Matt Burns

Title:
Associate Head Coach / Recruiting Coordinator
Email:
Phone:
765-285-5131

Matt Burns enters his third season as a member of the Ball State softball coaching staff in 2026 and his second as associate head coach. He serves as the team’s hitting coach and recruiting coordinator.

“Matt is a great teacher of the game,' head coach Helen Peña said. "He has a talented offensive mind and cares about instilling life lessons into our players. Coach Burns has been a tremendous asset to this team, my staff, and I’m very excited to see him continue to grow!”

In his first two seasons with the program, the Cardinals have registered a 62-47 overall record, including a 28-22 ledger in MAC play. Ball State advanced to the championship series of the 2024 MAC Tournament, while falling in the final game of the elimination bracket to the eventual tournament champion last season.

The 2025 season saw the Cardinals (33-18; 16-9 MAC) pile on the runs, ranking 22nd nationally with a 6.59 runs-per-game average. Ball State earned eight run-rule victories over the course of the year and scored 10-or-more runs in 13 games. The team’s 336 total runs were the sixth-most in a season in program history and the most since the 2021 squad scored 355.

Burns’ work helped Ball State led the nation in hit batters (91) and rank 58th in total walks (192), with the team capitalizing on the free bases thanks to a .479 slugging percentage which ranked 64th nationally. The Cardinals’ slugging was showcased by 51 home runs, the second-most in the MAC in 2025, and 75 total doubles.

His coaching helped McKayla Timmons earn MAC Player of the Year and NFCA All-Great Lakes Region honors after ranking among the nation’s leaders in on base percentage (3rd at .615), slugging percentage (14th at .904), batting average (27th at .434), home runs (65th at 16) and RBIs (84th at 54). Timmons also stole a team-best 21 bases, helping the Cardinals rank first in the league and 29th nationally with 87 stolen bases.

In his first season in 2024, his coaching helped the Cardinals (29-29; 12-13 MAC) secure the sixth and final seed in the conference championship. Ball State topped Central Michigan by a score of 5-2 in its final game of the regular season to earn the berth, and after losing its second game in the tournament to Ohio, won three consecutive elimination games to make it to the title series.

Ball State turned in some solid offensive numbers in Burns’ first season, ranking second in the conference and 58th nationally with a 5.16 runs-per-game average. The Cardinals blasted 52 home runs on the season, led by a BSU single season record 25 from McKayla Timmons. One of four Cardinals to collect All-MAC honors in 2024, Timmons also earned a spot on the NFCA All-Great Lakes Region First Team.

The 2024 Cardinals offense also ranked second in the MAC and 28th nationally with 84 total doubles, with four different players collecting 11 on the season. Ball State also finished the season ranked 19th among all NCAA Division I programs with 208 walks drawn, while ranking 75th nationally with a .440 team slugging percentage.

Prior to joining the Ball State staff, Burns spent the 2022 and 2023 seasons as an assistant coach at the College of Charleston.

In his two seasons with the Cougars, Burns helped the program make back-to-back Coastal Athletic Association tournament appearances after missing the event in 2021. He helped mentor four players who earned Second Team All-CAA honors, as well as the 2022 CAA Rookie of the Year. His work helped CofC’s team batting average jump .025 from before his arrival, with seven of the team’s eight returning hitters seeing improvement in both average and OPS from their first to second season under his tutelage.

Before joining the College of Charleston staff, Burns was an assistant at Longwood for the 2021 campaign, where he mentored two players to First Team All-Big South honors and one to Second Team All-Big South accolades. He also helped eight of the 10 returning hitters improve in average, on base percentage and/or slugging percentage from the previous season.

Prior to arriving at Longwood, Burns spent three seasons (2018-2020) at Bucknell, where he helped five Bison earn First Team All-Patriot League honors, five players earn Second Team All-Patriot League accolades and coached one player to Patriot League Rookie of the Year status. He helped the 2018 squad set the program’s single-season home record (36) and lead the league in average, on base percentage, slugging, home runs and walks in conference play.

The Bison also led the Patriot League in average, on base percentage, slugging percentage, runs scored, triples, home runs, stolen bases and walks in league play during the 2019 season. Bucknell finished second in the Patriot League in 2018 and 2019, winning 55 games with a 27-8 conference record over the two years.

Burns started his softball coaching career with a two-year stint at Skidmore College for the 2015 and 2016 seasons. There, he worked with five First Team All-Liberty League selections and helped his players earn one NFCA All-America Second Team honor and six NFCA All-Region accolades, with five being first-team selections.

A four-year varsity letterwinner in baseball at Plattsburgh State, including serving as team captain as a senior, Burns started his coaching career as a baseball coach at SUNY Oneonta (2012). He also coached baseball at Bard College (2013), SUNY New Platz (2014) and was a volunteer coach at Akron (2014-15).

Burns graduated from SUNY Plattsburgh in 2011 with a combined Bachelor of Arts/Master of Science for Teachers degree. He will be joined in Muncie by his wife, Danielle, their son, Derek, and daughter, Gabriella.