Baseball | 7/20/2026 1:24:00 PM
CROOKSTON, Minn. - The University of Minnesota Crookston baseball program announced the hiring of Dawson Tweet as assistant baseball coach. Tweet will be the program's hitting coach, and also work on defense and baserunning. He joins a coaching staff that includes Head Coach Steve Gust, and assistant coaches Rich Loomis (pitching coach and recruiting coordinator), Clarke Peterson (player development coach), and Cal Fougner (field coordinator and assistant hitting coach).
"Dawson is a great hire for our program," said Head Coach Steve Gust. He has the knowledge, desire, and work ethic to become an elite coach. He's a coach that fits in well with our program's philosophy. Dawson understands the value of relationships and overall development. He will also bring a unique and fresh perspective. Dawson has worked hard to get to this position. He will play a vital role in developing our hitters, base running, and infield play."
Tweet spent the last two seasons at Bismarck State College, helping the school transition from a junior college to a four-year school competing in the NAIA and the Frontier Conference. He helped the Mystics with player development at all positions, constructing and executing practice plans, recruiting student-athletes, and coordinating food during travel. Bismarck State achieved over 20 wins in their first season competing in NAIA. In 2026, he helped Cole Shirley to the Frontier Conference All-Tournament Team. In addition, Kaeden Wilcox and Eric Reiling were named Second Team All-Frontier Conference, while nine Mystics were named to the Academic All-Conference squad. He also helped Pacey Phillips earn All-Frontier Conference Honorable Mention in 2026. In 2025, Bismarck State posted a 29-24 mark with Shirley and Andrew Niaves earning Mon-Dak All-Conference Team recognition. Tweet helped the Mystics break the single-season home run record with 70, and in 2025 helped Bismarck State to a second-place finish at the NJCAA Region 13 Tournament. In addition, Niaves, Shirley, and Pacey Phillips earned All-NJCAA Region 13 honors in 2025.
Tweet is currently an assistant coach for the Waterloo Bucks in the Northwoods League, a collegiate summer wood-bat league. He assists with the development of hitters and defense, and has been the third-base coach. He also has been responsible for taking care of the grounds at Riverfront Stadium. Tweet previously helped at the Ben Berg Baseball Academy through Sanford Sports Bismarck for two years, coaching and developing athletes aged 10-17. In the summer of 2025, he helped coach the Old School Ducks 17-U out of Kansas City, Mo.
Tweet is a native of Russell, Manitoba. He began his collegiate career at Mesabi Range College, where he played for former Minnesota Crookston baseball Head Coach Chris Vito. He was an all-conference and all-region performer at Mesabi Range, hitting .429 over two seasons. Tweet was named the Conference Player of the Year in 2022. He transferred to William Jewell College, a NCAA Division II affiliate in Liberty, Mo. Tweet played as an infielder, hitting .332 as a senior. He was a 2024 CSC Academic All-District performer, and two-time Academic All-GLVC honoree. Tweet earned Magna Cum Laude recognition when receiving his Bachelor of Arts in psychological science from William Jewell College in 2024. He earned his health sciences associate's degree from Mesabi Range College in 2022. His father Blair Tweet played at North Dakota State University, and went on to serve as an assistant coach for the Bison. His brother Wyatt Tweet played at St. Cloud State University, graduating in 2026. His sister Savanah Tweet played softball at Minnesota State University Moorhead.
Tweet replaces Kaiden Zacharias, who returned to his alma mater to become the head coach at Salem University. The Golden Eagles have had five former assistant coaches/players advance to head coaching jobs this season: Zacharias (Salem), Dalton Parks (Minnesota State Community and Technical College-Fergus Falls), T.J. Hokanson (Valley City State), Alec DeMaria (UMary), and James Cullinane (Queens University of Charlotte).
"We are sad to see Coach Z (Zacharias) leave," Gust stated. "He did a great job with our offense, but we believe we got another great young coach with Dawson. We are excited to see how he, and Coach Cal (Fougner), can elevate our offense."
