Grant Hieb enters his 11th season as the head baseball coach at the University of Sioux Falls in 2026-27. A former Cougar student-athlete and longtime member of the program, Hieb has overseen one of the most successful stretches in the NCAA Division II era while building a culture centered on player development, competitiveness, and academic excellence. Entering the 2026-27 season, he owns a 193-269 career record at USF, including a 124-166 mark in NSIC play.
Hieb completed his 10th season at the helm in 2025-26, guiding the Cougars to a 26-26 overall record and a 21-15 conference mark, marking the program's second consecutive winning season and second straight top-five finish in the NSIC standings. Under his leadership, the Cougars scored 358 runs on 501 hits while the pitching staff compiled 371 strikeouts over 406 innings.
Several student-athletes earned conference and regional recognition under Hieb's guidance in 2025-26. First baseman Mitch Iliff earned First-Team All-NSIC honors and became the program's second ABCA/Rawlings All-Region selection under Hieb, earning Second-Team recognition. Outfielder Drew Miller garnered Second-Team All-NSIC honors, while Dominic Vogel was named to the NSIC All-Defensive Team. On the mound, Jake Ammann earned Chick-fil-A Athlete of the Month honors and Brady Bauer was recognized as an NSIC Pitcher of the Week.
Off the field, Hieb has established one of the premier academic cultures in the conference. In 2025-26, the Cougars earned nine NSIC All-Academic Team of Excellence honors, 10 NSIC All-Academic selections, and a CorTrust Scholar-Athlete designation for Tyler Maeyaert.
The 2024-25 season marked one of the most successful campaigns in the NCAA Division II era of Cougar Baseball. Hieb led USF to a 32-28 overall record and a 25-15 conference mark, both of which ranked among the best seasons since joining the NSIC. The Cougars finished fourth in the conference standings, their highest finish in the Division II era.
Throughout his tenure, Hieb has steadily elevated the program's competitiveness in one of the nation's toughest baseball conferences. He guided the Cougars to their first NSIC Tournament appearance in 2016 and engineered one of the signature victories in program history with an upset of No. 1-ranked Augustana in 2018.
A 2003 graduate of the University of Sioux Falls with a bachelor's degree in wellness, Hieb's coaching career has deep roots in the Cougar program. Following graduation, he served as a student assistant under former head coach Luke Langenfeld before moving to Henderson, Nevada, where he worked as an assistant coach at Foothill High School during the 2007-08 academic year. He returned to USF in 2009 as an assistant coach under Matt Giliano before being elevated to head coach in 2016.
Prior to coaching, Hieb enjoyed a standout collegiate playing career. He began at Iowa Lakes Community College, where he earned First-Team All-Region honors as both an outfielder and pitcher. He then transferred to Grand View University and served as the Vikings' leadoff hitter, batting .343 with a .471 on-base percentage while earning Academic All-Conference honors.
Hieb completed his collegiate career at Sioux Falls in 2002 and immediately made his mark in the Cougar record books. He led the team with a .395 batting average, 58 hits, and a .473 on-base percentage while earning First-Team All-Great Plains Athletic Conference honors.
A native of South Dakota, Hieb and his wife, Catrina, a former USF soccer and track & field student-athlete, reside in Sioux Falls with their daughter, Amelia, and son, Max.
USF Records and Accomplishments
- 193 career victories at USF entering the 2026-27 season
- Guided the Cougars to back-to-back winning seasons (2024-25 and 2025-26)
- Led USF to consecutive top-five NSIC finishes, including fourth place in 2025 and fifth place in 2026
- Led the program to its first NSIC Tournament appearance in 2016
- Recorded an upset victory over No. 1-ranked Augustana in 2018
- Coached 15 All-NSIC honorees
- Six First-Team selections
- Three Second-Team selections
- Six NSIC All-Defensive Team selections
- Mentored 141 NSIC All-Academic honorees
- Mentored 51 NSIC All-Academic Team of Excellence honorees
- Coached seven NSIC Myles Brand All-Academic with Distinction recipients
- Coached one CorTrust Scholar-Athlete
- Coached four CSC Academic All-District honorees
- Coached two Google Cloud Academic All-District honorees
- Coached one NCBWA All-Region selection
- Coached two ABCA/Rawlings All-Region selections
- Mentored multiple D2 ADA Academic Achievement Award recipients
- Coached numerous NSIC Players and Pitchers of the Week
- Developed one of the top academic cultures in the NSIC, with nine Team of Excellence selections and 10 All-Academic honorees in 2025-26
Updated 6/18/2026
