NORFOLK, Va. – Norfolk State head baseball coach Claudell Clark announced Monday that Joey Seal has resigned as the program's associate head coach to pursue a local head coaching position.

Seal will become the head baseball coach at Nansemond-Suffolk Academy next month.

"On behalf of the entire Spartan Baseball family, I would like to personally thank Coach Seal for his eight years of outstanding service to the baseball program and athletics department here at NSU," Clark said. "Joey's desire to develop professionally and his tireless recruiting efforts to bring in quality student-athletes have been key factors in our program's continued improvement during his tenure. 

"His attention to detail and willingness to assist with the improvement of every facet of our program were the intangibles that made him so valuable and will no doubt leave a lasting impression on our organization for many years to come. I wish him much success in his new coaching post and it was a pleasure to have coached alongside him for nearly a decade."

Seal has spent eight years as an assistant coach at NSU. In that time period, he has helped the Spartans to the first three MEAC Northern Division titles in school history. As the primary pitching coach, Seal has also helped develop the last three MEAC Pitchers of the Year and two 2017 Major League draft picks.

Seal played at NSU from 2005-08 and graduated as the school's all-time leader in innings pitched, strikeouts and appearances. The latter two records were later broken by pupils that Seal coached, just two of a number of records broken by NSU pitchers in his tenure.

"I would like to thank the entire NSU administration and Coach Clark for allowing me to grow so much during my time here," Seal said. "I would also like to thank all of the players and their families who have been such a big part of my tenure. I will always cherish the relationships and bonds I formed with everyone who was a part of the program during my years on staff."