By Mike London
mike.london@salisburypost.com

CHINA GROVE — Carson AD Josh Trexler announced on Tuesday that head baseball coach Kyle Bridges has resigned.

Trexler said the Cougars will name an interim coach for the 2025 season after the Christmas break.

Bridges was the head coach of the Cougars for two seasons, following his mentor and friend Chris Cauble, who had led the Cougars with great success from 2007-2022.

Bridges coached two solid, winning teams. The 13-12 team of 2023 was 8-6 in the South Piedmont Conference, one of the state’s best 3A leagues. The 16-12 team of 2024 was young but won 10 SPC games.

Both of Bridges’ teams lost tight second-round playoff games, with the 2023 team losing at Kings Mountain and the 2024 team falling at home in extra innings to Central Davidson.

Bridges had the distinction of coaching the 300th win for the program during the 2024 season.

Bridges, who is in his early 30s, played first base for Cauble on the Carson varsity from 2009-11. He didn’t hit homers, but he was an excellent line-driver hitter, a lefty who posted batting averages of .351 and .344 his last two high school seasons.

He played summer Legion ball for Kannapolis and South Rowan.

He played college ball at Lynchburg, but transferred to Catawba College to get back closer to home. He graduated from Catawba and entered the teaching field.

He was hired to join Brian Hightower’s coaching staff at East Rowan in 2014, and he gained experience as the head jayvee coach at East and by coaching Junior American Legion ball for Rowan County and East Rowan.

Next he got the head coaching opportunity at Carson.

He did a good job of keeping the Cougars among the strongest programs in the area. It’s a strong baseball school. A number of Cougars moved on to the college ranks during Bridges’ watch, including Catawba standout Hayden Simmerson.