University of St. Thomas Athletics
Baseball
Kunik, Neal
Neal Kunik
- Title:
- Pitching Coach
- Email:
- Neal.Kunik@stthomas.edu
- Phone:
- 651-962-7932
Neal Kunik will begin his fourth season as a member of the Tommie coaching staff in 2024-2025, working with the St. Thomas pitchers.
In 2024, Tommie Baseball won the university’s first Summit League team championship in just its third season of DI competition. The 2024 squad finished with a 22-24 overall record, going 16-10 in Summit League play. The Purple had eight come-from-behind wins en route to a Summit championship. The Tommies earned eight All-Summit League honors, including two First Team accolades (Brigs Richartz and Max Moris), while two-student athletes earned Summit League weekly awards, four were named to the CSC Academic All-District Team, and a pair of Tommies were named to the Summit League All-Academic Team.
The Tommies continued into year two of Division I play with a 10-34 record overall and 6-18 mark in the Summit League, finishing seventh. St. Thomas came away with its second in over a Power Five opponent following a 2-1 victory at Kansas State. The Toms ranked fifth in the Summit League with a 7.44 ERA while starting pitcher Evan Esch was named the Summit League Peak Pitcher of the Week once.
Kunik spent the 2020-2021 season as an Assistant Coach and Arm Development Coordinator for North Iowa Area Community College. He focused primarily on pitching development with the staff as well as the creation and implementation of a full arm-development system for the position players.
A 2010 graduate of Eagan High, Kunik was an all-state baseball performer and was selected to the Minnesota Coaches' all-star series as a senior. He walked on at the University of Minnesota in 2014, pitching on the Golden Gopher staff in the 2014 and 2015 seasons. In 2014, Neal began the year in Minnesota’s bullpen, but earned a job in the starting rotation by mid-season. He finished the year with a 2.84 ERA in 44.1 innings pitched while holding opponents to a .231 batting average. He threw 13 straight scoreless innings in back-to-back starts earning a B1G Ten Pitcher of the Week honor for a seven-inning shutout start against Iowa.
Following his time at Minnesota, Kunik pitched professionally from 2016-2018 with the Birmingham-Bloomfield Beavers and the Sioux Falls Canaries. He was a United Shore Professional Baseball League All-Star with the Beavers and helped them secure the USPBL regular season crown in 2016.
Since 2016, Kunik has worked for multiple baseball training facilities around the Twin Cities with a primary focus on pitching and arm development for athletes of all ages. He has worked with professional, collegiate and high school pitchers to improve velocity development, mechanical refinement, and a return to throwing while working as a rehab coordinator for a professional club.
In 2024, Tommie Baseball won the university’s first Summit League team championship in just its third season of DI competition. The 2024 squad finished with a 22-24 overall record, going 16-10 in Summit League play. The Purple had eight come-from-behind wins en route to a Summit championship. The Tommies earned eight All-Summit League honors, including two First Team accolades (Brigs Richartz and Max Moris), while two-student athletes earned Summit League weekly awards, four were named to the CSC Academic All-District Team, and a pair of Tommies were named to the Summit League All-Academic Team.
The Tommies continued into year two of Division I play with a 10-34 record overall and 6-18 mark in the Summit League, finishing seventh. St. Thomas came away with its second in over a Power Five opponent following a 2-1 victory at Kansas State. The Toms ranked fifth in the Summit League with a 7.44 ERA while starting pitcher Evan Esch was named the Summit League Peak Pitcher of the Week once.
Kunik spent the 2020-2021 season as an Assistant Coach and Arm Development Coordinator for North Iowa Area Community College. He focused primarily on pitching development with the staff as well as the creation and implementation of a full arm-development system for the position players.
A 2010 graduate of Eagan High, Kunik was an all-state baseball performer and was selected to the Minnesota Coaches' all-star series as a senior. He walked on at the University of Minnesota in 2014, pitching on the Golden Gopher staff in the 2014 and 2015 seasons. In 2014, Neal began the year in Minnesota’s bullpen, but earned a job in the starting rotation by mid-season. He finished the year with a 2.84 ERA in 44.1 innings pitched while holding opponents to a .231 batting average. He threw 13 straight scoreless innings in back-to-back starts earning a B1G Ten Pitcher of the Week honor for a seven-inning shutout start against Iowa.
Following his time at Minnesota, Kunik pitched professionally from 2016-2018 with the Birmingham-Bloomfield Beavers and the Sioux Falls Canaries. He was a United Shore Professional Baseball League All-Star with the Beavers and helped them secure the USPBL regular season crown in 2016.
Since 2016, Kunik has worked for multiple baseball training facilities around the Twin Cities with a primary focus on pitching and arm development for athletes of all ages. He has worked with professional, collegiate and high school pitchers to improve velocity development, mechanical refinement, and a return to throwing while working as a rehab coordinator for a professional club.
Press Conference: Tommie Football Postgame v Lindenwood 08/28/25
Friday, August 29
Tommie Football Intro Video 2025
Thursday, August 28
Beyond The Buzzer: Schoenecker Arena Setup
Wednesday, July 23
Beyond The Buzzer: Sports Medicine
Wednesday, July 23
