About the Upstate Friars
The Upstate Friars is a middle school and high school Christ centered baseball program in Greenville, SC. Our program is open to the greater homeschooling community and private, Christian, Charter or alternative education groups that may not offer baseball in their own organization.
Program Philosophy
We strive to shape young men on and off the field through a Christian virtue-centered approach that blends the timeless wisdom of Coach John Wooden with the grounded, player-first philosophy of Cal Ripken Jr. Rooted in discipline, humility, teamwork, and integrity, our program emphasizes character as much as performance. We coach the fundamentals with excellence, foster a love for the game, and instill the values that form lifelong leader
Spring 2026 Season Info
Spring 2026 will be our innaugrual season, starting with just a High School Junior Varsity team. This team is eligible to all students grades 7-12.
For more information regarding the program or tryouts contact us at upstatefriars@gmail.com
Our Coaches
We are blessed to have one of the most experienced high school baseball coaching staffs in Greenville, SC.
Head Coach - T.J. Nielsen.
T.J. has been coaching local High School and Little League baseball in Greenville since 2013. T.J. played high school baseball in Arizona.
Assistant Coaches
Jim Nietopski - Jim is a former college baseball player and coach, having coached both the Rochester Institute of Tech. and Wichita St. when they were the number one team in the nation.
Allen Nielsen - Allen has over 40 years of experience coaching college and Christian high school baseball in California and Arizona.
