By Kyle Coppola
MDCA Graduate Collin Priest Having Massive Year at Clemson University
CLEMSON, S.C. — After a record-setting freshman season at Michigan, sophomore first baseman Collin Priest is proving to be a key addition for Clemson University baseball in 2025. The Mount Dora Christian Academy graduate, who transferred to the Tigers in the offseason, has made an immediate impact in his first nine games, helping Clemson race out to an 8-1 start.
(Priest crosses home plate after hitting a recent home run. Photo Credit – Clemson Athletics.)
Priest is batting .333 with 10 hits, including four doubles, two home runs, and 10 RBIs. His early-season production is living up to the lofty expectations placed upon him, as he entered the year ranked the No. 30 first baseman in the nation by D1Baseball and the No. 74 sophomore in the country by Perfect Game.
At Michigan, Priest made an instant impression, earning All-Big Ten Freshman honors after hitting .279 with 11 home runs—setting the Wolverines’ freshman record—along with 11 doubles, 30 RBIs, and a .578 slugging percentage. His breakout campaign put him on the national radar, leading to his transfer to Clemson.
(Ethan Priest is not only a great player but one of the nicest people you will ever come across. He’s a great representative of Lake County, Florida. Photo Credit – Clemson Athletics.)
A three-time all-state selection at Mount Dora Christian Academy, Priest was ranked the No. 35 player and No. 1 first baseman in Florida by Perfect Game. He set MDCA’s career home run record with 25 homers and finished his high school career hitting .383 with 84 RBIs.
Now, Priest is looking to build on his impressive start at Clemson and help the Tigers continue their strong season. Worth noting, his brother Ethan Priest is a senior at Mount Dora Christian Academy and is a pitcher. Ethan is having a fantastic senior year. Through 14.2 innings this year, Priest has 16 strikeouts and has given up only three earned runs. He has a 1.43 ERA which is among the top ERA’s in Lake County for a starting pitcher. Ethan Priest is committed to the Air Force Academy where he will play NCAA Division 1 baseball next season.
(Both Priest brothers will be playing NCAA Division 1 Baseball in 2026. Ethan is among Lake County’s top pitchers this season.)
Congratulations to the Priest family on the recent success! This is going to be an exciting year for our local baseball stars.
Kyle Coppola was born in Newton, Massachusetts and received his Bachelor of Fine Arts in Communications from Curry College in 2016. After traveling to Florida on a family vacation, he decided he could not get enough of the warm weather and made the move from snowy Massachusetts to central Florida 8 years ago.
For the last decade Kyle has gained valuable experience in social media content creation, marketing and sales, writing, video production, sports announcing and even broadcasting for local radio stations, such as FM 102.9 in The Villages and FM 91.5 in Massachusetts. Every year he volunteers at The Villages Charter High School as a play-by-play sports announcer for the football games as well as a public address announcer for the basketball games, including the annual Battle at The Villages Tournament.
Outside the office Kyle is a husband and father to two beautiful girls along with their cat. In his spare time he likes to spend time with his family, travel, play golf and swim. He is also a huge sports junkie and even bigger motorsports fan and loves to attend racing events when he can.
