Hiram Athletics elevated Pierce Cumpstone to become the 19th head coach of the Terriers men’s basketball program earlier this week. Cumpstone served as an assistant coach for the Terriers over the past two seasons after a five-year career playing in Europe. He takes over for Taylor Roth, who spent four seasons at the helm.
“We want to thank Taylor for the great work he’s done over the last four seasons,” Director of Athletics Scott Pohlman said. “Hiram wishes him the best of luck with his coaching career. We are all looking forward to seeing his continued progress as a head coach.”
Cumpstone served in a variety of roles as an assistant coach with the program, assisting in recruiting, practice planning, opponent scouting reports, game film analysis, individual skill workouts and leading the team’s junior varsity roster. Prior to coaching at Hiram, he played professionally from 2016-2021 in Germany’s Regionalliga 1 League, Luxembourg’s N2 League and Malta’s BOV League. He was a Third Team All-League selection while playing for the BBC Rendsburg Twisters in 2018-19.
“Pierce has established himself as an up-and-coming collegiate coach throughout his time with our program,” Pohlman said. “We are thrilled to have him stay at Hiram and build upon his professional and collegiate experience beginning in 2024-25.”
Cumpstone’s collegiate career involved four successful seasons at Division II Stonehill College (North Easton, MA), where he was a part of two NCAA Tournament appearances in 2015 and 2016. In his senior season, he averaged a career-high 14.5 PPG on 53% shooting from the field and 45% shooting from beyond the arc. He earned All-Conference Third Team honors for his efforts, paving the way to both a playing and coaching career.
“It is with the utmost eagerness and passion that I accept the offer to become the new head coach for the men’s basketball program at Hiram College,” Cumpstone said. “Hiram College is a special place that encourages dedicated and passionate students to reach their full potential. I will be doing my best to reflect this in the way men’s basketball is run.”
Hiram’s 2023-24 season was highlighted by a 91-83 win over Hilbert in Dec. 2023, which saw Trent Jakacki score 46 points, the most in a single game by a Hiram student-athlete since 1987. The home victory also snapped the opposition’s seven-game win streak. In 2022-23, with Cumpstone on the coaching staff, the Terriers had five conference victories and featured the highest-scoring offense in the NCAC.
“Our returners ended the year with a strong spring off-season and have been working to make a comeback for the 2024-2025 season,” Cumpstone said. “Because of this, I could not be more excited with the direction in which this program is going and could not be more motivated to get to work with this team.”
Terriers student-athletes will return to campus in August, with winter sports like men’s basketball right around the corner from the start of competition. Hiram men’s basketball will compete in the NCAC in 2024-25 before making the transition to PAC competition in 2025-26.
