Matt Fletcher
Camp Director / Head Men's Basketball Coach
Matt Fletcher enters his second season as the Head Men's Basketball Coach at Bethany Lutheran College in 2017-18.
Fletcher comes to Bethany after spending three seasons at Upper Iowa (NCAA II) as the associate head coach a year ago (2015-16) and an assistant the first two seasons (2013-15). During each of Fletcher’s three years with UIU, the Peacocks finished fourth in the South Division of the Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference, winning their first playoff game.
During the 2011-12 season, Fletcher was an assistant at Kentucky Wesleyan, helping the Panthers to a 23-8 record overall and an appearance in the NCAA II Midwest Region Championship game. He started his collegiate coaching career under Rich Glas at NCAA III Concordia (Minn.) during the 2008-09 season. Other stops for Fletcher include Anoka and South St. Paul High Schools.
“My family and I are extremely excited for this amazing opportunity and we are thankful to be a part of this great institution, athletic department, and community,” Fletcher said. “We will get to work immediately on developing these young men on the court, in the classroom, and in the community. We cannot wait to start building these relationships and the program at Bethany.”
Since 2013, Fletcher has been a camp coordinator for the Midwest Elite Basketball Camps. For five years, he also committed his time as assistant and head coach for the Minnesota Glory basketball squads, an AAU organization with three teams – 15 and under, 16U, and 17U.
“We are excited that Matt Fletcher has joined our staff to lead the men’s basketball program,” said Don Westphal, Director of Athletics. “Matt comes to Bethany with high accolades from numerous college coaches representing many Division II and III conferences in the Upper Midwest. He is a motivated coach and diligent recruiter who made a fantastic impression on everyone he’s interacted with here at Bethany. We look forward to his leadership of the Viking men’s basketball team for years to come.”
As a player, Fletcher, a native of North Branch, Minn., had a stellar four-year career at Southwest Minnesota State (NCAA II). The three-time All-NSIC performer holds the career records at SMSU for three-pointers made (305), free throw percentage (85.3%), and is second in three-point percentage at (44.8%). He also set the Mustang single-season records for free throw shooting (91.3%) as a junior and is second and third in the SMSU books for three-point shooting in a season (48.0%) as a sophomore and (45.5%) as a junior. Fletcher is the seventh leading scorer in SMSU history with 1,375 career points. He also ranks seventh in games played with 118, 11th in assists with 236 and 12th in field goals made with 436.
Lyle Jones
Head Women's Basketball Coach
Lyle Jones is entering his fourth season as the Bethany women's basketball coach in 2017-18.
Jones first coached the Vikings from 1991-92 through 2002-03. In 12 seasons, he compiled a 225-86 record winning three Minnesota Community College Conference (MCCC) State championships, eight MCCC Southern Division titles, which included a stretch of six straight from 1997-98 to 2002-03, and two National Junior College Athletic Association (NJCAA) Region XIII titles.
Jones was named MCCC Coach of the Year twice (1994, 1995), NJCAA Regional Coach of the Year twice (2001, 2002), and Women's Basketball Coaches Association District 4 Coach of the Year (1995) where he was one of seven finalists for national coach of the year.
Under Jones, Bethany teams were ranked in the national polls and were in the top ten in the nation in offense and defense each season. He coached ten NJCAA and KODAK All-Americans.
Jones is also an Associate Professor at Bethany in the Health and Human Performance department.
Nick Perrin
Assistant Men's Basketball Coach
Nick Perrin enters his second season as the assistant basketball coach at Bethany after spending one season in the Upper Midwest Athletic Conference at the University of Minnesota-Morris.
Perrin helped the University of Minnesota-Morris to a 13-14 overall record including winning 9 of 16 in conference and winning the conference tournament play-in game as the 4th seed. Perrin instructed a 1st Team All-Conference performer and two All-Defensive Team members. Prior to his time in Morris, he spent two seasons in the Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference at Upper Iowa University as an assistant. In those two seasons, the Peacocks had a combined record of 32-28 advancing to the second round of the conference tournament each season. Perrin instructed two All-Conference performers and one All-Region player. He has also been at the high school level as an assistant to Coach Fletcher at Anoka High School and South St. Paul High School.
Perrin is also active in running basketball camps acting as a camp director for Midwest Elite Basketball for the last three years. He helped run and instruct Upper Iowa's youth and high school camps during his time there. He has also been an instructor at multiple other college and high school camps across the state of Minnesota.
“I am ecstatic to be joining Coach Fletcher at Bethany. Having known and coached with him for many years I am confident we will have success on the court as well as have a positive impact on young men off the court.”
Nicole Jones
Assistant Women's Basketball Coach
Nicole Jones enters her fifth season as an assistant coach for the women’s basketball program after a successful basketball and volleyball career for the Vikings.
Since graduation at Bethany, Jones has been involved in AAU basketball at the high school level, as well as, coordinating basketball camps and clinics throughout the year.
As a student-athlete on the hardwood, Jones currently stands in the top ten in 16 different categories for the women’s basketball program. Jones was selected to the Upper Midwest Athletic Conference All-Conference team her junior year and 2nd Team All-Conference during her senior campaign. In addition to her All-Conference selections, she was named to the All-Defensive team her junior and senior year for the Vikings. Between volleyball and basketball, Jones was named UMAC Player of the Week several times.
Nicole Jones graduated from Bethany Lutheran College majoring in Sociology with a minor in Pyschology, and coaching certificate.
Brady Stier
Assistant Men's Basketball Coach
Brady Stier enters his second season as an assistant coach for the Bethany Men’s Basketball program. As a player, he broke his high school’s scoring record for points with 1,633 points at Lyle-Pacelli. Stier was named to the All-State honorable mention team his junior season, followed by conference co-MVP as a senior.
After high school, he went on to play two years under Coach Brian VanHaaften at Buena Vista University in Storm Lake, Iowa before becoming a student assistant coach in 2013.
Upon graduation, Stier returned to his alma mater, Lyle-Pacelli, to become an assistant coach for football, basketball, and track and field. Along with those duties, he also spent time as the summer strength and conditioning coach.
“I look forward to bringing energy, passion, and enthusiasm to the BLC basketball program that will inspire everyone to give their best effort by playing hard, playing smart, and playing together. I want these young men to not only grow their basketball skills but grow in character for their lives after college.”
Corey Whitcomb
Assistant Women's Basketball Coach
Bio. coming soon!
Dalton Kleinschmidt
Assistant Men's Basketball Coach
Dalton Kleinschmidt enters his second season as the assistant basketball coach at Bethany.
In the 2015-16 academic year, Kleinschmidt coached Junior Varisty Boy's Basketball at Madelia High School.
Kleinschmidt is currently the Founder and Director of Kleinschmidt Basketball Kamp (KBK) which provides student-athletes in Southern Minnesota, grades 4-12, the opportunity to enhance their basketball skills.
"I'm excited to be apart of Coach Fletcher's staff. It's a great opportunity to be able to coach at my alma mater and be apart of the new culture we are going to create. I look forward to coaching our student- athletes and fine- tuning their basketball abilities as well as helping them grow spirituality, " said Kleinschmidt.
Kleinschmidt graduate from Bethany Lutheran College in 2016 with a Bachelor of Arts Degree in Psychology.
Andrew Lentz
Assistant Women's Basketball Coach
Bio. coming soon!
Caleb Harman
Assistant Women's Basketball Coach
Bio. coming soon!
Camp Staff
The coaching staff will consist of qualified basketball personnel who work well with young players on a one-to-one basis.
Lyle Jones
Nicole Jones
Corey Whitcomb
Andrew Lentz