Two new coaches will be on the Brookland-Cayce campus next year. Matt Kline will be the school’s next baseball coach, and Jamaal Brown will be the next girls basketball coach.

Both coaches have previous experience. Kline worked as a high school assistant and travel ball coach, and Brown has a 17-year career where he coached as high as Division II.

“I know there’s work to be done, but I’m extremely excited for the opportunity and everything that comes with it,” Kline said.

Kline has been a coach in South Carolina for over 10 years, after graduating from Coastal Carolina in 2016. He has been a coach for various travel organizations and recreation teams.

His high school coaching experience includes stops at North Myrtle Beach High School and Waccamaw High School. He was a B-team coach at North Myrtle for two years before going to Waccamaw, where he spent the past three seasons.

Between his experience at the school and travel levels, Kline said he learned a lot that prepared him for this moment.”

“Being able to hear guys’ testimonies from all around different programs because we bounce around the state looking for the best players to be in our summer program,” Kline said. “I’m kind of just being a sponge to what players like, what coaches like to do and just trying to be as well-rounded to my efforts and providing the best atmosphere for players to develop and compete.”

Kline is already familiar with some of the Brookland-Cayce players. A few play for his travel ball team, and he saw the Bearcats up close the past two years as Brookland-Cayce and Waccamaw met in the postseason.

“I know there is a ton of talent,” Kline said. “The kids are very eager to put the work in on and off the field. I think there’s some high-quality players at multiple positions that as a collective unit can become extremely competitive.”

The Bearcats went 12-16 overall in 2024 but 7-3 in region games. The team was eliminated by Waccamaw in the Lower District 4 championship game.

Kline wants to help the team improve on its previous season and will immediately begin establishing his culture. He said his team will be disciplined and practice good fundamentals.

“I think the main goal is check the boxes on the little things, make sure we practice hard, act the right way, very routine fundamentals, don’t lose the side of the game of baseball that’s been played for a very long time,” Kline said. “Having an IQ for the game and knowing what to do in adverse situations, and at the end of the day just flat out compete. Whether good things happen or bad things happen, don’t let it change the way you hustle and the effort that goes into competing at the highest level.”

Brown is entering his 17th season of coaching after a long playing career that included stops overseas and the NBA G-League. He is a Spartanburg native who won a state championship with the team in 2002 and was named 4A player of the year, All-Region and All-State.

He played Division I basketball at Western Kentucky and was part of a conference championship-winning team. He later transferred to Cal State Fullerton where he became All-Conference and advanced to the NIT.

His career continued after that in countries such as Holland, Germany, Taiwan and the Dominican Republic. He also played with the G-League affiliate for the Los Angeles Lakers and Golden State Warriors.

Brown got his start in coaching at Arkansas Baptist on the men’s side before switching to coaching women. He will be taking over a Brookland-Cayce roster that went 5-15 and 2-8 in region play during the 2023-24 season.