Author: jmcleod

Western Illinois has hired Collin Hopkins as the Leathernecks’ new assistant coach, sources have confirmed to JWOS. Hopkins is expected to work with the WIU pitching staff, and is the first assistant hired to head coach Alisa Goler’s inaugural staff with the Leathernecks following her own hiring earlier this summer. An Illinois native, Hopkins most recently worked as a graduate manager on Gerry Glasco’s staff at Louisiana-Lafayette. He was part of the support staff that helped boost the Ragin’ Cajuns to the #1 ranking in the inaugural RPI of the 2020 season. Prior to joining the Cajuns’ staff, Hopkins played…

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Virginia Tech infielder Maddi Banks has entered the transfer portal, sources confirmed to JWOS on Thursday. As a freshman in 2019, Banks batted .259, with four home runs and a .729 OPS. She was the Hokies’ starting second baseman, and also led the team with thirteen stolen bases as a rookie. During the abbreviated 2020 season, Banks finished fifth on the team with a .340 batting average and recorded three home runs and nine RBIs. She posted a slugging percentage of .585 and an OPS of .937. During the summer, Banks suited up for the Bradenton Slice in the Florida…

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In 2013, Saint Louis slugger Laura Bohning made softball history. In a game against Rhode Island, Bohning slugged two grand slams in the same inning, becoming one of just three players in Division I history to accomplish the feat. Years later, the record earned her a mention in an episode of popular television game show Jeopardy! While the acknowledgement from famed host Alex Trebek and the number of times that her name still appears in the Saint Louis program record book are each impressive in their own right, Bohning’s crowning achievement might be taking place in the present time. A physician…

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Who is she? Maddie Antone, a former infielder for the Winthrop Eagles. What is she known for? A three-time All-Conference selection during her playing career, Antone earned first-team honors in 2017. She batted .379 for her career, with 93 RBIs and 89 runs scored, and holds the Winthrop program record for on-base percentage (.469) and slugging percentage (.592). In 2014, she was named the Big South’s Freshman of the Year and was named to the conference’s all-freshman team that same year. Here’s something interesting… In late June, Antone was named to the Big South’s All-Decade Team for the 2010s. The 13th…

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Bucknell sophomore outfielder Allyse Volpe has entered the NCAA’s transfer portal, sources informed JWOS. Volpe enjoyed a stellar freshman campaign during the 2019 season, batting .399 with fifty-seven hits and a .442 on-base percentage. Despite missing a handful of games due to injury, she led the Patriot League in both batting average and on-base percentage. A third-team All-Region selection after the year, Volpe earned first-team all-conference honors and was named the Patriot League Rookie of the Year. During the 2020 campaign, Volpe batted .352 on the shortened year, leading her team for the second season in a row. She also led…

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UAB didn’t anticipate a coaching change this summer, but when the need to appoint a new head coach arose, there was one name that stood out: Joe Guthrie. Guthrie had been the Blazers’ top assistant for the past two years, earning the title of associate head coach before the 2020 season. He was officially named the team’s new head coach on July 9, following the departure of Jimmy Kolaitis to Arizona State. A veteran coach, Guthrie spent six years as the head coach at Marion Military Institute from 2007-13. His career also includes several stints as an assistant coach at…

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Michael Lewis will be named the new assistant coach at Virginia Tech, sources confirmed to JWOS on Wednesday. Lewis joins the Hokies’ staff after a stint on staff at Minnesota. He began his tenure with the Golden Gophers as a graduate manager before being promoted to the role of volunteer assistant coach. He was part of the staff that led the Gophers to a berth in the 2019 Women’s College World Series. Prior to his tenure in Minneapolis, Lewis spent three years on staff at Missouri-Kansas City, including two years as an assistant coach for the Roos. A longtime men’s fastpitch player,…

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No one has been hotter this summer than Mack Leonard. The Myakka City RiverMocs’ super-hybrid standout made a difference both with her bat and her arm during the Florida Gulf Coast League’s inaugural season. Entering the league playoffs, Leonard owned a 9-0 record in the circle and a .482 average at the plate. One of a handful of true breakout stars during the FGCL’s inaugural season, it might come as a surprise that Leonard wasn’t an initial target when the league sought out players to take part. Despite leading her team in batting average during the shortened 2020 collegiate season,…

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Chad Kerr has been hired as head coach at Division II Southwest Baptist. Kerr spent the 2020 season as the head coach at Oklahoma Panhandle State University, where he led the program to a 10-16 overall record before the season’s abrupt end due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Prior to taking the helm at OPSU, Kerr’s coaching resume includes a 3-year stint as the head coach at Lincoln University and time at Alderson Broaddus and Central Christian College. He was the athletic director at Central Christian from 2012-14. Southwest Baptist athletic director Mike Pitts said in a statement, “”I’m very happy…

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On Monday night, Alyssa Nakken became the first woman to coach in an on-field role within Major League Baseball. Nakken served as the first-base coach for the San Francisco Giants for a portion of the team’s exhibition game against the Oakland Athletics. Earlier this year, Nakken became the first woman to hold a full-time Major League coaching position in MLB history. https://twitter.com/MLBONFOX/status/1285427077538181121 “Congratulations on making history!” Giants outfielder Hunter Pence tweeted after Monday’s game, his message accompanying a video of Nakken in the first-base coaching box. Listed as a Major League Coach on the team’s coaching roster, Nakken joined manager…

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