Akron has hired Meaggan Pettipiece as the program’s new head coach, the school announced on Thursday.
Pettipiece spent the last three seasons as an assistant coach at Kent State, where she served as the top offensive assistant coach and worked with the program’s outfielders, base runners, and slappers. In 2017, Pettipiece was part of the staff that helped lead the Golden Flashes to the NCAA tournament for the first time in nearly a decade.
Before joining the Golden Flashes’ coaching staff, Pettipiece spent a decade as the head coach at Division II Northwood University. While at Northwood, Pettipiece led the program to a 217-225 overall record, and reached the conference tournament eight times. Her coaching resume also includes a six-year stint as an assistant coach at California University (Pa.), her alma mater.
A two-time Division II all-American during her playing career, Pettipiece helped lead the Vulcans to a national championship in 1998. In 2005, Pettipiece was inducted into the California University Hall of Fame for her accomplishments. She also spent seven years on the roster of the Canadian national team, including the active roster for the 2000 Olympics in Sydney, Australia, and as an alternate for the 2004 Games.
She takes over an Akron club that posted a 13-31-2 overall record on the 2019 season, including a 3-18 showing in Mid-American Conference play. The Zips posted a team batting average of .271 on the year, with a cumulative ERA of 5.94 among the team’s pitching staff.
