Softball News and Information

AN INSIDE LOOK AT OUR MEMBERS

Get to know our NFCA members better through these features.

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TWENTY QUESTIONS WITH BOO DE OLIVEIRA

Boo De Oliveira is in her second season as an assistant coach at the University of Notre Dame after many years as a Division I assistant at Arkansas, Arizona State, North Carolina and Purdue. She also spent time as Purdue’s head coach.

Following a highly-successful playing career at the University of Wisconsin, the former Florida high school Player of the Year got her start in coaching not far from her alma mater at Division III’s Edgewood College and NJCAA’s Madison Area Technical College.

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TWENTY QUESTIONS WITH AARON MULLENS

Aaron Mullens is in his 10th season as the head coach at Murray State College, where the Lady Aggies have started the year 22-0 and are the No. 1-ranked team in NJCAA Division II.

On Monday, Mullens recorded his 400th collegiate coaching victory with a doubleheader sweep of Dodge City Community College. Overall, he has won 565 games, including 165 games over six seasons leading Oklahoma’s Durant High School.

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MEMBER PROFILE: Denny Griffin, Alma College

Denny Griffin is grateful for the honor bestowed by his coaching peers. And he is quick to list the players, coaches and administrators who have helped him excel over the past 43 years at Alma College, including the last 37 as the Scots’ head softball coach.

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MEMBER PROFILE: Kevin Griffin, Belhaven University

WHEN YOU talk about a coach having a terrific year, usually that means a run deep into the playoffs and maybe getting their players some postseason accolades. For Belhaven head coach Kevin Griffin, 2024 was a truly amazing year both professionally and personally.

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SOFTBALL ACROSS THE GLOBE

Here's what is going on with softball around the globe.

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USA SOFTBALL REVEALS 2026 WNT ATHLETE POOL

USA Softball has announced the list of athletes identified by the Women’s National Team Selection Committee (WNTSC) for the U.S. Women’s National Team (WNT) Athlete Pool.

Courtesy of USA Softball

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USA SOFTBALL REVEALS 2026 HALL OF FAME CLASS

The National Softball Hall of Fame will expand its storied legacy in 2026 with the induction of five individuals and one team to the 2026 Class, shining a light on their accomplishments that have left a lasting mark on the sport of softball. Monica Abbott (Fast Pitch), Doug Middleton (Fast Pitch), Dewayne Frizzel (Slow Pitch), Dewayne Nevitt (Slow Pitch), Les Novak (Umpire), and the Raybestos Brakettes (Team), will all be honored on Saturday, Oct. 31 during the 45th Annual Hall of Fame Induction Ceremony. The Class of 2026 will be inducted at the Oklahoma City Convention Center during USA Softball’s Annual Council Meeting.

Courtesy of USA Softball

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SPECIAL FEATURES

We take a deeper dive into a wide variety of softball-related topics in this section.

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BEYOND THE DIAMOND: EXPANDING OUR UNDERSTANDING OF DIVERSITY IN SOFTBALL

Our softball worlds are often smaller than we realize.

Last December, I attended my first NFCA Convention and ran into former teammates, players, and even coaches from my 14U days. It was a reunion of a tightly-woven network, one that had quietly shaped my understanding of the sport.

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OLYMPIC GOLD MEDALIST SMITH NOSTALGIC ABOUT SOUTH COMMONS RETURN

When Julie Smith stepped back onto the grounds of the South Commons Softball Complex in Columbus, Ga., for the NFCA Division III Leadoff Classic presented by MaxBP earlier this month, all the memories of the inaugural Olympic softball competition came flooding back to her.

Nearly 30 years later, the Pomona-Pitzer associate head coach, who won gold as a member of the United States squad in 1996, could still feel strong emotions of her historic accomplishment.

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ALABAMA STATE GAMES PROVIDES UNIQUE SOFTBALL OPPORTUNITY

When Laura Burt’s dad, Ron Creel, Sr., a successful businessman and community leader, was approached in 1982 by United States Olympic Committee Executive Director Baaron Pittenger — on the recommendation of Alabama Gov. George Wallace — with the idea for an Olympic-style sports competition on the state level, little did he or anyone else know that the Alabama State Games would be still growing heading into its 43rd year of competition this June.

Burt, who got her start as a volunteer under her dad’s direction, and later walked in the Opening Ceremonies of the event as the proud mother of an athlete, is now carrying on her father’s legacy as the ASF Foundation’s Executive Director/CEO, as her father, who will turn 88 in May, moves toward retirement.

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TEXAS LUTHERAN'S CLARK SETS NCAA STANDARD FOR STEALS

When Texas Lutheran University head coach Wade Wilson was recruiting Caelee Clark, he always mentioned college softball’s stolen base record. Wilson told Clark that if she came to the Division III school in Seguin, Texas, she would have the chance to put her name at the top of the list.

Clark thought it was just something Wilson said to entice her to join the program, but it ended up being prophetic. The senior infielder set the career stolen base record for all NCAA levels on March 19th in a win over Bethel University.

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FITTING HONOR FOR HALL OF FAMER STUEDEMAN

It is fitting that the only head coach that the University of Alabama in Huntsville softball knew prior to this season has the school’s field named for her.

That it happened just eight months after Les Stuedeman announced her retirement is both a tribute to her success and a display of the school’s long commitment to her and her beloved program.

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WISE CABINET AVAILABLE TO SUPPORT NFCA MEMBERS

Need a mentor? Have something you need to discuss? Did you know you could reach out to the NFCA's WISE Cabinet?

The idea came out of the Emeriti meeting at a recent NFCA Convention, and the group is comprised of a select number of NFCA Emeriti members.

The WISE Cabinet’s purpose is to preserve and promote the culture of integrity, respect, collegiality, and sportsmanship in softball as well as to provide individualized services to members.

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HALL OF FAMER MILLER REMEMBERED FONDLY

NFCA Hall of Famer Liz Miller was remembered fondly by players and colleagues alike in the days following her Dec. 5 passing at age 78.

Miller, a legendary coach at the University of Notre Dame and Lake Michigan College, was a trailblazer for women’s sports, which earned her induction into the Hall of Fames at both Bronson High School (2012), where she starred in intramural sports pre-Title IX, and Western Michigan University (1994), where she played field hockey and volleyball.

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