From Case Western Reserve University Athletics
For the first time in program history, the Case Western Reserve University softball coaching staff is the winner of the 2018 NFCA NCAA Division III Central Regional Coaching Staff of the Year honors, the Association revealed on Monday (June 4).
Led by head coach Josie Henry and assistants Shannel Blackshear, Ashley Parello, Hannah Mehrle, Andrea Nagy, Annie Wennerberg and Katleyn Gibson, CWRU advanced to its first NCAA Championships finals and qualified for the NCAA tournament for just the second time in school history – and the first time since 2001.
The Spartans went a program-best 38-12 and finished the season ranked sixth nationally. CWRU finished tied for fifth at the championships, which is the highest national finish for any team in Case Western Reserve University athletics history.
The eight teams that advanced to the finals of the NCAA Championship in Oklahoma City were voted the winners of the 2018 NFCA NCAA Division III Regional Coaching Staff of the Year honors. Back-to-back national champion Virginia Wesleyan University, second-place Illinois Wesleyan University, third-place finishers Luther College and Ithaca College, fifth-place finishers University of Texas at Tyler and CWRU, and seventh-place finishers Rowan University and Massachusetts Institute of Technology all claimed regional recognition.