From Washington University Athletics
Washington University in St. Louis softball coach Michelle Venturella has announced the addition of Dan Coffman and Laurel Sagartz to the Bears' coaching staff for the 2018 season.
"We are thrilled to have Laurel and Dan join our staff this year. Laurel is arguably one of the best pitchers to put on a Bear uniform leading the 2007 team to a National Runner-Up finish. Having an alum on staff brings such great perspective to our players, said Venturella.
Dan comes to us with great knowledge of the game and gives us another set of eyes at practice. As a former catcher he is able to give valuable feedback when working with our pitchers. He also works with our infielders and does a great job of teaching the game."
Coffman joins the staff with nine years of coaching experience, including stops at William Jewell College (2010-11), University of Missouri (2011-14) and Full Swing Connection 16u and 18u Club Teams (2015-17).
He played baseball at William Jewell and received a bachelor's degree in history and political science in 2009. Coffman also received his J.D. from Missouri in 2014, and is an attorney at SmithAmundsen working in the firm's commercial litigation group.
Sagartz arrives back on the Danforth Campus after spending the past year as pitching coach at Lindenwood University Belleville. She also served as U16 Head Coach in Houston for one year (2010-11).
Sagartz is the most dynamic softball pitcher in school history, earning All-America honors four times in her career. She a member of the WashU Sports Hall of Fame, and helped guide the Bears to a second-place finish at the 2007 NCAA Championship and a berth in the College World Series for the first time in school history.
Sagartz holds the school record in five pitching categories, and is third in NCAA Division III history in perfect games (5), fifth in no-hitters (7), 10th in earned run average (0.73) and shutouts (46) and 19th in strikeout ratio (9.73). She helped lead the Bears to a 152-22 record, four NCAA Tournament appearances and four University Athletic Association (UAA) titles.
A 2007 graduate of WashU with a bachelor's degree in mechanical engineering, Sagartz is in her 11th year as Process and Safety Automation Engineer at Emerson Automation Solutions.