WILLIAMSTOWN, MA — With a sweep of
Amherst Saturday, not only did the Williams College softball team
win the 2010 Little 3 championship outright, win the NESCAC West
Division title and secure the right to host the 2010 conference
tournament, but it also gave head coach Kris Herman a milestone
victory.
The Ephs’ 6-3 win in the nightcap of the doubleheader was
Herman’s 500th coaching victory of her career. She became
only the 26th Div. III coach to reach the 500-win milestone in NCAA
history. The milestone victory came in her 23rd season of
coaching, her seventh at Williams.
After the win, each member of the current Williams team
signed the game ball for coach Herman and presented it to her.
“I’ve been very fortunate to be surrounded by
players year after year who worked really hard and chose to get
better every day,” Herman said. “I’ve been
involved with several great teams along the way who were relentless
in their pursuit of excellence. I’ve also had several great
assistant coaches — Cheryl Milligan from Tufts certainly
comes to mind — who have been invaluable along the way.
But when you’ve been around as long as I have, you’re
going to reach certain milestones.”
Herman began her coaching career at her alma mater, Tufts, in
1988. She coached the Jumbos for 16 seasons and compiled a record
of 339-164-3 (.679), winning five NESCAC titles and guiding her
team to an NCAA Tournament appearance in her last seven seasons at
the school. Tufts also made its first NCAA World Series appearance
under Herman.
In 2004, Herman shifted to Williams, where she promptly led the
Ephs to three straight NESCAC Championships (2004, 2005, 2006). In
2005 and 2006, Williams advanced to the NCAA College World Series
as well.
Herman was named NESCAC Coach of the Year four times and earned
New England COTY honors in 2001, 2005 and 2006.
In her 23 seasons, Herman has coached eight All Americans and 25
First Team All-New England players. This season, after a 0-8 start,
Williams is 16-19-1 heading into the 2010 NESCAC Tournament. The
West Division champion Ephs face Bowdoin Friday at 2:30 p.m. in the
opening game of the tournament.
