The Troy Trojans softball team represents Troy University in NCAA Division I college softball. The team participates in the Sun Belt Conference. The Trojans play their home games at Troy Softball Complex located on the university's campus. The program is one of the Top 50 winningest softball programs in the Division I, and has an overall record of 988–660–4 (.599) as of the end of the 2021 season.
| Troy Trojans softball | |
|---|---|
 2022 Troy Trojans softball team | |
 | |
| Founded | 1994 |
| University | Troy University |
| Head coach | Eric Newell (1st season) |
| Conference | Sun Belt |
| Location | Troy, AL |
| Home stadium | Troy Softball Complex (Capacity: 800) |
| Nickname | Trojans |
| Colors | Cardinal, silver, and black[1] |
| NCAA Tournament appearances | |
| 1996, 2021 | |
| Conference Tournament championships | |
| 1996 | |
| Regular Season Conference championships | |
| 2005 | |
History
editUpon Troy University's athletics moving all sports to the NCAA's Division I in 1993, the Troy softball program was started that same year and officially began their first season in 1994 under head coach Melanie Davis. Under Davis' leadership, the program immediately became a competitive softball program, finishing their first season in Division I with a 40–13 record, including a 4–3 win over an already prominent program in Georgia Tech.[2]
In just Troy's third season of playing softball (1996), the team managed to make history by winning their first ever conference title and receiving a bid to play in an NCAA Regional. The team finished the season with a 47–22–1 record, winning the Mid-Continent Conference tournament title. The Lady Trojans would receive a bid to play in the NCAA Play-In Series versus Southeast Missouri State, where they would sweep the Redhawks by scores of 3–2 and 1–0. The ladies would then receive a bid to play in the NCAA West Regional as the #4 seed. In their first game against Arizona, the Trojans were outmatched, losing 0–8 to the Wildcats. The Trojans were knocked out of the tournament after dropping a heartbreaker in the Regional's elimination game against South Florida, 5–6.[3]
Melanie Davis would resign as head coach of Troy at the end of the 2014 season, compiling a 780–506–4 record. Under Davis' direction, her Trojans defeated many Top 25 teams and other prominent programs, including Florida State, Louisiana, Auburn, Georgia Tech, Nebraska, Michigan, Ole Miss, and Penn State.[4]
In 2015, Beth Mullins was hired as head coach where she led the Trojans to 208 victories in her eight seasons, 30 or more wins in the last three seasons, and a trip to the 2021 NCAA Tournament, a first in 25 years. Mullins abruptly resigned in March 2022 following medical issues.[5] Assistants Taylor Smartt and Holly Ward finished the season at the helm of the program. On June 2, Troy hired Auburn–Montgomery head coach Eric Newell as the program's third head coach. Newell led the Warhawks to three top 5 finishes in the NCAA Division II and 302 victories with the program.[6]
Coaches
edit| Years | Coach | Record |
|---|---|---|
| 1994–2014 | Melanie Davis | 780–506–4 |
| 2015–2022 | Beth Mullins | 208–150 |
| 2022 | Taylor Smartt & Holly Ward (interim) | 31–21 |
| 2023–future | Eric Newell |
Attendance Records
editNCAA Top 50 Attendance
edit| Year | National Rank | Avg. attendance |
|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 45th | 189 |
| 2019 | 40th | 539 |
| 2018 | 38th | 575 |
Highest Game Attendance
editBelow is a list of Troy's top single-game attendance records.
| Attendance | Year | Opponent |
|---|---|---|
| 2,121 | 2022 | Florida State |
| 2,078 | 2014 | Alabama |
| 1,852 | 2019 | Alabama |
| 1,837 | 2019 | Alabama |
| 1,822 | 2023 | Auburn |
| 1,351 | 2011 | Alabama |
| 1,482 | 2018 | Auburn |
| 1,837 | 2019 | Alabama |
| 1,087 | 2018 | Mississippi State |
| 1,067 | 2019 | Maryland |
| 1,025 | 2008 | Alabama |
National Award Winners
edit- Libby Baker – 2024
Facilities
editThe place the Trojans call home is the Troy Softball Complex, built in 2002 on the campus of Troy University. In 2014, the entire complex underwent a $3 million renovation project. The official seating capacity was expanded to 800, with 120 of the seats being chairback seating. The Dodds Center was also built in 2014 during the renovation, which is an 8,000 sq. ft. state-of-the-art facility that houses coaches offices, player lounge, locker rooms, athletic training rooms, pitching area, and indoor batting cages.
Additionally, the natural grass playing surface was replaced and ProGrass artificial turf was installed in the outfield. The press box and coaches offices were completely renovated and modernized. The Troy Softball Complex saw an upgrade to the seating areas and a large patio was installed over the visitor's dugout.[7]
Wins vs. Top 25
editTroy has collected 24 wins versus Top 25 ranked competition during the program's relatively short existence.
| All-Time Wins Against Top 25 | ||
|---|---|---|
| Year | Opponent | Score |
| 1996 | #13 Florida State | 2–1 |
| 1998 | #21 Florida State | 5–0 |
| 2001 | #17 Florida State | 2–1 |
| 2002 | #20 Florida State | 4–2 |
| 2003 | #3 Nebraska | 4–3 |
| 2005 | #17 Georgia Tech | 8–2 |
| 2006 | #1 Michigan | 4–2[8] |
| 2006 | #13 Louisiana | 3–2 |
| 2007 | #21 Louisiana | 8–5 |
| 2012 | #21 Auburn | 7–1 |
| 2012 | #8 Louisiana | 9–4 |
| 2012 | #22 Florida State | 4–3 |
| 2013 | #25 Florida State | 6–3 |
| 2014 | #21 South Alabama | 1–0 |
| 2015 | #10 Florida State | 6–4 |
| 2015 | #7 Louisiana | 9–5 |
| 2015 | #22 South Alabama | 6–3 |
| 2017 | #19 Pittsburgh | 7–2 |
| 2018 | #21 Louisiana | 2–1 |
| 2018 | #21 Texas State | 4–3 |
| 2018 | #21 Texas State | 1–0 |
| 2020 | #16 South Carolina | 2–1 |
| 2022 | #25 Ohio State | 4–0 |
| 2022 | #21 LSU | 5–4 |
- All rankings from NFCA Coaches' Poll
Yearly Results
edit| Season | Coach | Overall | Conference | Standing | Postseason | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Troy State (East Coast Conference) (1994–1994) | |||||||||
| 1994 | Melanie Davis | 40–13 | 2–1 | — | |||||
| Troy State (Mid-Continent Conference) (1995–1997) | |||||||||
| 1995 | Melanie Davis | 52–18 | 8–4 | 2nd (East) | — | ||||
| 1996 | Melanie Davis | 47–22–1 | 8–4 | 2nd (East) | NCAA Regional | ||||
| 1997 | Melanie Davis | 31–25–1 | 5–7 | 3rd (East) | — | ||||
| Troy State (Atlantic Sun Conference) (1998–2005) | |||||||||
| 1998 | Melanie Davis | 46–17 | 13–4 | 2nd (West) | — | ||||
| 1999 | Melanie Davis | 48–23 | 13–3 | 1st (West) | — | ||||
| 2000 | Melanie Davis | 34–30 | 8–6 | T-3rd | — | ||||
| 2001 | Melanie Davis | 38–23 | 7–7 | 6th | — | ||||
| 2002 | Melanie Davis | 46–20 | 13–5 | 2nd | — | ||||
| 2003 | Melanie Davis | 39–23 | 16–6 | 2nd | — | ||||
| 2004 | Melanie Davis | 35–30 | 15–5 | 3rd | — | ||||
| 2005 | Melanie Davis | 47–21 | 17–3 | 1st | — | ||||
| Troy (Sun Belt Conference) (2006–Present) | |||||||||
| 2006 | Melanie Davis | 31–40 | 5–10 | 5th | — | ||||
| 2007 | Melanie Davis | 42–20 | 17–10 | 3rd | — | ||||
| 2008 | Melanie Davis | 33–23 | 14–10 | 3rd | — | ||||
| 2009 | Melanie Davis | 38–19 | 15–8 | 3rd | — | ||||
| 2010 | Melanie Davis | 27–29 | 10–13 | 6th | — | ||||
| 2011 | Melanie Davis | 32–27 | 11–12 | 5th | — | ||||
| 2012 | Melanie Davis | 31–24 | 10–14 | 6th | — | ||||
| 2013 | Melanie Davis | 21–32 | 7–14 | 4th | — | ||||
| 2014 | Melanie Davis | 22–30–2 | 5–13 | 7th | — | ||||
| Melanie Davis: | 780–509–4 | 219–159 | |||||||
| 2015 | Beth Mullins | 32–23 | 14–9 | 4th | — | ||||
| 2016 | Beth Mullins | 31–25 | 11–13 | 6th | — | ||||
| 2017 | Beth Mullins | 20–34 | 8–19 | 9th | — | ||||
| 2018 | Beth Mullins | 34–26 | 14–13 | 5th | — | ||||
| 2019 | Beth Mullins | 37–20 | 19–8 | 2nd | — | ||||
| 2020 | Beth Mullins | 17–6 | 1–2 | T-2nd | Season Canceled | ||||
| 2021 | Beth Mullins | 37–17 | 17–6 | 3rd | NCAA Regional | ||||
| Beth Mullins: | 208–150 | 87–70 | |||||||
| 2022 | Taylor Smartt Holly Ward | 31–21 | 15–12 | 4th | |||||
| Taylor Smartt & Holly Ward: | 31–21 | 15–12 | |||||||
| 2023 | Eric Newell | ||||||||
| Total: | 1,003–666–4 | ||||||||
National champion Postseason invitational champion | |||||||||
Championships
edit- 1996 – Mid-Continent Conference tournament champions
- 1999 – Atlantic Sun Conference West Division champions
- 2005 – Atlantic Sun Conference regular-season champions
NCAA Regional Results
edit| Year | Record | Regional | Results |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1996 | 2–0 | NCAA Play-In Series | W 3–2 vs. Southeast Missouri State W 1–0 vs. Southeast Missouri State |
| 1996 | 0–2 | Midwest Regional | L 0–8 vs. Arizona L 5–6 vs. South Florida |
| 2021 | 0–0 | Tuscaloosa Regional | L 0–8 vs. Clemson W 8–0 vs. Alabama State L 2–4 vs. Clemson |
| Totals | 3–4 | 2 Appearances |
References
edit- ^ "Trojan 2.0 Best Practices and Style Guide". Retrieved December 1, 2022.
- ^ "2018 Troy Softball Media Guide by Troy University Athletics - Issuu".
- ^ "2018 Troy Softball Media Guide by Troy University Athletics - Issuu".
- ^ "2018 Troy Softball Media Guide by Troy University Athletics - Issuu".
- ^ McNelley, Justin. "Beth Mullins resigns as Troy softball coach". wsfa.com. Retrieved 9 June 2022.
- ^ "Troy Tabs Eric Newell to Lead Softball Program". Troy University Athletics. Retrieved 9 June 2022.
- ^ "The Official Site of Troy Athletics". troytrojans.com.
- ^ "Ritter Tosses One-Hitter to Defeat 17th-Ranked Auburn – University of Michigan". University of Michigan Athletics.