Aug. 24, 2009

Linda Garza, an assistant coach at Purdue University the past five seasons, has been named the head softball coach at Wright State University, WSU Senior Associate Director of Athletics Maureen Cooper announced today.

Garza had been the top assistant for the Boilermakers since 2005 and has helped lead Purdue to 30 or more wins in each campaign. Purdue advanced to the NCAA Tournament in 2009, winning twice in regional play. Among the team accomplishments this past spring was five wins over ranked teams, a 12-8 Big Ten record and the program's first NCAA Regional Championship game appearance.

"Linda came to us very highly recommended from various people and she stood out as a top candidate from the start," Cooper said. "Her experience and accomplishments as an assistant at a high level will aid her in keeping our program on track and continue to build on the successes we have had in softball at Wright State. We welcome her and look forward to working with her to achieve that success."

Garza's duties at Purdue included all facets of the program from recruiting and scheduling to coaching the outfielders and assisting the hitters and runners. During her time with the Boilermakers, Purdue set five new offensive records and led the Big Ten in stolen bases, double plays and sacrifice flies as she coached 10 All-Big Ten and six All-Mideast selections.

"I'm honored to be a part of Wright State University and thankful for this great opportunity," Garza said. "The program has had conference success and been to the NCAA tournament in recent years. My goal is to build upon this success, compete for a Horizon League Championship and work hard to graduate each player. Wright State has the facilities and support system for continued growth and I'm eager to get started!"

Garza, a graduate of UNLV, also was an assistant coach at the University of Tulsa and the University of Arkansas prior to her position at Purdue.

While with the Hurricanes, Garza worked as an outfield coach, acted as co-director of camps and handled team travel. Her tenure at Tulsa followed a two-year stint at the University of Arkansas, during which Garza worked with the Lady Razorback outfielders, emphasizing footwork, fielding and throwing. She was the team's base running coach, working with players on mechanics and decision-making. She also coordinated scheduling, travel, camps and community service activities for the team.

Garza got her start in coaching during her playing days at UNLV. In addition to being an instructor at the Rebels' camps, she was an assistant coach for the Clovis Rockets Gold and 18-and-under teams. Her duties with the Rockets included organizing team practices, as well as working with players on hitting, basic skills and game strategies. After finishing her playing career at UNLV, Garza worked for one season as a student assistant coach with the team.

During her playing career from 1998 to 2001, Garza was a four-year starter at second base, third base and in the outfield. She started the last 155 games of her career, earning All-Mountain West Conference honors at third base as a senior after leading the Rebels in triples, RBI and sacrifice hits. The four-time academic all-conference honoree boasted a .262 career batting average, while laying down 45 sacrifice hits in her career, just five short of the UNLV record. Garza ranks among the UNLV and Mountain West single season and career top 10 lists in several categories. She ended her career among the UNLV career top 10 in doubles, walks, hits and sacrifice hits. She also owns three spots among the Mountain West single-season records lists: eighth in assists (151 in 2000), ninth in fielding double plays (14 in 2000) and 10th in sacrifice bunts (13 in 2000).

Garza earned her bachelor's degree in health education from UNLV in May 2002. She then earned a master of science degree in Kinesiology from Texas Woman's University in May 2009. She replaces Mike Larabee who left last month to be head coach at the University of Arkansas after leading the Raiders to two NCAA Tournaments over the last three years.