Arkansas Softball Fact Sheet #1

The Next Chapter First-year head coach Jamie Pinkerton begins his tenure with the Lady Razorbacks after four successful seasons as the head coach of the Tulsa Golden Hurricane softball team. Pinkerton was a two-time Western Athletic Conference Coach of the Year. In his four years at Tulsa, Pinkerton turned the Hurricane into a winning program, including three straight 30-win seasons with two 40-win seasons. The only coach in Tulsa history to post an overall winning record, Pinkerton finished with 140 wins and 105 losses and holds the program’s record for the most wins in school history. In his second season at Tulsa, Pinkerton made school history when he directed the 2002 team to its first winning season finishing 48-16. The 48-game win season followed a 13-42 finish in Pinkerton’s inaugural season. The 35-game improvement marked the second-best softball turnaround in NCAA history. Pinkerton’s staff includes former TU assistant coach Tiffany Redding-Pitts and former Lady’Back Aly Sartini. Redding-Pitts was a Golden Hurricane assistant from 2002-2004 with Pinkerton and she assists with the infielders and serves as first base coach. Redding-Pitts directs the administrative duties while serving as the recruitment coordinator and managing the team’s camps and clinics. As a college softball player, Redding-Pitts was a four-year letterwinner at shortstop for the Golden Hurricane. Aly Sartini returns as an assistant coach to the program she helped to build. Sartini oversees pitching, outfield, scouting, academics and assists with administrative responsibilities. In her four season as a Lady’Back, Sartini helped lead Arkansas to three Southeastern Conference tournament appearances, an NCAA Regional berth and was a member of the 1999 SEC All-Tournament team.
A Year Ago The Lady’Backs ended the 2003-04 season with a 18-40 overall record and a 6-24 finish in the Southeastern Conference. Last season’s campaign included wins over No. 12 Tennessee and No. 17 Florida.
Older and Wiser The Lady’Backs return 12 players from the 2003-04 squad. Leading the way for the Lady’Backs are four seniors including Blaire Perry, who is third on the Arkansas career list for stolen bases and holds the school record for sacrifice hits in a season.
Youth movement The Lady’Backs added eight newcomers to the roster with six freshmen preparing for initial collegiate action. Junior college transfers Linzee Roby, Cowley College, and Anna Hawkins, Angelo State, add maturity to the new class of Lady’Backs.
Anchors in the infield Catcher Shana Easley and infielder Mindy O’Malley started every game of the 2003-04 season for the Lady’Backs. As a sophomore, Easley led the team with a .994 fielding percentage while only committing three errors behind the plate. O’Malley was second on the team in stolen bases with nine steals on 14 attempts and third in hits with 30.
Fire power Utility player Rachel LeMaster and infielder Blaire Perry paced the Lady’Backs offense in the spring. LeMaster recorded the highest batting average at .298 and the most hits with 45. Perry owned the second highest batting average with .268 and accounted for 13 of the Lady’Backs 58 stolen bases.