Softball coach leaves after historic season
Coach Michelle Gardner, less than a month after leading the Wolf Pack to its first-ever NCAA Regional win, announced Monday that she is leaving Nevada to coach at the University of Indiana.
Gardner coached six seasons with the Wolf Pack, accumulating a 187-176 record in that span.
But it was the 2008 season when Gardner really broke out as a head coach.
She was awarded Western Athletic Conference Coach of the Year after the Wolf Pack broke its single-season record for wins (44), won two NCAA Regional games, garnered its first WAC regular season crown and beat the No. 1 team in the nation Arizona on Feb. 18.
Gardner’s first season with Nevada, in 2003, was also the first season in 14 years for the Wolf Pack softball program. The program was terminated in 1989, but re-instated in 2003—Gardner’s first season. She helped lead the Wolf Pack to a 22-35 record that season.
The program continued to flounder under the .500 mark in 2005, but in 2006 Nevada went 33-33 and won the WAC tournament. Gardner had built the program from scratch and turned it into a conference champion.
The Wolf Pack will return 13 of its 18 players for next season, including six starters. While Nevada losses its star senior Jordan McPherson, they will retain their ace from a year ago Katie Holverson. So why leave with such a wealth of returning talent?
Gardner has Midwest roots. She is a graduate of the University of Michigan and was a star player for the Wolverines. She was named Big Ten Player of the Year with Michigan in 1988.
Gardner also has three children under the age of 8. She has reported in the past that living closer to home would benefit her children.
The university announced Monday that a national search for the next Nevada softball coach will begin immediately.
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