Teresa WilsonHead Coach Texas Tech Softball |
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Teresa Wilson begins her fourth season, now with a team who has known nothing but her tenacity and determination as a head coach. Not satisfied with a goal of simply "getting better" her signature program-building teams embrace the challenge of becoming nationally competitive by staring down the nation's best pitching and competing in some of the nation's best venues. The 2007 squad got a taste of her brand of success when it finished in wild fashion on a six-game winning streak (including wins over three top-10 programs) which propelled the Red Raiders into the championship game of the Big 12 tournament for the first time--ever. A 6-3 loss to No. 2 Oklahoma concluded the season, but should set the stage for the possibilities for the 2008 team and moving forward. The finish typified a Wilson-coached team: solid pitching by a staff of hurlers; timely hitting by everyone in the lineup; clutch pinch-hitting by some possibly over-looked players; great opportunistic base-running which usually includes thievery; near perfect defense; and, the dogged determination of a team which simply refuses to quit until every out is recorded no matter what time of day the game has started or what time the last one ended. While this is Wilson's fourth program to build, those qualities have defined her teams for more than two decades. No stranger to success, she came to Lubbock after a highly successful 13-year stay at the University of Washington. She built that program into a national powerhouse by leading the Huskies to 10 straight NCAA Tournaments and six NCAA Women's College World Series appearances. Wilson began her career building successful programs at the University of Oregon and the University of Minnesota. Now in her 21st season, she has a complied an 801-448-1 record (.641) as a head coach (all at the Division I level) which includes a combined 12 NCAA postseason berths, and two national championship game appearances in 1996 and 1999. Highly regarded for her ability to teach the game, Wilson also is active in softball at the international level as a former assistant to head coach Mike Candrea for the USA National team which will represent the U.S. at the 2008 Olympics. She was the head coach of the 2005 USA Elite National team, guiding the squad to a championship at the Intercontinental Cup in Madrid, Spain. At Washington, Wilson and the Huskies compiled 10 consecutive seasons of 40 or more wins. In only its fourth year of existence, Wilson coached the squad to a 59-9 record and an appearance in the final of the WCWS, where the team finished runner-up to national champion Arizona. In 1999, UW was just one run short of the sport's ultimate prize and finished again as national runner-up. The 2000 Huskies were top-ranked for most of the season, notching 62 which ties for 5th in NCAA history for wins in a single season. In all, Wilson compiled a 532-198-1 (.728) record and captured the 1996 and 2000 Pac-10 Championships while in Seattle. Wilson's ability to help develop talent is renowned, and many of her players were able to achieve national recognition: 26 All-American awards, and 12 players on NCAA Women's College World Series all-tournament teams, more than 70 All-Pac-10 Conference accolades, and eight national players of the week. In addition, Wilson's UW teams were highly successful in the classroom: two players received NCAA Postgraduate Scholar-ships, two were named CoSIDA Academic All-Americans and 50 earned Academic All-Pac-10 honors. This commitment to success in the classroom is alive and well at Texas Tech. Four players earned Big 12 All-Academic honors, while a fifth earned prestigious Phi Beta Kappa membership at Tech last year. The Red Raiders earned the second-most spots on the Big 12 All-Academic list in 2006, with seven players receiving awards. Prior to starting the Washington softball program, Wilson spent two seasons as the head coach of Minnesota. After the Golden Gophers went 31-32 during her first season in 1990, the team posted a 17-game improvement the next year to capture the Big Ten crown and qualify for the NCAA tournament. Minnesota completed the 1991 season ranked 15th in the national polls, and Wilson earned Big Ten Coach of the Year accolades. Wilson began her coaching career in Eugene where she spent four seasons with the Oregon Ducks. During the 1986 season, the Ducks compiled a 17-30 record, but Wilson quickly had the program heading in the right direction as the Ducks posted an increase in wins each of the next three campaigns. Wilson's success at Oregon ultimately culminated during the 1989 season, as Oregon went 52-18 to advance to the WCWS and finished with a No. 4 national ranking. Wilson drew national praise and was honored as both the 1989 NCAA National and Pac-10 Coach of the Year and in just her fourth season as a head coach. Wilson first made an impression on the collegiate softball world during her playing days at the University of Missouri. From 1980-1983, Wilson wrote the Tiger record books, setting the school mark for season wins (32), strikeouts (297), innings pitched (296), shutouts (21) and winning percentage (.821), in 1981. These marks are still program bests, 25 years later. Additionally, she still ranks best for a Tiger career in shutouts pitched (55), wins (102) and win-loss percentage (102-37, .734). Her season-best (1982) 0.38 ERA ranks her fourth on Missouri's all-time season list. [She'd have hated it if we'd have included a photo of her from college, so we opted not to request it. However, there were some great old photos in Missouri's last year's guide, so perhaps anyone interested could find them on the Web?] On the strength of Wilson's outstanding performances in the circle, Mizzou was able to advance to the AIAW World Series during her sophomore season in 1981 and to the NCAA Women's College World Series in both her junior and senior seasons. Following the 1983 season, Wilson earned All-America honors while helping lead the Tigers to a No. 4 national ranking and a seventh-place finish at the WCWS. She is the first person to both play and coach in the NCAA Women's College World Series. A native of Pickering, Mo., Wilson earned her bachelor's degree from Missouri in 1984 in secondary physical education and journalism. In addition to her coaching success, Wilson is a much sought-after and active speaker at softball clinics around the country. |
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