Pittsburgh Panthers softball
| Pittsburgh Panthers | |
|---|---|
 |
|
| University | University of Pittsburgh |
| Conference | ACC |
| Location | Pittsburgh, PA |
| Head coach | Holly Aprile (5th year) |
| Home stadium | Vartabedian Field in the Petersen Sports Complex (Capacity: 600) |
| Nickname | Panthers |
| Colors | Blue and Gold |
| NCAA Tournament appearances | |
| 2015 | |
Pittsburgh Panthers softball is the NCAA Division I intercollegiate softball program of the University of Pittsburgh, often referred to as "Pitt", located in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. The Pitt softball team competes in the Atlantic Coast Conference and plays their home games at Vartabedian Field in the Petersen Sports Complex.
The inaugural season of Pitt softball was in 1998 with the program guided by its first head coach, Michelle Phalen. The program competed as an independent during its first season in NCAA Division I and then played in the Big East Conference from 1999 to 2013. Phalen guided the program to its first winning season (31-27) and first Big East Tournament appearance in 2006 as well as its first season over .500 in Big East play (12-10) in 2008, a year that saw Pitt upset multiple nationally ranked teams. In 2009, Holly Aprile, and assistant coach in charge of pitchers and catchers under Phalen, took over as the head coach of the program. April began her tenure by leading the team to three consecutive winning seasons, a first for the program to that point, and led the 2011 team to a single season school record of 34 wins that included a victory over national ranked Georgia Tech. On July 1, 2013, Pitt moved to the Atlantic Coast Conference. In 2015, Pitt reached the ACC Softball Tournament championship game and earned the program's first NCAA tournament appearance on way to an appearance in the Regional Final and a program best 37-22 record. In 2017, after a 5-0 start to the season, Pitt received the first national ranking in the program's history.
The team's home field includes the 600-seat Vartabedian Field, a softball ballpark that is part of the Petersen Sports Complex on the University of Pittsburgh campus that open for the 2010-11 school year. Vartabedian Field features a skinned infield with an artificial grass outfield. The stadium includes team dugouts, hitting and pitching practice areas, lighting, and a press box. The first softball game played at Vartabedian Field was a 2-1 Pitt victory over Penn State on March 29, 2011. Prior to the program moving into the Petersen Sports Complex and Vartabedian Field, the team played home games at Trees Field on the Pitt campus.
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