Bates College Women's Softball

Bates College is pleased to announce the appointment of Nadiia Usenko as the new head coach of its men's and women's squash programs, effective June 2, 2025. A decorated international player and rising coaching talent, Usenko joins Bates after serving as Assistant Coach at Amherst College, where she helped guide both programs to significant competitive success in the NESCAC and beyond. A former captain and MVP at Trinity College, Usenko brings with her an elite playing background, including seven national titles as Ukrainian National Champion and a highest Professional Squash Association (PSA) world ranking of #76. Her coaching résumé is equally impressive: at Amherst, she contributed to multiple All-NESCAC selections, academic honors, and team championship finishes. She is currently completing her Master of Science in exercise & sport studies at Smith College.  

Kat McKay begins her fourth season in 2026 as the sixth head coach of the Bobcat softball program. McKay joined Bates as an assistant coach in the spring of 2022 after spending five years (four seasons) as the head coach of the University of Maine-Farmington's softball team.  "This is a dream," McKay said. "I grew up 20 minutes down the road so I know Bates softball. You can't grow up in this area without knowing Bates. I never thought I would have the opportunity to do what I love in my own backyard at such a great school. I am most excited about the team and the amazing amount of potential here. I look forward to building upon what has already been built and I couldn't be more excited about it." In 2017, her first year leading the UMF softball program, McKay helped the Beavers increase their win total by four games from the year before. UMF continued to improve during her time at the helm of the program, posting a 6-6 conference record in 2019, one of the team's best marks of the past decade. The 2020 season got wiped out due to the pandemic but after a slow start to 2021, the Beavers ended their campaign on a six-game winning streak.  During McKay's time in Farmington, she coached seven All-NAC selections and won 41 games.  Before McKay took the helm for the UMF Beaver softball program, she coached at the high school level for more than ten years. McKay spent four of those years building a program as head softball coach at Poland Regional High School. Prior to that, she coached at St. Dominic Academy as the head coach for two years and JV coach for three. During the off-season, McKay played other roles such as JV soccer coach, ninth grade basketball coach, JV basketball coach, and varsity assistant for basketball. She also spent a few seasons coaching at the middle school level in baseball and soccer. McKay is a 2006 graduate of Central Maine Community College where she played basketball and softball. She graduated Phi Theta Kappa with an Associates of Applied Science Degree in Sports Management. In 2014, McKay returned to school attending the University of Southern Maine to complete her four-year degree. She enrolled as a full-time student while managing a family with two young boys, working full time as an assistant athletic director as well as transportation director at Saint Dominic Academy, and starting for the USM softball team at first base. McKay graduated from USM with a bachelor's degree in Leadership and Organizational Studies.

Ally Plafcan returns to the Bates Softball coaching staff for a fourth season in 2025-26. Plafcan joined the garnet and white after serving as a graduate assistant with the softball program at William Penn University (NAIA) in Oskaloosa, Iowa. Responsibilities with the Statesmen included the creation of hitting, defensive, and conditioning programs for the team while also assisting with recruiting efforts, specifically at local and regional camps and showcases. A 2021 graduate of then-Converse College (S.C.) with a Bachelor of Arts in both psychology and child and family studies, Plafcan batted .311 during her time with the Valkyries. The former corner infielder led her squad in batting average, on-base percentage, and RBI three times. Ally, an academic all-conference selection her junior and senior seasons, also served on the Student-Athlete Advisory Committee (SAAC) while at Converse. Plafcan earned a master's degree in sports management from William Penn in May 2023.

Former University of Maine pitcher Carrie Green joins head coach Kat McKay's coaching staff for the 2024 season. Green will serve as the team's pitching coach, having starred in the circle for the Black Bears from 1998-2001. Green had a 37-31 overall record with 444.2 innings pitched, a 2.01 earned run average, 176 strikeouts and 87 walks. Green started her pitching career at the age of 10 and played travel softball until the age of 18, helping her teams earn berths in multiple national and regional ASA tournaments. Her high school career in Delaware consisted of a state championship her junior year and state runner-up her senior year.  Since 2014, Green has given individual and small group lessons to elementary through college age- student athletes, improving their skills at the craft of softball pitching and hitting.