Penn State Berks Women's Softball

Ference completed her third season as the Nittany Lions head softball coach in the 2016 season. Ference guided the softball team to one of its best season's in program history on her way to being named the 2016 NEAC Softball Coach of the Year. The team finished with an overall record of 32-5 and finished as the runner-up in the conference tournament. In the regular season, the Nittany Lions went 20-0 in conference play, marking the first time the program went undefeated through the regular season. It was just the second year that the Nittany Lions finished with 30 or more wins and the team had a program-best 25 game winning streak throughout the season. She had two players earn NFCA All-Region honors, the NEAC Player of the Year (Jenna Heffner), NEAC Pitcher of the Year (Jessica Rozick), and six all-conference selections. In the 2015 season, the Nittany Lions finished 19-14 overall and were 15-5 in the conference. They won 10 of their final 11 conference games to finish as the NEAC Regular Season Champions and earned the right to host the conference tournament. The Nittany Lions won by the mercy rule in the first two games of the tournament before pulling off a thrilling 5-4 victory over Penn State Abington in the NEAC title game to earn their third straight trip to the NCAA Regional Tournament. At regionals, the Nittany Lions suffered a 3-2 setback to Moravian College, who ranked in the top-25 in most offensive categories. The season came to a close with a 4-0 loss to the University of Rochester. In her first season at the helm of the Nittany Lions, Ference was named the NEAC Coach of the Year. The team went 29-10 overall and 18-2 in conference play. Berks won the south division regular season and went on to win its second straight NEAC Championship to earn a return trip to the NCAA Regional Tournament. At the regional, the Nittany Lions dropped a heartbreaking 5-2 decision to No. 4 ranked and eventual national runner-up Salisbury University. The 2014 squad had the most explosive offense in program history, leading the nation with an 8.23 runs per game average. They were 14th in the country with a .358 batting average and were 29th with a .496 slugging percentage. The team set the schol record for runs scored (321), hits (399), RBI (275), batting average (.358), doubles (73), home runs (20), slugging percentage (.496), and total bases (552). Ference was an assistant coach at Division-I Lafayette College for four seasons. After a season at Emmaus High School, Ference spent the next 13 years coaching the Palisades High School varsity team. She won two championship titles during her three year stint at St. Michaels Middle School. Ference was also coaching the Lehigh Valley Tournament team before moving on to Lafayette College. Most recently, Ference has coached the 16-under Storm Tournament Team. During her collegiate career, Ference played two seasons at Bucks County Community College. The team went to regionals both years and went to nationals, where they finished ninth in the country. She played first base and right field and earned one of the teams wins at nationals in the pitchers circle. Ference then played two seasons at Shippensburg University where the team qualified for postseason play both years. After college Ference played in the Easton Womens Slow-Pitch Softball League. The team reached states multiple times and won the championship to earn at trip to nationals in Portland, Oregon. Ference earned her Associates Degree in Business from Bucks County Community College in 1979 and went on to earn a Bachelors Degree in Business Education from Shippensburg University in 1981. Ference resides in Fleetwood with her husband and they have one son. Donna Ference completed her third season as the Nittany Lions head softball coach in the 2016 season.

Becca Reinhart will completed her fifth season as the assistant softball coach during the 2021 season. The team has won the NEAC Championship and went to the NCAA Tournament in each of Reinhart's first three seasons helping out. In that time, the team is 104-40-1 overall and 67-3 in NEAC play. In the 2021 season, Berks finished with a record of 17-4 overall. The regular season consisted of only games against NEAC opponents due to safety precautions with the global pandemic. In those contests, the Nittany Lions finished 16-2 and were regular season champions. Berks won the first game of a three-game series with Penn State Harrisburg, but the visitors won a pair of extra inning contests to eliminate Berks in the semifinal round of the conference tournament. The Nittany Lions went 1-7 on in a shortened 2020 season due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The 2019 team finished 32-10 overall and went 18-0 in the NEAC. The team hosted the postseason conference tournament and won the NEAC Crown for the sixth time in seven years. The 2019 team opened up the NCAA Tournament with a thrilling 5-3 victory over Brandeis University, before dropping the next two games. This marked the third straight year that the softball team won a game at the NCAA Regional. The squad reeled off a 24-game winning streak, that spanned the end of March and into the NCAA Tournament. This year's team held the program record for at-bats, doubles, hit by pitch, games played, and innings pitched. They ranked second in school history for hits, ERA, batting average against, and wins, while ranking third in batting average, strikeouts, complete games, and shutouts. Head coach Donna Ference was again named NEAC Coach of the Year and senior standout Jess Rozick was named NEAC Pitcher of the Year. Rozick, Brianna Smith, and Val Miller were named to the All-NEAC First Team, while Hunter Hart was a second team selection and Maddy Davidson earned third team honors. Rozick was an NFCA All-Region Second Team recipient and Brianna Smith was named to the third team. For the second straight year, Smith was named the NEAC Tournament MVP. In the 2018 season, the Nittany Lions finished 25-10 overall and had a 14-0 mark against conference opponents. The team hosted the NEAC Tournament and fell into the consolation bracket after going 1-1 on the first day. The team then battled back and won three games on championship Saturday to win the NEAC Championship title for the second straight season and fifth time in six years. At the NCAA Tournament, Berks defeated No. 23 ranked Rowan University, 3-2 in the opener. They then dropped a game to No. 5 ranked Randolph-Macon and an eimlimation game to Rowan. Standout pitcher Jess Rozick was an NFCA All-Region Second Team selection, as well as being named NEAC Pitcher of the Year and NEAC Player of the Year. Rozick also earned a spot on the All-NEAC First Team, where she was joined by Hunter Hart. Becca Faust, Brianna Smith, and Val Miller were named to the second team and Ashley Malek landed on the third team. Brianna Smith was named the NEAC Tournament MVP after batting .684 (13-for-19) with two doubles, one triple, one home run, six runs scored and eight RBI. The Nittany Lions enjoyed a breakthrough season on the national level in 2017. The team finished 29-9 overall and went 19-1 in the conference. They cruised through the NEAC Tournament to earn their fourth trip in five years to the NCAA Tournament. At the NCAA Regional, the Nittany Lions dropped a 3-0 heartbreaker to Ithaca College, before bouncing back with the first-ever win at the NCAA Tournament in program-history. Berks came to bat in the bottom of the seventh tied 4-4 with Susquehanna University, when Ashley Malek smacked a two-out solo home run for the walk off win. The team saw its magical season come to an end with a 5-3 setback to Ithaca. Head coach Donna Ference was named the NEAC Coach of the Year for the third time in her career. The team had an NFCA All-American Second Team selection (Jenna Heffner) and two NFCA All-Region First Team recipients (Heffner, Jessica Rozick). The 2017 squad had the NEAC Player of the Year (Heffner), Pitcher of the Year (Rozick), three All-NEAC First Team, and two All-NEAC Second Team honorees.