Penn State University - Beaver Women's Softball

Kirschner is the athletic director at Penn State Beaver and is in his sixteenth season with the softball team. After going 1-14 in his first season with the team, Kirschner has led the Lady Lions to prominence in both the PSUAC and USCAA. Kirschner boasts a career record of 271-266 while qualifying for the USCAA National Softball Tournament in eight of the last ten seasons. As anticipated, Kirschner led the squad back to the post-season in the 2016 season after a two year rebuilding process in the 2014 and 2015 seasons.  The Lady Lions made it to the PSUAC Championship game where they fell to Brandywine to finish as the runner-up.  With their success in the conference came a berth to the USCAA Tournament where they advancded into the second day of play before being eliminated, a successful run after not qualifying in either of the past two seasons. In the 2013 campaign the team finished with an overall record of 23-17 and 13-6 in the PSUAC.  The Lady Lions also claimed their second consecutive conference championship this season by defeating Schuylkill, Mont Alto and Hazleton in the tournament.  Their success in the PSUAC led them to another USCAA appearance where they took an eight place finish, losing to St. Mary of the Woods in the seventh place game.  This season saw additional success off the field as both Kirschner and outfielder Lauren Pier both received honors in the Beaver County Hall of Fame, where Pier was named Student Athlete of the Year. The team finished 26-18 overall during the 2012 season, with a conference record of 17-1, which helped give Kirschner his 200th career win.  The Lady Lions also brought home the PSUAC Championship and finished 5th in the USCAA National Softball Championships held at Firestone Stadium in Akron, Ohio. Kirschner was named the PSUAC Coach of the Year for the third time in his career. The team finished at the 23-13 mark during the 2011 season, in which it went undefeated during the PSUAC regular season with a 14-0 and finished 5th in the USCAA National Softball Championships.  Kirschner also received the prestigious USCAA Garth Pleasant Athletic Director of the Year Award in Norfolk, VA in early June 2011. During the 2010, the Lady Lions went 27-20 and finished second in the PSUAC tournament. They also split the regular season crown and finished 7th in the USCAA National Softball Championships. In 2009, Kirschner was named PSUAC Coach of the Year for the first time in his career. The Lady Lions (29-19) won both the regular season title and PSUAC Conference Championships, which earned them another bid to the USCAA National Tournament held in Decatur, Illinois and finished with a program best finish of 4th place. During his tenure, Kirschner has coached 60+ PSUAC Academic All-Conference performers, 37 PSUAC All-Conference players, 17 PSUAC Honorable Mention All-Conference players, 7 USCAA All-Americans and 9 USCAA Honorable Mention All-Americans. In addition, he has coached three PSUAC Players of the Year (Ashley Watkins 2x and Lindsey Scialdone) and two PSUAC Pitchers of the Year (Kayla Chambers and Korey Freyermuth -2x). Kirschner has held a variety of positions in the Athletic Department and has also assisted with the men's basketball program for four years. He was head coach of the Beaver campus women's volleyball team for two years as well. Kirschner earned a master's degree in teaching and curriculum from Penn State in 2007 and a bachelor's degree in elementary education from Edinboro University in 2002.