Saint Leo University Women's Softball

Former standout student-athlete and Saint Leo Athletics Hall of Fame inductee ’17, Erin (Brunt) Kinberger was named Saint Leo University’s tenth head softball coach, as announced by then-Director of Athletics Francis X. Reidy in August of 2014. By the Numbers 484-204 - Overall Record (14 years - 3 at Fort Hays State, 10 at Saint Leo) .703 - Overall Win Percentage 375-153 - Record at Saint Leo (11 years) .710 - Win Percentage at Saint Leo 7 - NCAA Appearances (2016, 2017, 2018, 2019, 2023, 2024, 2025) 2 - SSC Titles (2016, 2017) 3 - SSC Coach of the Year (2016, 2017, 2025) 2 - NFCA South Region Coaching Staff of the Year (2018, 2025) 1 - NCAA South Region Titles (2018) In her 14 years as an intercollegiate head coach, Erin Kinberger has guided her teams to ten 30+ win seasons, where she has put together a 484-204 overall coaching record with 11 years at the helm of the Saint Leo Lions, preceded by three seasons at Fort Hays State. Under her tutelage of the Green and Gold, Coach Kinberger boasts a 375-153 record (.710 win-percentage). The 2025 season marked her 11th leading her alma matter. Kinberger guided the Lions to a remarkable 40-14 overall record and a 21-9 mark in Sunshine State Conference play, earning a second-place finish in the league standings. It marked the third 40-win campaign of her career and the second in the past three seasons at Saint Leo. After a balanced 8-8 start, Kinberger’s squad erupted with a 16-game winning streak that propelled them into national relevance and postseason contention. Her leadership was recognized with SSC Coach of the Year honors—her third career selection—as well as the ATEC/NFCA Division II South Region Coaching Staff of the Year award, her second time earning that distinction after first receiving it in 2018. The Lions hosted NCAA Division II South Region 2 for the second time in three seasons and set a program record with a .334 team batting average. Kinberger’s team saw success across the board with four All-SSC First Team selections, one All-Defensive Team pick, four NFCA All-Region honorees, and three on the D2CCA All-South Region Second Team. Off the field, five Lions were named to the CSC Academic All-District Team. A hallmark of Kinberger’s development pipeline, seven SSC Weekly awards were distributed among six different players, including freshman pitcher Chloe Hocquard’s 10-0 start and standout Haleigh Thomas earning both Player and Pitcher of the Week honors. The 2025 season stands as a testament to Kinberger’s ability to build a winning culture rooted in competitive excellence, academic success, and player empowerment. The 2024 season saw great success culminating in a third-place finish in the SSC standings and the sixth NCAA postseason berth in the Kinberger era. Just one season after earning her 400th career coaching victory, thanks to a 6-5 win over AUM in the fourth game of the season, Kinberger earned her 300th Saint Leo victory. The Lions success in 2024 didn’t end there as Saint Leo opened SSC play with six straight wins to quickly take control of the SSC standings. The Lions maintained first or second place in the standings throughout the majority of the season, eventually finishing in third place just one back of second-place Nova Southeastern. Saint Leo earned a berth to the postseason for the second straight season and was the #5 seed, making the trip to AUM where they went 1-2, posting a 10-0 victory over Spring Hill. Over the course of the 2024 season, the Lions strung together three separate win streaks of five or more games, including a season best nine-game win streak (Feb. 10-27) and an eight-game win streak (March 22-April 2).  Individually, the Lions earned seven All-SSC honors in addition to Madyson Coe being crowned SSC Player of the Year, marking back-to-back seasons for the Lions earning SSC yearly honors and having seven All-SSC selections. Coe, who led the team in a plethora of offensive categories as well as earning the SSC batting title, was named to the All-Region teams by the NFCA (second) and the D2CCA (first). Haleigh Thomas joined Coe on the NFCA second team and was also named to the second team by the D2CCA. Statistically, the Lions boasted the best fielding percentage (.976) in the SSC committing the fewest errors (38). Saint Leo’s fielding percentage was good for third best in division II and seventh best across the three NCAA divisions. In the 2023 season, Kinberger led the team to its best season finish in program history with a program-record 43 wins, which earned the Lions the #2 seed and a spot to host the NCAA South Regional. Saint Leo fell during the regional but achieved a successful season with seven student-athletes earning All-SSC honors. Kayla Betts was named the SSC Pitcher of the Year in addition to earning spots on the All-SSC First Team, and the All-SSC Defensive Team. Briana Neal earned Freshman of the Year honors and was named to the All-SSC Second Team. Alex Hare had another great season for the Lions as she landed her name on the All-SSC First Team and All-SSC Defensive Team. Alyssa Perez earned All-SSC Second Team honors and Bayley Williams earned a spot on the All-SSC Honorable mentions team.   After back-to-back seasons affected by CoVID-19 (2020 and 2021), Kinberger saw three student-athletes earn All-Sunshine State Conference nods in Kacie Kelly, Alexis Miniet, and Morgan Shannon. Kelly would go on to earn her fourth NFCA All-South Region honors following her final season donning the Green and Gold. Under Coach Kinberger's guidance, Kelly finished her career as the program's all-time leader in hits (273), doubles (55), and walks (91), while she ranked in the top-10 in 14 other categories.  From 2016 to 2019, Coach Kinberger led her Lions to NCAA postseason appearances. After the programs first trip to the NCAA Division II Softball Championships in 2018, the Green and Gold opened 2019 with a dominate 13-5 win over softball-powerhouse Alabama-Huntsville. Kinberger would guide her team to a 31-18 season with a 20-10 record in the SSC, tied for third. In 2019, Kinberger would see Kacie Kelly earn NFCA and D2CCA honors with four student-athletes on the All-SSC teams.  With the programs first trip to the NCAA Division II Softball Championships in Salem, Va. in 2018, the Lions went 2-2 with wins over No. 3 Chico State (3-2) and No. 1 North Georgia (3-2). On the way to posting a 39-18 record, Saint Leo defeated D2 softball powerhouses North Alabama, at the South Regional in Florence, Ala., and Alabama-Huntsville in the South Super Regional to claim the South Region title. The 2018 deep run into NCAA postseason saw Kinberger and her staff of Madison Holub, Pat Affrunti and Sammy Marshall earn NFCA DII South Region Coaching Staff of the Year. Under Coach K’s guidance in 2018, four players earned All-Sunshine State Conference honors where Kacie Kelly was a first team selection followed by Ashley Morris, Brittany Creamer and Shyanne DuBois all on the second team. Sarah Pauscher joined Kacie Kelly on the NFCA All-South Region second team as Kelly was named to the D2CCA All-South Region second team as well. Ashley Morris and Shyanne DuBois were named to the 2018 D2 Softball Championship All-Tournament team for their performance in Salem, Va. at the softball championships. In 2017, Coach Kinberger led her Lions to back-to-back NCAA postseason appearances and led the program to the no. 2 seed in the South Region, eventually hosting a regional for the first time in program history. Saint Leo finished the season with their second straight Sunshine State Conference title after posting a 17-7 record in the conference. Kinberger was named SSC Coach of the Year for the second straight season while she guided her players to sweep the individual awards - Pitcher of the Year (Stephanie Adkins), Freshman of the Year (Kacie Kelly) and Player of the Year (Kacie Kelly). On February 25, Coach Kinberger led her Lions to a 3-2 win over Embry-Riddle in nine innings which marked her 200th career coaching win. Saint Leo defeated two top 25 ranked programs during the 2017 season including a sweep of no.4 Armstrong State on February 5-1 and 7-5 (in eight innings). The Lions saw six players earn All-Sunshine State Conference honors with Stephanie Adkins, Kacie Kelly, Rachael Heath and Ciera Schumaker earning first team honors while Danielle Bottley and Alison Mitts named to the second team. Kinberger saw three players earn all-region honors while two went on to earn All-America honors. Adkins, Kelly, and Heath earned Division II Conference Commissioner’s Association (D2CCA) All-South Region honors while Adkins and Kelly, who also earned All-South Region honors from the NFCA, earned All-America honors from the D2CCA. Kelly went on to earn All-America honors from the NFCA where Adkins was named a CoSIDA Academic All-American.   In her first two seasons at the helm of the Green and Gold, Kinberger led the Lions to back-to-back 39 win seasons, ending the 2016 season with a 39-8 record and a trip to the NCAA Postseason. Kinberger led the team to a 14-0 start before a single loss and then ripping off another 23 straight games for a 37-1 record heading into the end of April. Kinberger picked up her 150th career coaching victory on Feb. 7 in a commanding win over No. 14 Florida Tech, 15-0, at the opening weekend Eckerd Tournament. Kinberger led the Lions to their second Sunshine State Conference regular season title with a 21-3 record. The 21-3 SSC record broke the previous program record of 20 SSC wins in a season. The 2016 team broke seven single-season team records in Consecutive wins (23), conference wins (21), batting average (.323), fielding percentage (.974), winning percentage (.830), team earned run average (0.93) and shutouts in a season (24). Following the opening weekend of play in 2016, the Green and Gold climbed into the coaches’ poll and never left, remaining in the poll for the duration of the season and reaching as high as No. 4, the highest ever in program history. Individually, Kinberger saw nine All-Sunshine State Conference players and the Lions swept the major awards with the Player of the Year (Rachael Heath), Freshman of the Year (Brooke Samios-Uy) and Pitcher of the Year (Stephanie Adkins). Named the 2016 Sunshine State Conference Coach of the Year, Kinberger saw her team land one member at every position on the All-SSC teams with four on the first team (Rachael Heath, Brooke Samios-Uy, Stephanie Adkins and Tiffany Thompson) with five on the second team (Samantha Ohmie, Ciera Schumaker, Brittany Creamer, Sommer Pollard and Alana Tabel). Along with SSC honors, Kinberger saw two student-athletes earn CoSIDA Academic All-District V honors in Brittany Creamer and Samantha Tyler, and three Lions – Stephanie Adkins (first team), Brooke Samios-Uy (first team) and Alana Tabel (second team) - earned D2CCA All-South Region accolades. Under Kinberger’s direction, Adkins went on to earn NFCA All-American honors as well as D2CCA All-American Honors in her first season in the Green and Gold. The pitching core ended the season as the 2016 National Statistical Leader in Earned Run Average with a 0.93 as Alana Tabel finished second in the nation in ERA (0.66) and Stephanie Adkins ranked ninth at 0.99. In her first season at the helm of her alma mater (2015), Kinberger led the Green and Gold to a 39-12 record overall, 10 wins better than the 2014 campaign, and a 15-9 Sunshine State Conference record. The 15-9 SSC record was just the second winningest record in conference play for the Lions in over seven seasons. Saint Leo finished the season ranked seventh in the South Region. The Lions’ 23-6 record at University Softball Stadium was the best home record since 2008, the season Kinberger served as Saint Leo’s graduate assistant when they went 23-3. The squad finished the season on an 11-game winning streak, including 50-straight scoreless innings to finish the 2015 regular season. Saint Leo finished the season ranked first in the SSC in ERA (1.23), scoring (5.39), stolen bases per game (1.96), triples per game (0.27), and win percentage (0.765). The Lions’ ERA also ranked second in all of NCAA Division II. Individually, the Lions ranked first in nine statistical categories in the SSC, including boasting the nation-leading individual ERA at 0.94. In total, Saint Leo had three pitchers fall in the top-25 in the nation in ERA. The program alum guided the squad to a .312 team batting average with three Daktronics All-Region winners, one NFCA All-South Region recipient, and a Daktronics All-America honorable mention. She saw six of her student-athletes earn All-SSC honors, three on First Team and three on Second Team. Off the field, the Saint Leo softball team saw an increase in team GPA under Kinberger. In 2013-14, prior to Kinberger’s arrival, the team reported a 3.29 GPA. In just one full season, the Lions increased their academics to a 3.395 GPA in the 2014-15 school year, and an especially impressive 3.41 in the spring semester. Prior, Kinberger served as the head coach at Fort Hays State University in Hays, Kan., where she led the Tigers to a 107-51 record in her three years at the helm. The four-year letter winner returned to her alma mater after a successful three years coaching at the fellow Division II program.  Under her guidance, the Tigers won a program-best 47 games in 2013 and clinched the No. 1 seed in the NCAA Central Regional.  It was just their second tournament appearance in the program’s history, the last occurring a decade prior in 2003.  Kinberger also secured the Tiger’s first national ranking, ascending to No. 10 in the nation as per the NFCA Top 25 poll. Her efforts at the helm of the most successful season in program history earned her the Mid-America Intercollegiate Athletics Association Coach of the Year honors in addition to her players securing both MIAA Pitcher of the Year and Player of the Year. Epitomizing the core value of excellence, her 2013 squad also registered a team GPA of 3.414 in addition to their accomplishments on the field. Prior to her time at Fort Hays State, Kinberger spent four years behind the dish for the Lions softball program, spanning from 2004-2007.  She was a career .291 hitter and currently sits seventh all-time for the program with 40 doubles.  During her time as a player, she led her squad to a pair of regional post-season appearances and garnered All-SSC selections in each of her years at Saint Leo.  In 2006 she was recognized as the Saint Leo Female Scholar-Athlete of the Year and as a senior received the Sunshine State Conference Female Sportsmanship Award in 2007. The Clearwater, Fla. native earned her bachelor’s degree in Elementary Education in 2007 from Saint Leo University and went on to earn her master of science degree in Health and Human Performance in 2009 from Fort Hays State University. Kinberger lives in Dade City, Fla. with her husband, Billy, and their daughter, Zoe.

Carver first joined Erin Kinberger's staff in the fall of 2021 and was promoted to a full-time assistant coach in August 2024.  Carver has helped the led the Lions to back-to-back postseason berths in 2023 and 2024, including earning the second seed as a host of the NCAA Division II South Regional tournament in 2023. Since Carver's arrival to Saint Leo, the Lions have put together a three-year record of 109-49 and 60-30 in SSC play. In his first year of coaching, Carver led his team to significant improvements, increasing the team batting average by 45 points to finish second in the conference, the slugging percentage to a league best .412 – an increase of .115, and the on-base percentage improved to .350 good for 3rd in SSC. Home runs surged from one to 23, moving the team from last to third in the SSC, while RBI increased to 188, and runs per game jumped from 3.5 to 4.7. Carver also reduced the strikeout percentage from 16.6% to 13.5%. Year two with the Lions saw the team lead the conference in batting average (.314) and was second in on-base percentage (.389). They finished third in the conference in runs scored (254) and RBI (208) with the lowest strikeout percentage (9.9%) in the SSC. Alex Hare earned 3rd Team All-American honors, and Briana Neal was named SSC Freshman of the Year. This past year, Carver's team maintained strong performance metrics with a .311 batting average, .383 on-base percentage, and a strikeout percentage of 8.7% (lowest in SSC). The team was second in the SSC in runs (276 and RBI (232). Carver played a role in Madyson Coe's senior season culminating in being named SSC Player of the Year. Carver earned his undergraduate degree from Indiana University in 2020 and gratuated with his masters degree from Saint Leo in 2024. 

Lexi Carver joined Erin Kinberger’s staff in August of 2024 as an assistant coach. Carver arrived to Saint Leo following a three-year career at Bowling Green State University, where she finished her collegiate career after transferring from the University of Louisville in 2021. While at BGSU, she was named an Easton/NFCA All-America Scholar-Athlete and Academic All-MAC Team member, playing in 26 games with 25 starts, primarily at first base. She posted a .208 batting average, .391 on-base percentage, and a .992 fielding percentage with just one error in 132 chances. Despite injuries limiting her 2023 season to four games, Lexi played in 50 games in 2022, hitting .225 with 27 starts at second base and 18 at catcher. She excelled defensively with a .976 fielding percentage and was a key contributor in several tournaments, including the MAC and NISC, where she consistently reached base and delivered key hits. Carver began her collegiate softball career as a member of the University of Louisville softball team, where she played in five games as a freshman in 2020, maintaining a perfect 1.000 fielding percentage and seeing action behind the plate in key matchups against Alabama, Wichita State, Michigan, and UIC. Though she missed the 2021 season due to injury, she excelled academically, earning spots on the Atlantic Coast Conference Academic Honor Roll and was recognized as an NFCA/Easton Scholar-Athlete in both of her seasons at Louisville. As a Student-Athlete Advisory Committee (SAAC) representative at both universities, Carver advocated for student-athletes and led community service initiatives. Her academic achievements include the BGSU Success Scholarship and multiple academic honors. Since 2016, Lexi has worked as a Softball Hitting & Defense Instructor in Spencer, Indiana, coaching youth athletes and organizing clinics. Her professional experience includes internships in athletic department management and game day operations, where she handled logistics, social media, and event management. In addition to her coaching experience, Lexi has interned in various roles that have honed her organizational and leadership skills. At Rossford Jr./Sr. High School, she worked closely with the Athletic Director, managing event logistics, leading a leadership program for team captains, and handling administrative tasks. Her internship with Terre Haute Rex Baseball further diversified her skill set, where she contributed to game day operations, social media management, and gained hands-on experience in sports event management.  

Saint Leo University head softball coach Erin Kinberger announced the addition of Pat Affrunti to the Lions' coaching staff in August 2014. Coach Affrunti's responsibilities include assisting Kinberger in both infield and hitting development. Additionally, he also assists in the team's recruiting efforts in the state of Florida as well as nationally.  Affrunti has played a pivotal part of the Green and Gold's defense raising the fielding percentage year after year to one of the best in the Sunshine State Conference. With his help, the Lions have won two Sunshine State Conference titles (2016, 2017), and have advanced to the NCAA Regionals in four straight seasons, including the World Series in 2018, hosting the South 2 Regional in 2017 and the South Super Regional in 2018.  The Saint Leo infield and offense did not disappoint in 2019 and helped pave the way for another postseason run. Before the season started infielder Kacie Kelly was named to the NFCA Top-50 watch list. Infield members Kelly and Kendyl Crean finished the year picking up All-Sunshine State Conference honors. Kelly also was named to the NFCA All-South Region team again her Junior year. The Lions led the conference in several offensive categories and proved once again they were a threat at the plate. The 2018 season was a great year for the Lions! Brittany Creamer, Ashley Morris and Kacie Kelly dominated in the Lions' infield as all were named to the All-SSC teams while helping the Lions compile a .972 fielding percentage which put them 2nd in the conference by .003%. Kelly also went on to win NFCA All-South Region Honors. Saint Leo went to the post season once again in 2018 winning their Regional, Super Regional and coming in tied for 3rd in the NCAA d2 National Championship. Ashley Morris finished the World Series making the All-Tournament team. To close out the year Coach Affrunti and the rest of the Lion's staff were named NFCA South Region Coaching Staff of the Year. In 2017, Affrunti saw SSC Freshman of the Year honors come to his infielder for the second straight season where freshman Kacie Kelly was honored with the accolade following her stellar first season with the Lions. Kelly was also named the SSC Player of the Year while she was joined by Ciera Schumaker on the All-SSC First Team following the season. Affrunti saw Kacie Kelly earn All-America honors from the NFCA and D2CCA while she was also named to both All-South Region teams. Kelly was named one of eight finalists for the Schutt Sports/NFCA Freshman of the Year as the South representative. Affrunti saw his infield commit the third lowest errors in the SSC (43) for the season. Offensively the Lions led the SSC in batting average (.321), runs scored (297), and on-base percentage (.401) where he saw the hitters hit 75 doubles, 15 triples and 17 home runs. Affrunti helped guide the Lions to their second straight SSC title with a 17-7 record and head into the NCAA postseason for the second straight season. Saint Leo hosted the NCAA South Region 2, marking the first time in program history to host a regional. In 2016 Coach Affrunti once again saw his infielders take home All-SSC honors as every member of the infield was awarded that distinguished honor. The infield group also led the SSC in fewest errors allowed (35) for the season. Offensively Saint Leo once again led the conference in highest batting average (.323), the fewest number of strikeouts (115 out of 1195 chances) and was second in on-base percentage. Affrunti guided freshman Brooke Samios-Uy to Sunshine State Conference Freshman of the Year honors at second base. Following the 2015 season, Affrunti saw two of his infielders earn All-SSC honors. Saint Leo also finished the season ranked first in the SSC in scoring (5.39), stolen bases per game (1.96), triples per game (0.27), and win percentage (0.765).  Offensively Affrunti along with the other coaches in their first year, helped the Lions improve from the previous season in wins, batting average, runs scored, doubles and home runs. The Lions also reduced their strikeout total from the prior year. Affrunti started his softball career coaching travel ball for the past 16 years. His Clearwater Lady Bombers Gold team has received national recognition and placed first in many national events. Affrunti has also coached at the high school level, starting at Sickles High School in Tampa. He helped lead a Gryphon team to two Regional Final appearances while compiling an overall record of 46-10. After two years in Tampa, Affrunti took a position at East Lake High School, closer to his home. During his one year at East Lake, he helped lead the Eagles to a 29-1 season and a Final Four appearance. After three years at the high school level, Affrunti was given his first opportunity in the college ranks landing at SSC foe Eckerd College where he remained for the past three seasons. While at Eckerd he served as the Tritons infield and hitting instructor and was the team's recruiting coordinator. Coach Affrunti helped the Tritons accumulate 59 wins in that three-year span, which was a school record. He also helped the Tritons reach many milestones including their first winning season in the programs 20 plus season history and two infielders landing all-region honors for the very first time in school history. Coach Affrunti lives in Dunedin, Florida with his wife, Tracy, and their two children, Bailee, 23, and Austin, 16.