East Texas A&M University Women's Softball

East Texas A&M announced the hiring of Brittany Miller as third softball coach in school history on June 24, 2022. Through three seasons, Miller has mentored three all-conference selections, including Kaydee Bennett, who earned first team all-Southland honors in 2023. During the 2025 season, Miller and the Lions secured the first postseason bid in the program's Division I era, advancing to the Southland Conference Tournament.  Bringing over 13 seasons of coaching experience at the Division I level, Miller was a pitcher at the University of Iowa, earning the Big Ten Pitcher of the Year award twice and being named to National Fastpitch Coaches Association Second Team All-America. She takes over the Lions program after spending the last two seasons in Lubbock as the pitching coach at Texas Tech.   In her two seasons at Tech, the Red Raiders’ pitching staff recorded 518 strikeouts, including 290 in 2021, which was third in the Big Twelve Conference, behind Oklahoma and Oklahoma State. She mentored NFCA All-Region pitcher Kendall Fritz as well as Erin Edmoundson and Missy Zoch, who finished top five in the conference in strikeouts for the 2021 season.   Prior to her time in Lubbock, Miller was the pitching coach at Loyola Marymount for four seasons. The Lion pitchers led the West Coast Conference in earned run average during both the 2018 and 2019 seasons. In 2019, LMU pitchers Samantha Manti and Hannah Bandimere pitched to ERAs below 3.0 and combined for 254 strikeouts. Bandimere was named the 2018 WCC Co-Pitcher of the Year under the mentorship of Miller and named to all-WCC teams twice.   Miller arrived in Los Angeles at LMU after four seasons at Iowa State. She guided the pitching staff to three no-hitters and tutored Katie Johnson to one of the best freshman campaigns in Cyclone program history. In 2015, pitcher Stacy Roggenstein struck out 111 batters, after punching out just four the season prior.   Before her time at Iowa State, Miller was in Fargo, North Dakota at North Dakota State for three seasons, two as a graduate assistant coach and one as an assistant coach on the Bison staff. NDSU won three straight Summit League Tournament Championships, advancing to the NCAA Tournament in each season.   At North Dakota State, she mentored Krita Menke, who received the honors of Summit League Freshman of the Year and Summit League Pitcher of the Year in 2012 as well being named to second team NFCA All-Midwest Region team.   Miller (neé Weil) is the only pitcher in Iowa History to earn the team’s Most Valuable Player award in all four seasons of her career. She was a four-time all-Big Ten selection, three-time NFCA All-Region honoree, two-time Big Ten Pitcher of the Year, and a NFCA second team All-America in 2009.   She set the Hawkeye career marks in strikeouts (1,083), complete games (110), innings pitched (1,011.2), and games pitched (183), as well as the single-season strikeout mark (339) in 2009, which all stand to this day. Following her storied career in Iowa City, she was the No. 7 overall draft pick by the Akron Racers in the 2009 National Pro Fastpitch staff.   A native of Garden Grove, California, Miller was inducted into the Orange County Softball Hall of Fame in 2020. She was a standout pitcher at Pacifica High School, receiving first team all-league, all-county, and all-California Interscholastic Federation (CIF) honors all four years on the varsity team. She set the CIF record with 102 victories in the circle.   Miller received her bachelor’s degree in communication studies from Iowa in 2009. She and her husband Thavis, have eight children – Amilyon, Zatyvion, Lataviah, Tajavis, Tryce, Tytan, Tazzy, and Talyn.

East Texas A&M softball coach Brittany Miller announced the hiring of Crystl Bustos, a two-time Olympic gold medalist and one of the most decorated athletes in softball history, as the Lions’ assistant coach in August 2022.   Bustos, known in the softball world as “the Big Bruiser” and the “Babe Ruth of Softball” has won three Olympic medals, including gold in 2000 and 2004, and won one World Championship Gold Medals, three Pan American Gold Medals, and two World Cup Championships. She has hit the most home runs in Olympic softball history and was inducted into the U.S. Olympic Hall of Fame and is also a member of the National Softball Hall of Fame.   The 2008 USA Softball Player of the Year has coached for Mt. SAC college, the Texas Charge of National Pro Fastpitch. She also played and coached alongside Miller with the Akron Racers. She is the owner of the Ruthless Softball organization, one of the premier clubs in California, Texas, Florida, and several other states.   At Mt. SAC, the team compiled the highest batting average in league history in .428 during the 2014 season.   In 2008 at the Beijing Olympics, she batted 11 for 22 with team-best six home runs and 10 RBIs. Her six home runs and 10 RBIs that season are both Olympic records. Bustos has hit 14 home runs in her three Olympic appearances, which is the record among all Olympic softball hitters.   In her three Olympic campaigns, Bustos scored 26 runs, hit 14 home runs, drove in 24 RBIs, with a batting average of .372.   Bustos played collegiately for Palm Beach Community College, winning two NJCAA National Championships and being named the NJCAA Player of the Year in both seasons. She hit an NJCAA record 23 home runs and the first athlete in school history to have her number retired.   Following her collegiate career, she enjoyed a storied professional and Olympic career, which includes the NPF’s Akron Racers, who were crowned champions in 2005, Women’s Pro Softball League, where she was named the league’s MVP while winning the championship with the Orlando Wahoos in 1998.   Her three gold medals at the Pan American Games came in 1993, 2003, and 2007, while she was part of the 2006 and 2007 World Cup Championship teams.   A native of Canyon Country, California, and the LA Times Valley Player of the Year for Canyon High School in 1994, Bustos now resides in Princeton.

Lion softball added Josh Reeves to the coaching staff as an assistant coach in July 2024.    Reeves arrived to East Texas A&M after serving on the staff at UIW for the last two seasons, being part of the one of the biggest turnarounds in Southland Conference history. The Cardinals improved from a 16-win season in 2023 to 34 in 2024, which included a runner-up finish at the Southland Conference Tournament.   While at UIW, Reeves focused on the outfield, slap-hitters, speed, and recruiting. He introduced mental Masters to the team, creating a platform for strongly mentally focused student-athletes.   Prior to joining the college coaching ranks, Josh won a TAPPS state championship as an assistant coach with UIW High School and spent his time coaching elite club teams for the Texas Bombers, Firecrackers, and 2014 PGF National Championship game with Diretv Genies Elite.   Reeves and his wife Lonnie have five children and three of their daughters have played or will play in college. Daughter, Natalia, played at Texas State, while Melania is currently at Texas State, and Ca’Mora is playing at Clark Atlanta University. In addition, he has a son, X’Zavier, who is in high school and a three-year-old daughter, Brynleigh.    Originally from Waverly, Iowa, Reeves spent his high school years as a four-sport athlete and earning a baseball scholarship from Grand View University.  He moved to Texas in 1999 and called San Antonio home, before coming north to Commerce.    He holds a bachelor’s degree in business finance and has a love for numbers, data, and the stories they tell.   Outside of Coaching, Reeves is a 27-year executive leader and co-founder of his international company supporting some of the most well-known brands throughout the U.S., Latin America, Africa, and Europe in sales, marketing, operations, and expansion activities.   For the last 15 years, he has been focused on launching and growing BPO operations for clients looking to move into and through hypergrowth and exit strategies. With over $150M in closed deals, Josh is highly effective in growing companies and multiplying revenue.