University of North Carolina - Wilmington Women's Softball

Ashley Wade enters her fourth season as the UNCW Softball Head Coach in 2026 after being named to the post in August 2022. Wade, the fifth head coach in program history, inherited the defending 2022 Colonial Athletic Association softball champions and guided the Seahawks back to the top of the league in her second season with the school's second-ever Coastal Athletic Association Championship in 2024. The Seahawks won a program record 18 league games and then defended Boseman Field with four wins over four days to earn the CAA's automatic qualifier berth to the NCAA Tournament. The 2025 season saw Wade lean into the transfer portal to replenish the Seahawk roster following the 2024 title, signing Michigan State transfer Makayla Huddleston and Charlotte transfer Taylor Barlow to lead the pitching staff. Huddleston was one of the top pitchers in the CAA, fashioning a 13-9 record with a sterling 2.09 ERA and pitching the school's sixth no-hitter on Mar. 28 at Monmouth. Barlow, meanwhile, tossed 86.1 innings across 23 appearances. Both pitchers combined for 14 complete games and four shutouts. On the diamond, sophomore Madison Biddle blossomed into an All-CAA First Teamer and NFCA All-Region Second Teamer in her second season under Wade. The infielder led the Seahawks with a .397 average and career-high eight home runs and 33 RBI, along with 22 steals. Biddle was one of six players to collect double-digit steals as the 2025 Seahawks reset the program benchmark with 147 swipes. Wade also signed former ASUN All-Conference infielder Maggie Pertee, who batted .312 with three home runs, 25 RBI and 19 stole bases across 50 games in her lone season in the Port City. The Seahawks matched their program best with 10 straight wins from Feb. 9-23, 2025, and entered the D1 Softball Mid-Major Top 25 poll at No. 23 during Week 4. In a mirror of UNCW's 2022 run, juniors Kara Hammock and Emily Winstead recorded every out of the 2024 CAA Tournament with Hammock earning CAA Most Outstanding Performer honors. Wade and the Seahawks went to on to play in the Athens Regional in the 2024 NCAA Softball Tournament. Under Wade's tutelage, outfielder Skylar Stockton enjoyed a breakout campaign, setting career-highs across on the board on her way to an All-CAA First Team selection. Hammock and second baseman Tayler Vitola, who was the CAA Scholar-Athlete of the Year, were All-CAA Second-Teamers while Cassidy Relay captured CAA All-Rookie accolades as one of the league's top table setters. The Seahawks' historic 2024 campaign featured 33 total wins, including 21 at home, and a 4-2 road win at North Carolina. Emily Winstead fired the fifth no-hitter in program history on Apr. 27, 2024 at Drexel. Wade pushed UNCW to new heights in 2023 with a 23-27 record, including a program record 17 conference victories along with softball's highest CAA finish (second place). Under Wade's tutelage, UNCW produced the most All-CAA First-Teamers in school history with Janel Gamache, Kara Hammock and Arial Pearce earning selections to the league's top team while Tayler Vitola garned a Second-Team nod. Gamache, a dynamic two-way player, elevated her play under Wade to capture CAA Player of the Year honors after leading the Seahawks with a .364 average and tying for first in the CAA with a 1.93 ERA in the circle. Gamache and Hammock (1.98 ERA) spearheaded a Seahawk staff that produced a 2.71 ERA, good for second in the circuit. The 2023 Seahawks were the first team in program history to sweep all home conference series, ending the year a perfect 12-0 in CAA home games and 17-9 overall at Boseman Field. UNCW opened CAA play with a sweep of Towson in which it exploded for 32 hits over three games, the second-highest total in a three-game CAA series since joining the league in 2004. Wade picked up her first win as the Seahawks skipper on Feb. 9, 2023, with a walk-off 2-1 victory over Purdue Fort Wayne in eight innings. UNCW also dispatched North Carolina for the first time in five years which also represented the program's first victory over a Power Five foe since 2019. Prior UNCW, Wade spent seven seasons on the staff at Northern Illinois. A native of Baltimore, Md., Wade arrived in DeKalb, Ill., in 2015 before being promoted to Associate Head Coach in 2019 under Huskies Head Coach Christina Sutcliffe. During her 13-year coaching career, Wade has worked with two NCAA All-American selections, six CoSIDA Academic All-Americans, 13 National Fastpitch Coaches Association (NFCA) All-Region honorees, 45 All-Conference selections and an NCAA Top-25 Freshman. Wade was involved in all facets of the NIU program. Wade, who worked primarily with infield, outfield and team defense, also arranged fall game schedules, scouting reports and oversaw the program's operational and equipment budgets. She collaborated with academic advisors to oversee NIU's success in the classroom, with the Huskies posting a 3.639 team GPA, the 14th best mark in the nation, during the 2021-22 academic year. In seven seasons with the Huskies, Wade helped the team rack up 162 wins and their first division title in 16 years when they captured the 2016 Mid-American Conference West Division crown in her first year. The 35-win campaign was followed by 33 victories in 2017, the program's first back-to-back 30-win seasons since 1999-2000. Wade spent the 2015 season as an assistant coach at Northwestern Oklahoma State, where she was responsible for working with the Rangers' outfielders and hitters. The Rangers batted .286 with 41 home runs and 183 RBIs in 49 games. The Seahawk skipper earned a Bachelor of Science Degree in Business Administration from Stevenson in 2013. Wade was a volunteer assistant for three seasons with the Mustangs softball team under Head Coach Joey Lye, a bronze medalist with Team Canada at the 2020 Olympics, and helped lead Stevenson to its first Middle Atlantic Conference championship appearance in 2013. With a school-record 24 wins, the Mustangs qualified for the Eastern College Athletic Conference South Championship which marked the program's second-ever postseason appearance. Prior to Stevenson, Wade served as an assistant coach at Coppin State for the 2010 and 2011 seasons. Joining a program that totaled five victories from 2007-09, Wade helped the Eagles win a school-record 22 games in 2010 and reached the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference tournament for the first time in six years. Coppin State had four All-MEAC First-Teamers and the league's Pitcher of the Year in Paige Arnold. The 2011 Eagles softball team played to an 18-16 record, the first winning season in program history, and won their first MEAC tournament game. Coppin State established 22 school records in Wade's two-year stint. Before arriving at Coppin State, Wade earned her Associate of Arts degree from the Community College of Baltimore County Dundalk in 2007, where she played one season for the Lady Lions. Wade earned her Master of Science Degree in Sports Management from NIU in 2018, along with a certification in Sports Psychology. She was designated a One-Star Master Coach by the NFCA. The Ashley Wade File Full Name: Ashley Nicole Wade Hometown: Baltimore, Md. Education: B.S., Business Administration, Stevenson, 2013; M.S., Sport Management, Northern Illinois, 2018 Ashley Wade Head Coach Record  Year School Record Pct. Conf. Record Conf. Pct. Finish Postseason 2023 UNCW 23-27 .460 17-7 .708 2nd 2024 UNCW 33-23 .589 18-9 .667 4th CAA Tournament Champions NCAA Athens Regional 2025 UNCW 28-22 .560 14-13 .519 7th The Wade Coaching Timeline Year School Record Role 2010 Coppin State 22-22 Assistant Coach 2011 Coppin State 18-16 Assistant Coach 2012 Stevenson 19-22 Volunteer Assistant 2013 Stevenson 24-23 Volunteer Assistant 2014 Stevenson 16-23 Volunteer Assistant 2015 Northwestern Oklahoma State 22-27 Assistant Head Coach 2016 Northern Illinois 35-20 Assistant Head Coach 2017 Northern Illinois 33-21 Assistant Head Coach 2018 Northern Illinois 24-32 Assistant Head Coach 2019 Northern Illinois 27-25 Assistant Head Coach 2020 Northern Illinois 7-15 Associate Head Coach 2021 Northern Illinois 19-37 Associate Head Coach 2022 Northern Illinois 17-28 Associate Head Coach 2023   UNCW 23-27 Head Coach 2024 UNCW 33-23 Head Coach 2025 UNCW 28-22 Head Coach   What They're Saying About Coach Wade "We couldn’t be prouder of Ashley and are excited to see her hard work pay off. While it’s difficult to have her leave, we wish her nothing but success in her quest to continue to build on her new program’s history and defend a championship. Nothing but greatness is in Coach Wade’s future." -Christina Sutcliffe, Former Northern Illinois Softball Head Coach   Coach Wade in the News Introductory Video (Seahawk Digitial Network) Coach Wade on ESPN Wilmington's Slack on Sports Coaches in New Places: Ashley Wade (D1 Softball) $ D1 on Deck with UNCW's Ashley Wade (D1 Softball)

Bobby Guntoro, who was named head coach on July 23, 2020, returned to his alma mater following eight seasons on the staff at NC State, including the last three as the Wolfpack’s Associate Head Coach. He arrived in Raleigh as a graduate assistant and after two seasons, was elevated to assistant coach. Guntoro, who enters his fifth season leading the program in 2024-25, became just the third head coach in the program’s history and the first UNCW graduate to take the reins. UNCW continued its resurgence under the direction of Guntoro in 2024 as the Seahawks swept the Coastal Athletic Association championships for the first time since 2006. For the men, it was their third straight conference title and 16th overall. The Seahawk women earned their second consecutive CAA title and fifth in the program’s history. Guntoro was recognized as the Swimming Coach of the Year for both the men and women in 2024. He’s earned that honor a total of five times, including three on the men’s side. The Seahawk men collected their 15th conference title in 2023 and the women added their fourth title and first since 2006. William Carrico was honored as the league’s Rookie of the Year and competed along with Dave Fitch at the 2024 Olympic Trials in Indianapolis. In his second season as head coach at his alma mater, Bobby Guntoro returned the Seahawks to championship form as the men captured their first Colonial Athletic Association title since 2014 and Brooke Knisely competed in the 2022 NCAA Championships in Atlanta, Ga. Guntoro was honored by the league’s coaches as the Men’s Swimming Coach of the Year as the Seahawks breezed to their 14th conference title. UNCW combined to win 16 events at the championship meet. Knisley became the first Seahawk since Carly Tanner in 2013 to compete at the NCAA Championships. Knisely was the CAA Champion in both the 500 and 1650 Free and set program records in both events during the 2021-22 season. Four Seahawks earned major honors from the CAA with Sam O’Brien and Katie Knorr earning Swimming Rookie of the Year honors. O'Brien shined as a freshman, delivering a sweep of the distance events at the CAA Championships. He won the 500 Freestyle with a time of 4:23.83 and later earned a win in the 1650 Free when he touched the wall in a time of 15:27.16. O'Brien also finished second in the 400 IM with a time 3:52.70. Knorr earned All-CAA honors in the 200 IM and won the 400 IM with a time of 4:19.72. Knorr set a program record in the 400 IM earlier in the season with a time of 4:17.18. At NC State, Guntoro served on both the women’s and men’s coaching staffs and helped both teams record ACC championships and NCAA top-10 finishes. He worked primarily with the sprint and middle distance groups daily and was instrumental in recruiting. Guntoro helped produce a pair NCAA champion relays at the 2018 NCAA Championships and both relay units set NCAA records. The 800 Free Relay clocked a time of 6:05.31, while the 400 Free Relay posted a record time of 2:44.75. Individually, Andreas Vazaios was the NCAA champion in the 200 Butterfly at the 2018 and 2019 NCAA Championships. On the women’s side, Guntoro helped the program to the 2017 ACC title, its first championship since 1980. NCSU added another crown in 2019 and finished seventh at the NCAA Championships for the second time in three seasons. At the 2020 ACC Championships, the women’s 200 Free Relay set an ACC record with a time of 1:26.15. Guntoro is a graduate of UNCW and earned a Bachelor of Science Degree in Accounting in 2011. He set the program record in the 100 Butterfly and swam on several record-breaking relays. UNCW won four CAA championships during his career and added a fifth consecutive title in 2012 when Guntoro served as a volunteer assistant on the coaching staff. Guntoro has extensive experience on the international front. A native of Jakarta, Indonesia, he represented the country on the international level from 2003-11. Guntoro earned a Master of Arts Degree in Liberal Studies with a concentration on Sport and Youth Development at NC State in 2015.

Richards enters her third season as an assistant coach on Head Coach Bobby Guntoro’s staff in 2024-25. During her tenure with the program, the Seahawks have won five Coastal Athletic Association titles, including three on the men’s side. In 2024, the Seahawk women captured their first CAA title since 2006. Richards, who was hired in September of 2021, arrived following four seasons on the coaching staff at her alma mater, the College of New Jersey. She competed for the Lions for four seasons before joining the staff in 2017. As a senior, Richards was honored with the Brenda Campbell "Team Before Self" Award by the program's staff.   While with the Lions as an assistant, Richards helped the program to a New Jersey Athletic Conference Championship in 2021 and saw Zoe Chan qualify for the NCAA Division III championships in the 100 Fly. TCNJ finished second in both the 2019 and 2020 NJAC championship meets.   In 2018, Richards became the senior coach on the staff for the Eastern Express Swim Team, based in Princeton, N.J. In 2019 the men's program won the Eastern Zone Long Course Championship.

Former Ole Miss slugger Abbey Latham begins her fourth season an assistant coach with the UNCW Softball program in 2026. Under Latham's tutelage in 2025, Madison Biddle blossomed into an All-CAA First Teamer and NFCA All-Region Second Teamer, batting .397 with eight home runs and 33 RBI, all team-highs, to go with 22 stolen bases. Biddle and fellow sophomores Allison Corbin (.288, three home runs, 29 RBI) and Cassidy Relay (.343, 34 stolen bases) took steps forward in their second season under Latham will former ASUN All-Conference transfer Maggie Pertee, batted .312 with three home runs and 19 stolen bases. Latham developed the 2024 CAA Championship offense that included three players above .300, highlighted by Skylar Stockton's breakout campaign. The All-CAA First-Teamer set career-highs across the board to lead UNCW. Elsewhere, Tayler Vitola and Cassidy Relay were among the top table-setting duos in the country with both averaging better than .320 with at least 17 steals.  In her first season, Latham oversaw four players finish the season with a .300 or better average, including Colonial Athletic Association Player of the Year Janel Gamache's team-high .364 mark to go with four home runs and 28 RBI. Gamache, who also earned All-CAA First-Team honors, was joined on the circuit's top team by outfielder Arial Pearce while junior second baseman Tayler Vitola ascended to All-Conference status for the first time in her career with a Second-Team nod. UNCW notched 74 multi-hit games, led by Vitola's 16, in 2023 while 11 Seahawks combined for 37 multi-RBI efforts under Latham. The Seahawks opened CAA play with a sweep of Towson in which it exploded for 32 hits over three games, the second-highest total in a three-game CAA series since joining the league in 2004.   Latham joined the defending Colonial Athletic Association champions after helping the Rebels make four NCAA Regional appearances as well as one Super Regional appearance from 2018-22. As a player, Latham appeared in 237 games and made 212 starts for Ole Miss, batting .298 with 39 home runs with a Rebels career-record 167 RBI. She is tied for fourth in program history with 196 hits and holds a share of third all-time with 40 doubles.   With Latham in the heart of the order, the Rebels went 41-19 in 2022 and earned a trip to the Los Angeles Regional hosted by UCLA. The utility player led Ole Miss with 10 homers and 46 RBI while hitting .292 in her final season.   The Livingston, Ala., native, reset Ole Miss's single-season RBI record (54) as a sophomore. She paced the Rebels in home runs (10), doubles (13), slugging percentage (.559), and walks (22) as Ole Miss went 42-20 in 2019 and won the Oxford Regional to earn the school's second Super Regional.   Latham made an immediate impact for the Rebels when she arrived in 2018, smashing seven round-trippers in only 69 at-bats. She posted a .455 batting average in the NCAA Tempe Regional, with three homers, a pair of doubles, five RBI and three runs.   Latham broke into the coaching ranks in August 2022 as coach of the Bombers 08 Gold squad, an Elite Travel Fastpitch Softball team based in Atlanta, Ga.

Parker Stevens, enters his sixth season on the softball staff at his alma mater, where he has helped the UNCW softball program soar to new heights in his time in the Port City. Stevens, a Mount Airy, North Carolina native, helped guide the Seahawks to the school’s first Colonial Athletic Association Championship and NCAA Tournament appearance in 2022. After continuing on staff under new skipper Ashley Wade, UNCW won a program record 17 conference games and earned its highest finish (second place) since joining the CAA in 2004. With Parker on staff, the Seahawks captured their second CAA crown in 2024 and earned a trip to the NCAA Athens Regional. While at UNCW, Stevens has primarily overseen the Seahawks catchers, including a pair of CAA All-First Teamers in Jada Santiago (2021 and NFCA All-Region) and Mackenzie Amodeo (2022), plus the team’s 2021 Defensive Player of the Year, Anna Knox. He also coached first base and led all community service projects for the Seahawks. Since joining the Seahawks in 2020, Stevens has been part of a staff that has produced four NFCA All-Region athletes, the first CAA Pitcher and Rookie of the Year recipients in program history as well as six CAA First-Teamers, five Second-Teamers, and five All-Rookie team selections. Two-way star Janel Gamache became the second Seahawk in program history to earn CAA Player of the Year in 2023. The UNCW softball team claimed the school’s Team Leadership Award for the fourth consecutive year in 2022. The Seahawks contributed more than 800 hours of community service last season, while compiling a 32-15 record and a team 3.60 grade point average.   Stevens joined the Seahawks following two seasons as an assistant coach at nearby Laney High School, where he worked with the team’s pitchers and catchers. During his time at Laney, the Buccaneers posted a 20-8 record while earning a state playoff berth in both seasons.   Stevens joined the Port City Thunder Fastpitch organization in 2017 and served as the Head Coach of their Premier team.  Stevens also owns Iron Mask Catching, LLC and is an active member of the Cape Fear Optimist Club which promotes youth sports.   Stevens also coached varsity baseball, football, and track and field at East Chapel Hill High School from 1999-2000 and at Topsail High School from 2009-12. While at Topsail, Stevens coached a two-time 2A North Carolina High School High Jump State Champion.   Stevens himself was a varsity letter winner in six different sports at East Rowan High School and Mount Airy High School. In 1999, Parker received his Bachelor of Arts in Communications and a minor in Leadership Studies from UNCW. While a Seahawk, he was also a member of the rugby and baseball club teams. After graduation, Parker worked one season for the Durham Dragons, a member of the Women’s Professional Softball League.   In 2019, Stevens earned a Master’s degree from Liberty University in Pastoral Counseling. Parker and his wife, Susanna, have two girls - Isabella (15) and Juliana (11).

UNCW softball head coach Ashley Wade has announced the addition of former Florida State and Ole Miss graduate assistant Kyler Holton to the UNCW program as assistant coach for the 2026 season. Holton, who will oversee the Seahawk pitching staff, spent the previous two seasons as a graduate assistant at FSU, where he helped the Seminoles to 15 shutouts, the lowest ERA (2.20), strikeout to walk ratio (3.43) and most overall wins (49) in the Atlantic Coast Conference en route to the conference regular season championship in 2025 and two NCAA Super Regional appearances. "As one of the top young coaches in softball, Kyler has known nothing but success and has a reputation for developing pitchers," said Wade. "His passion for the game and commitment to our program's culture, combined with his work ethic, knowledge and impressive postseason experience, will make an immediate and profound impact on our team." While on FSU head coach Lonni Alameda's staff, Holton held various responsibilities, including signaling pitches to the defense in real-time via PitchCom technology, classifying opposing hitters into matchup categories based on in-depth data analysis, and tracking and interpreting ball flight data during bullpens to assist with player development. Holton also helped organize and execute booster events to foster program support and community engagement. "I'm fired up to join this program—stepping on campus felt like home and I knew right away it was the right fit, said Holton. "I'm pumped to collaborate with this driven coaching staff and help elevate our pitchers to the next level." Prior to his time in Tallahassee, Holton served as a graduate assistant and student manager at Ole Miss under Rebels coach Jamie Trachsel. Ole Miss reached two NCAA Regionals during Holton's tenure with the program, where he contributed to practices, video scouting, and other program responsibilities. During his studies at Ole Miss, Holton spent over a year as an assistant coach for the Georgia Bombers Lewis Fastpitch Team 18U in Atlanta. He helped implement new philosophies related to coaching, pitching, and scouting to enhance each player's ability to perform to the best of their ability and to achieve winning results. Holton earned his bachelor's degree in allied health studies with a minor in Psychology from Ole Miss in 2023. He went on to earn a graduate degree at Florida State in Athletic Coaching in 2025.  

Ress comes to the program following seven seasons on the staff at Roanoke College, including the last two as the head coach of both the Men’s and Women’s programs. In 2023-24, Ress helped the Maroons to a second-place finish at the Old Dominion Athletic Conference women’s championships and the men finished third. Lily Mullens advanced to the NCAA Division III championships in Greensboro and represented Roanoke in the 100 Freestyle. Before coming to Salem, Ress had a standout career at Towson where he was a four-year member of the team and served as team captain during his senior season. He was named to the 2017 All-Colonial Athletic Association Team as part of the Tigers' 400 & 800 Freestyle Relay teams. In addition to the pool, Ress was a member of the CAA All-Academic Team and a seven-time Dean's List honoree, while majoring in exercise science and graduating with honors in May of 2017.

On July 25, 2023, UNCW head swimming and diving coach Bobby Guntoro has announced the addition of Gavrilo Blijden as diving coach for the Seahawks for the 2023-24 season. Blijden enters his second season with the program in 2024-25. In his first season on staff, Blijden earned Coastal Athletic Association Men’s Diving Coach of the Year after helping UNCW sweeping both boards. Ethan Badrian, the league’s Diver of the Year and most outstanding diver of the CAA Championships, won the 3-meter board and finished second on the 1-meter. Teammate Nic Newis, meanwhile, earned a conference crown winning the 1-meter and taking second on the 3-meter. Blijden came to the Seahawks following three seasons on the staff at Alabama, where he served as an assistant under the direction of former UNCW diving coach Beau Bunn during the 2022-23 season. He joined the UA staff as a volunteer (2020-21) and served as the interim diving coach his second season (2021-22) and moved into a graduate assistant role that same season.   While with the Crimson Tide, Blijden helped Kevin Li to All-America honors on the 1-meter board and Mohamed Farouk to an NCAA Championship appearance. Tanesha Lucoe earned silver medal honors on the platform at the SEC Championships.   As a student-athlete, Blijden attended East Carolina and helped the Pirates to the 2020 American Athletic Conference championship. The Willemstad, Curacao, native earned the program’s Coaches Award as a senior and served as team captain. He also earned CSCAA Scholar All-America honors during his career.   Blijden started his collegiate career at Indian River State College, leading team to back-to-back NJCAA titles in 2017 and 2018. Blijden won the 2018 NJCAA 3-meter championship off the 3-meter board. He was also named the NJCAA Diver of the Year in 2018 and served as team captain that same year.   After earning his associated degree in biology from Indian River State in 2018, Blijden earned his bachelor’s degree in health promotion and education in 2020 from East Carolina and a master’s degree in public health in 2023 from Alabama.