The Kentucky Wildcats softball team represents the University of Kentucky in the sport of softball. The Kentucky Wildcats compete in Division I of the National Collegiate Athletics Association (NCAA) and the Southeastern Conference (SEC). The Wildcats play their home games at John Cropp Stadium on the university's Lexington, Kentucky campus, and are currently led by head coach Rachel Lawson. In the history of the Wildcats softball program, the team has made appearances in fifteen NCAA Division I Softball Championship, eight Super Regionals, and one Women's College World Series (WCWS).
| Kentucky Wildcats | |
|---|---|
 2022 Kentucky Wildcats softball team | |
 | |
| University | University of Kentucky |
| Athletic director | Mitch Barnhart |
| Head coach | Rachel Lawson (16th season) |
| Conference | SEC Eastern Division |
| Location | Lexington, KY |
| Home stadium | John Cropp Stadium (Capacity: 2,117 [1]) |
| Nickname | Wildcats |
| Colors | Blue and white[2] |
| NCAA WCWS appearances | |
| 2014 | |
| NCAA Super Regional appearances | |
| 2011, 2013, 2014, 2015, 2017, 2018, 2019, 2021 | |
| NCAA Tournament appearances | |
| 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014, 2015, 2016, 2017, 2018, 2019, 2021, 2022, 2023, 2024 | |
Head coaches
| Name | Years | Record |
|---|---|---|
| Beth Pruit | 1997–2004 | 181–297–1 (52–146 SEC) |
| Eileen Schmidt | 2005–2007 | 61–108 (12–75 SEC) |
| Rachel Lawson | 2008–present | 495–297 (155–173 SEC) |
History
The University of Kentucky softball team had their inaugural season in 1997.[3]
University of Kentucky Athletic Director Mitch Barnhart hired Rachel Lawson in July 2007. Since her hire, Lawson has guided UK to eight NCAA Super Regionals including an appearance in the 2014 College World Series, the program's first.
In her fourteen seasons at Kentucky, Lawson has an overall win–loss record of 495–297, making her the winningest head coach in school history and already has more wins in SEC play than UK had total as a program when she took over in 2008. UK also finished 2016 in the top 14 of both collegiate softball rankings for the third time in school history with eleven wins over ranked teams.
Another accomplishment since Lawson's hire in 2008 is the construction of John Cropp Stadium. The facility cost $9.5 million, and debuted for the 2013 season. UK hosted the 2013 SEC Tournament as well as an NCAA regional, another first for the program. Since 2013, UK has hosted an NCAA regional in 2013, 2014, 2016–2019, and 2021.
Year-by-year results
| Season | Coach | Record | SEC record | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1997 | Beth Pruit | 11–44 | ||
| 1998 | Beth Pruit | 19–43 | 6–22 | |
| 1999 | Beth Pruit | 23–44 | 6–22 | |
| 2000 | Beth Pruit | 36–29 | 15–13 | |
| 2001 | Beth Pruit | 27–34 | 10–18 | |
| 2002 | Beth Pruit | 24–32 | 6–21 | |
| 2003 | Beth Pruit | 16–40 | 3–26 | |
| 2004 | Beth Pruit | 25–31–1 | 6–24 | |
| 2005 | Eileen Schmidt | 20–41 | 4–25 | |
| 2006 | Eileen Schmidt | 21–36 | 4–26 | |
| 2007 | Eileen Schmidt | 20–31 | 4–24 | |
| 2008 | Rachel Lawson | 17–37 | 3–25 | |
| 2009 | Rachel Lawson | 34–23 | 13–14 | NCAA Regional |
| 2010 | Rachel Lawson | 32–27 | 13–15 | NCAA tournament |
| 2011 | Rachel Lawson | 40–16 | 14–9 | NCAA Super Regional |
| 2012 | Rachel Lawson | 30–30 | 15–13 | NCAA tournament |
| 2013 | Rachel Lawson | 41–21 | 13–11 | NCAA Super Regional Hosted SEC Tournament & Regional |
| 2014 | Rachel Lawson | 50–19 | 13–11 | Women's College World Series Hosted Regional |
| 2015 | Rachel Lawson | 32–26 | 5–19 | NCAA Super Regional |
| 2016 | Rachel Lawson | 46–14 | 17–7 | NCAA tournament Hosted Regional |
| 2017 | Rachel Lawson | 39–19 | 12–12 | NCAA Super Regional Hosted Regional |
| 2018 | Rachel Lawson | 35–21 | 8–15 | NCAA Super Regional Hosted Regional |
| 2019 | Rachel Lawson | 36–24 | 14–10 | NCAA Super Regional Hosted Regional |
| 2020 | Rachel Lawson | 20–4 | 2–1 | Season cancelled due to COVID-19 pandemic |
| 2021 | Rachel Lawson | 43–16 | 13–11 | NCAA Super Regional Hosted Regional |
| 2022 | Rachel Lawson | 37-19 | 13-11 | NCAA Tournament |
| 2023 | Rachel Lawson | 33-22-1 | 10-14 | NCAA Tournament |
| 2024 | Rachel Lawson | 30-22 | 8-16 | NCAA Tournament |
| Reference:[4][5] | ||||
All-Americans
| Player | Year(s) | Team | Organization | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Molly Johnson [6] | 2009 | 2nd | Louisville Slugger/NFCA | |
| Kelsey Nunley [7] | 2016 | 1st | NFCA | |
| Katie Reed [8] | 2017 | 3rd | NFCA | |
| Abbey Cheek [9] | 2019 | 1st | NFCA | Unanimous |
Other Awards
| Player | Year(s) | Team | Organization |
|---|---|---|---|
| Molly Johnson [10] | 2010 | 2nd | Senior CLASS Award |
| Griffin Joiner [11] | 2015 | 1st | Senior CLASS Award |
| Kelsey Nunley [12][13] | 2016 | 1st | Senior CLASS Award, SEC Pitcher of the Year |
| Abbey Cheek[14] | 2019 | NFCA National Player of the Year, SEC Player of the Year |