First-year University of Maine head softball coach Kimberly Stiles has a lot to accomplish in Orono.
The University of Pittsburgh alumnus and former Holy Cross head coach is tasked with turning around a program that went 5-41 last year and 29-117 since 2022, lost its two most productive pitchers (and co-captains) to graduation and is tucked away in the northeast corner of the country, out of sight for many prospective student athletes.
Hired earlier this week, Stiles plans on righting the ship at UMaine with a player-centric coaching philosophy, and by recruiting freshmen from New England.
“I can’t wait to grow this program. We’re gonna build from the bottom, work really hard and get this done,” Stiles said. “The end goal is to win the America East, and if you do all the little things right, the big things happen.”
For Stiles, this entails building trust with her players and working on skill development.
In her first season at Holy Cross in spring 2022, the Crusaders increased their team batting averages and slugging percentages by more than 45 points apiece from 2021.
On the recruiting trail, Stiles says she’ll preach her relationship-building values and pitch UMaine’s new facilities and surrounding beauty as a selling point.
“It’s about vision and possibility,” Stiles said. “It resonates with student-athletes if they know you’re committed to them and committed to the program — who wouldn’t want to play here, it’s absolutely amazing.”
She added, “Adding a veteran transfer pitcher will be a quick fix, but stepping up is the name of the game. There’s some younger kids on the roster, and kids have to step into those roles. That’s how college sports work.”
UMaine finished the 2024 season with six freshmen, six sophomores, five juniors, two seniors and two graduate students. Fifth-year player Cat Fallon was the team’s top pitcher and hitter, with a 6.16 ERA and .289 batting average.
Geographically, the Black Bears have no returning players from New England and three total from Pennsylvania and New Jersey — Stiles wants to change this.
“We’re gonna bring in some quality freshmen, and make sure we’re hitting the kids right in our backyard,” Stiles said. “There’s some high-quality kids in the Northeast, and we have to [give them] the opportunity to see everything we have and can do at Maine.”
