BAKERSFIELD, Calif. - San José State assistant softball coach Letty Olivarez was named head softball coach at Cal State Bakersfield, announced by the school on Wednesday.
Olivarez, under the guidance of head coach Tammy Lohmann, helped lead the Spartans to 27 total wins and 11 conference wins last season which are both the most for SJSU since 2019. The Spartans also finished runner-up in the Mountain West Conference tournament in their first appearance.
"I would like to extend my sincerest congratulations to Coach Letty and CSB," Lohmann said. "I would like to thank Coach Letty for all of her work these past three years. Our pitchers saw continued growth under her leadership and I can’t wait to see what this next chapter holds for her. Being a head coach has been a career goal for her that she has been preparing for and I am excited to see all of her future success."
Olivarez rejoined the Spartans coaching staff in 2021 as a pitching coach after previously being with the Spartans in 2017 and 2018 and helped mentor Jenessa Ullegue who finished her career fourth on the SJSU all-time strikeouts list with 388 and also earned her first First Team NFCA Division I All-Pacific Region honors.
In Oliverez's initial two seasons with the program, she played an integral part in SJSU’s unprecedented success, helping lead the Spartans to back-to-back 30-win seasons and their first-ever Mountain West championship title in 2017.
"I want to express my gratitude to Tairia Flowers, John Rittman, Tammy Lohmann [SJSU head softball coach], Scottie Graham, Jeff Konya [SJSU Director of Athletics], Scott MacDonald [SJSU Deputy Athletic Director], and to the travel ball coaches that I have built great relationships with over the years," Olivarez said in her CSUB press release. "Your guidance, mentorship, and belief in me have played a significant role in my development as a coach and I am truly grateful for the knowledge and skills you have imparted on me. I also want to thank my family for their unwavering support and encouragement throughout my coaching career. Your love and belief in me have been instrumental in my success. I am fortunate to have such a strong support system behind me. Lastly, I am extremely grateful to Kyle Conder and Cindy Goodmon for believing in me and giving me this opportunity. Their support and trust mean the world to me, and I am determined to exceed their expectations."
In between her time at SJSU, she served in the same position at Texas Tech. She helped lead the Red Raiders to their first NCAA Regional Appearance since 2012 and the best record in program history while also coaching Erin Edmoundson to a perfect game in 2020.
Olivarez has also coached at Arizona State, Stanford and CSUN after playing collegiately at Wisconsin and is married to SJSU assistant softball coach James Davenport.
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