Softball | 6/22/2022 3:03:00 PM
UTICA, NY -- Utica University Athletic Director Dave Fontaine recently announced the hiring of
Rinae Olsen '09 as the next Head Coach of the Utica softball program. Olsen will be in charge of all facets of the program including scouting, recruiting, game and practice preparation, as well as day-to-day operations in the office.
"We are thrilled to have Rinae back at Utica to take over our softball program," said Fontaine. "With her track record of success at Utica as well as in the Liberty League, we have no doubts that she will take the program to new heights."
Olsen is no stranger to Utica as she was a four-year starter at first base for the Pioneers. She ranks sixth in program history with 147 games played. She is also eighth in Utica's record book with a .981 career fielding percentage and she is ninth in career RBIs (71). She helped guide the Pioneers to a second-place finish in the Empire 8 and the ECAC Tournament after going 31-11 in 2006.
After graduation, Olsen stayed on as an assistant coach where she helped the program to unprecedented success. In 2013, Utica captured its first ever Empire 8 regular season championship. The Pioneers finished as Empire 8 runners-up but earned an at-large selection into the NCAA Tournament for the first time ever. That same year, junior Chelsea Monroe earned Empire 8 Player of the Year while freshman Alysa Russell was named the E8 Rookie of the Year.
After leaving Utica, Olsen spent six years as an assistant coach at perennial powerhouse Ithaca College. Olsen helped guide the Bombers to four conference championships and five NCAA Tournament appearances including a third-place finish in 2018. The Ithaca coaching staff was named NFCA Regional Coaching Staff of the Year twice during Olsen's tenure.
Most recently, Olsen has spent the past three seasons as head coach at Skidmore College. During her first full year of coaching due to the COVID-19 pandemic, Olsen guided the Thoroughbreds to a 24-14 overall record and an appearance in the Liberty League Tournament.
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The members of the Empire 8 Conference are committed first and foremost to the pursuit of academic excellence and the league is regarded as an outstanding NCAA Division III conference. The membership has distinguished itself among its peer group for its quality institutions, spirited and sportsmanlike competition, outstanding services and highly ethical policies and practices. Its commitment to serve the educational needs of its student-athletes is the hallmark of the E8. For more on the Empire 8 visit
www.empire8.com.
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