James Madison Dukes softball

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James Madison Dukes Softball
UniversityJames Madison University
Head coachLoren LaPorte (7th season)
ConferenceSun Belt
LocationHarrisonburg, VA
Home stadiumVeterans Memorial Park (Capacity: 1,500)
NicknameDukes
ColorsPurple and gold[1]
   
NCAA WCWS appearances
2021
NCAA Super Regional appearances
2016, 2019, 2021
NCAA Tournament appearances
2009, 2013, 2014, 2015, 2016, 2017, 2018, 2019, 2021
Conference Tournament championships
2009, 2014, 2016, 2017, 2019, 2021
Regular Season Conference championships
2009, 2013, 2014, 2016, 2017, 2018, 2019, 2021

The James Madison Dukes softball team represents James Madison University in NCAA Division I college softball. The team participates in the Sun Belt Conference (SBC) and plays home games in Veterans Memorial Park. JMU has won six CAA championships, including back-to-back Championships in 2016 and 2017. The Dukes have been to the NCAA Division I softball tournament nine times, hosting Regionals and Super Regionals in 2016. The team's head coach is Loren LaPorte, leading the Dukes to a 197–74 record in six seasons.

Coaching history[edit]

Years Coach Record %
2002–2012 Katie Flynn 283–252 .528
2013–2017 Mickey Dean 187–49 .738
2017–Present Loren LaPorte 197–74 .727

Season Results[edit]

Season Coach Record CAA Record Notes
2002 Katie Flynn 25–24 5–9
2003 Katie Flynn 19–31 5–3
2004 Katie Flynn 30–32 12–6
2005 Katie Flynn 28–27 8–10
2006 Katie Flynn 24–28 9–12
2007 Katie Flynn 38–16 16–4
2008 Katie Flynn 32–22 16–8
2009 Katie Flynn 35–16 12–8 CAA Champions, NCAA Regionals
2010 Katie Flynn 24–33 11–10
2011 Katie Flynn 29–23 8–11
2012 Katie Flynn 30–26 15–5
2013 Mickey Dean 42–17 18–3 NCAA Regionals
2014 Mickey Dean 45–15 15–3 CAA Champions, NCAA Regionals
2015 Mickey Dean 48–10 19–0 NCAA Regionals
2016 Mickey Dean 50–6 18–1 CAA Champions, NCAA Super Regionals
2017 Mickey Dean 52–8 18–2 CAA Champions, NCAA Regionals
2018 Loren LaPorte 43–14 19–2 NCAA Regionals
2019 Loren LaPorte 51–10 20–1 CAA Champions, NCAA Super Regionals
2020 Loren LaPorte 13–6 0–0 Season cancelled due to COVID-19 pandemic[2]
2021 Loren LaPorte 41–4 17–1 CAA Champions, Women's College World Series
2022 Loren LaPorte 21–21 10–5
2023 Loren LaPorte 28–19 13–11

2021 Season

After a dominant performance in the regular season, the Dukes entered the postseason with a 34–1 record. In the CAA tournament, the Dukes beat Delaware for their sixth conference title and were rewarded with the conference's automatic bid to the NCAA softball tournament.

The Dukes advanced to the Super Regionals after beating #9 Tennessee[3] and #25 Liberty twice in the Knoxville Regional.[4] They then went on to beat #8 Mizzou on the road in the best-of-three series in Columbia, Missouri.[5]

After punching their ticket to the Women's College World Series (WCWS) for the first time, the James Madison Dukes advanced to the WCWS semifinals after beating #1 Oklahoma 4–3 in eight innings[6] and #5 Oklahoma State 2–1[7] in the first and second rounds of the tournament. In doing so, they became the first-ever unseeded team to start 2–0 in the WCWS and reach the semifinal games. Their historic run came to a close just short of the finals, falling to eventual champions #1 Oklahoma twice.

Championships[edit]

Conference Championships[edit]

Season Conference Record Head Coach
2009 Colonial Athletic Association 35–16 Katie Flynn
2014 Colonial Athletic Association 45–15 Mickey Dean
2016 Colonial Athletic Association 50–6 Mickey Dean
2017 Colonial Athletic Association 52–8 Mickey Dean
2019 Colonial Athletic Association 51–10 Loren LaPorte
2021 Colonial Athletic Association 41–4 Loren LaPorte

NCAA Regional appearances[edit]

NCAA Regional Results
2009 Knoxville, TN Regional

Lost to Tennessee, 3–4
Lost to Jacksonville State, 0–6

2013 Knoxville, TN Regional

Lost to NC State, 0–2
Defeated Longwood, 5–0
Lost to NC State, 4–6

2014 Lexington, KY Regional

Defeated DePaul, 6–1
Lost to Kentucky, 1–2
Lost to DePaul, 3–4

2015 Harrisonburg, VA Regional

Defeated Binghamton, 10–15
Lost to NC State, 0–2
Lost to Fordham, 1–2

2016 Harrisonburg, VA Regional

Defeated Princeton, 7–0
Defeated North Carolina, 10–1
Defeated Longwood, 5–1

2017 Waco, TX Regional

Defeated Oregon State, 3–2
Lost to Baylor, 2–4
Defeated Kent State, 4–0
Lost to Baylor, 0–1

2018 Knoxville, TN Regional

Defeated Ohio, 2–1
Lost to Tennessee, 3–12
Lost to Ohio, 3–7

2019 Ann Arbor, MI Regional

Defeated DePaul, 5–2
Lost to Michigan, 0–112
Defeated DePaul, 3–0
Defeated Michigan, 3–0
Defeated Michigan, 2–1

2021 Knoxville, TN Regional

Defeated Liberty, 4–310
Defeated Tennessee, 3–1
Defeated Liberty, 8–5

Notable players[edit]

National awards[edit]

NFCA National Player of the Year
Softball America Pitcher of the Year
D1 Softball's Woman of the Year

All-Americans[edit]

  • 2014: Jailyn Ford (2nd team)
  • 2015: Megan Good (2nd team)
  • 2015: Jailyn Ford (3rd team)
  • 2016: Jailyn Ford (1st team)
  • 2016: Megan Good (1st team)
  • 2017: Megan Good (1st team)
  • 2018: Megan Good (1st team)
  • 2018: Odicci Alexander (3rd team)
  • 2018: Kate Gordon (3rd team)
  • 2019: Odicci Alexander (3rd team)
  • 2019: Megan Good (3rd team)
  • 2019: Kate Gordon (3rd team)
  • 2021: Odicci Alexander (2nd team)

Coaching Staff Awards[edit]

  • NFCA Division I National Coaching Staff of the Year (2021)[11]
  • NFCA Northeast Coaching Staff of the Year (2021)[12]

References[edit]

  1. ^ "Color Information" (PDF). JMU Official Athletics Identity Usage and Style Guide. July 12, 2023. Retrieved March 23, 2024.
  2. ^ "NCAA cancels remaining winter and spring championships". NCAA.org. 2020-03-12. Retrieved May 27, 2021.
  3. ^ Shiers, Mike. "JMU Softball beats Tennessee 3-1; Advances to Regional Final". www.nbc29.com. Retrieved 2021-09-05.
  4. ^ News-Record, AL LESAR Special to The Daily. "JMU Downs Liberty To Win Knoxville Regional". Daily News-Record. Retrieved 2021-09-05.
  5. ^ "OKC BOUND! JMU Beats Mizzou to Reach First Women's College World Series". James Madison University Athletics. Retrieved 2021-09-05.
  6. ^ "James Madison shocks No. 1 seed OU in WCWS". ESPN.com. 2021-06-03. Retrieved 2021-09-05.
  7. ^ "JMU wins another WCWS shocker, stuns Okla. St". ESPN.com. 2021-06-05. Retrieved 2021-09-05.
  8. ^ "NFCA | National Fastpitch Coaches Association". nfca.org. Retrieved 2021-09-05.
  9. ^ "2021 NCAA Pitcher Of The Year: Odicci Alexander". Softball America. Retrieved 2021-11-16.
  10. ^ "D1 Woman of the Year: Odicci Alexander". D1Softball. 2021-06-30. Retrieved 2021-09-05.
  11. ^ "College softball: JMU's historic run captures 2021 NFCA DI national coaching staff of the year honors | NCAA.com". www.ncaa.com. Retrieved 2021-09-05.
  12. ^ "JMU Staff Named NFCA Northeast Coaching Staff of the Year". James Madison University Athletics. Retrieved 2021-09-05.
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