July 3, 2001
Deanna Gumpf, a member of the Irish softball coaching staff the last four seasons, has been named head softball coach at the University of Notre Dame.
Gumpf replaces Liz Miller, who announced her retirement last month following nine seasons as Notre Dame’s head softball coach. Gumpf becomes just the third head coach in Notre Dame’s 13 years of softball competition.
“I am honored and excited about this opportunity,” says Gumpf.
“This is the place I want to be. I expect and look forward to great things from this program.
“I want to thank Liz Miller for everything she has done for me. She has been a great mentor for me and everyone else who has been associated with Notre Dame softball over the last nine years. She deserves a lot of credit for what she has done with our program and I plan on continuing her success.”
“We are tremendously impressed with what Deanna brings to the table as our new softball coach,” says Notre Dame athletic director Kevin White.
“We had an extremely strong pool of candidates from across the country, and Deanna stood out as the best fit for Notre Dame. She has earned the respect of everyone in softball coaching circles, and her contributions to Notre Dame’s program the last four years are extensive and well-documented.
“She has a grand design for the future of softball at Notre Dame, and we’re excited about the opportunity to see her, her staff and her teams make those visions become reality.”
A 1992 Nebraska graduate, Gumpf served as an assistant coach at Notre Dame from 1998 through 2000 before being promoted to associate head coach for the 2001 season. Under her guidance, the Irish pitching staff has posted consecutive team earned run averages of 1.74, 1.69, 1.24 and a team-record 0.89 in 2001. One of the top pitching coaches in the nation, Gumpf helped Jennifer Sharron claim an unprecedented four straight BIG EAST Pitcher of the Year awards from 1998 through 2001 and earn All-America honors twice in her career.
In the four seasons Gumpf has been in the Irish dugout, the team has lowered its ERA and raised the team batting average each season while also setting team records for strikeouts (477 in 2001) and home runs (36 in 2000). She also has played a major role in the team’s national recruiting presence and helped establish Notre Dame softball as one of the top programs in the nation. The Irish are coming off a 54-7 season in 2001, when they climbed to as high as eighth in the nation and earned a number-one seed in the NCAA tournament.
The La Palma, Calif., native starred in softball at Nebraska from 1989-92 when she pitched, played first base and earned a degree in business management. Gumpf earned second-team all-Big Eight Conference honors in 1991 and was a conference honorable mention pick in 1989 and 1990. Before her collegiate career, her club team, Gordon’s Panthers (LaPalma and Cypress, Calif.), won four straight national championships from 1982-85 and was runner-up in 1987 and 1988.
Gumpf served as an assistant coach at Long Beach State for two years in 1996-97, working primarily with the pitching staff and focusing on the development of the entire program. In addition, Gumpf has served as a private pitching instructor and has participated in softball clinics for various softball club and college teams.
Gumpf earned her master’s degree in physical education from Azusa Pacific University in May of 1997. She was married to current Notre Dame volunteer assistant softball coach John Gumpf in Riverside, Calif., on Dec. 19, 1998.