New to the softball coaching staff is former Illinois State standout Bridget Fournie. A 2002 graduate of ISU, Fournie joins the Braves coaching staff after one year as an assistant coach at Western Illinois.
No stranger to the Valley, she was a four-time letterwinner at I-74 rival Illinois State, where she holds the school record for career starts with 217. A three-time second-team All-Missouri Valley Conference outfielder, she is third in career runs for the Redbirds with 117 and started every game during her career. Her final three seasons at Illinois State she helped lead her team to a 95-72 (.569), which included a 43-15 (.741) record in Valley play, a regular-season Missouri Valley Conference title (2001), two State Farm MVC Tournament championships (2000 & 01) and back-to-back NCAA Tournament appearances (2000 & 01).
Fournie first ventured into coaching in 2002 as a student assistant with Illinois State, while finishing up work for her Bachelor of Science degree in Physical Education and Kinesiology. She helped guide the Redbirds to a 34-17 overal record and second straight regular-season Valley title with a 21-4 league mark.
A two-year stint at Maryville University in St. Louis, Mo., followed a one-year assistant coaching tenure at Belleville East High School. While at Maryville, Fournie helped the Saints to a 54-31 (.635) record and 20-4 (.833) conference mark during her time. She worked primarily with the outfielders in addition to her team administrative duties. In her final year the Saints finished the 2005 season with a 30-14 record and went 10-2 in league play.
Last season, she was an assistant coach at Western Illinois where she served as the team’s hitting coach and worked with the squad’s outfielders. She helped the Westerwinds to a third-place finish in the Mid-Continent Conference.
A native of Belleville, Ill., Bridget will work primarily with the team’s outfielders in addition to assisting with the team’s recruiting efforts.