TERESA WILSON
Head Coach
University of Washington
Teresa Wilson wasted no time in building a perennial contender for the NCAA Championship at the University of Washington. In seven years, Wilson has led the Huskies to four straight trips to the College World Series, including appearances in the championship game in 1996 and 1999, and to the semifinals in 1997 and 1998. Washington has earned six straight berths in the NCAA tournament, a No. 1 ranking in the USA Today/NSCA poll, and a Pac-10 title.
Although only seven years old, the Washington softball program already has its place among the most elite teams in the country. As the only head coach in Husky history, Wilson has guided the program from the ground up, leading the Huskies to a 337-132 record, accruing an incredible .719 winning percentage. Wilson's players have earned 15 All-America certificates, 51 mentions on All-Pac-10 squads, and 37 all-conference academic honors.
Wilson has been successful in both her playing and coaching careers. She earned national and conference coach of the year honors after setting numerous records as an All-American pitcher at Missouri. Her 13-year career coaching record of 541-293 (.649) also includes stints at Oregon and Minnesota.
Wilson was named National Coach of the Year in 1989 at Oregon and has earned conference coach of the year honors at each stop. She has taken all three schools to postseason play, and in 1989 she became the first person to have both played and coached in the College World Series.
The 1999 season saw the Huskies come within one run of the national title, pushing UCLA to the wall before succumbing, 3-2, in the final outing of the year. Washington had skated undefeated through the postseason until that point, hosting and winning the Region 3 Championship and prevailing over three other Pac-10 squads in the CWS. Wilson reached two milestones on consecutive weekends during the season, winning her 500th career game on Feb. 26 against Missouri, her alma mater, and then posting her 300th victory with the Huskies against Portland State on March. 5. Washington maintained a top-six ranking throughout the year and entering the 2000 season have been in the top six for 51 consecutive polls, dating back to the beginning of the 1996 season. The Dawgs' final record of 51-18 was the program's fifth-straight 50-win season.
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