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University of West Florida

University of West Florida Athletic Dept
 11000 University Pkwy - Bldg 54 Pensacola, FL 32514
Division 2 Florida Southeast
Public Large Competitive team
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Coaches

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Ashliegh McLean

Ashliegh McLean was named head coach of the UWF softball program in May 2018, after four years as an assistant with the team.


It's tough to imagine a better possible start for the Argonauts during McLean's first year as head coach, as she led the team to a Gulf South Conference Championship, a South Region Title, and a trip to the NCAA Championship in Denver. The team also spent four weeks as the No. 1-ranked team in the country, on the way to earning the 1-seed in the South Region.


Awards flowed in for McLean and UWF, as Rhiannon Sassman, Teala Howard, and Kelsey Sweatt were each named All-Americans. Sassman was also the D2CCA South Region Player of the Year and the GSC Player of the Year, Howard was named the GSC Freshman of the Year, and Sweatt earned D2CCA South Region Pitcher of the Year honors, while McLean was named the GSC Coach of the Year -- her first such award and UWF's sixth.


West Florida finished the year at 54-11, and the team set the program record for fielding percentage (.977) and improved its record by 16.5 games. West Florida set several high-water marks this year, in many respects having the program's best season in over a decade. The team's 54 wins are the most for the program since 2005, their 1.80 ERA is the best since 2006, and their 5.6 runs per game are the most since 2010.


In her final three years as an assistant from 2016-18, the UWF pitching staff ranked in the top three in the Gulf South Conference in ERA (2.72), shutouts (32), opponent batting average (.241), strikeouts (822) and wins (119), and Argonaut pitchers have earned nine All-GSC or All-South Region awards.


In McLean's first season as a full-time assistant coach in 2016, her efforts led the UWF pitching staff to a 2.50 ERA and a .238 batting average against -- a major improvement from the team's 3.57 ERA and .264 batting average in 2015.


The staff improved even more on the way to the program's 2017 trip to the NCAA Championships in Salem, Virginia, posting a 2.49 ERA and .231 batting average against while recording a Gulf South Conference-best 15 shutouts.


UWF ranked second in the GSC in opponent batting average (.257), third in shutouts (7), and fourth in ERA (3.23) and strikeouts (227) under McLean in 2018, on the way to another 30-win season.


McLean first joined the UWF coaching staff after spending two-years as a pitcher for the Argonauts softball program in 2011 and 2012. She started 39 games for the Argos in the circle and over 30 games in right field being a key utility player for West Florida and was listed as one of the GSC's top newcomers in 2011.


Before attending West Florida, McLean played softball at North Central Texas College and McLennan CC during her freshman and sophomore seasons and earned first team all-conference honors while at McLennan.


Originally from McKinney, Texas, McLean is the daughter of Kevin McLean and Sandy Ring and earned her masters degree in Physical Education from UWF.

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Emma Johansen

Emma Johansen joined the West Florida softball staff in July 2018, after spending four years on staff at Alabama State in Montgomery.


In 2016, Johansen helped lead the team to 28 wins, which was the third-highest single-season win total in program history, and the Lady Hornets led the Southwestern Athletic Conference (SWAC) in team batting average (.321), runs scored (296), hits (482), doubles (92), and home runs (38).


Johansen also helped coach ASU to its first SWAC championship, which helped clinch an NCAA Tournament berth. Before ASU, Johansen served as the assistant softball coach for Auburn University at Montgomery and played a role in leading the team to the 2014 NAIA National Championship. In the summer of 2017, Johansen also coached the Swedish National Team in the European National Championships.


Johansen is a former student-athlete for UWF. In 2012, she was selected to the Gulf South All-Conference team and hit .382 with a team-leading .459 on-base percentage.

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