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Cara Clark
Coach Cara Clark, in her 17th season as UD's head coach for 2024, has implemented a hard-working, successful culture of excellence with the University of Dayton softball program. Clark’s emphasis on leadership enhancement, mental skills training and team chemistry have vaulted her most recent teams to new heights.
She serves on the NFCA top 25 Committee and is a 2019 inductee into the Clarke University's Athletics Hall of Fame. Clark tallied her 233rd career win at UD on April 15, 2017 at La Salle, becoming Dayton's all-time winningest coach. She enters the 2024 season with 380 wins at UD. Notable - coach Clark has 511 career wins as a head coach.
Dayton Program Records Under Coach Clark
Team Batting Average - .312 (2023)
Hits - 463 (2023)
Stolen Bases - 89 (2023)
Pitching Strikeouts - 355 (2017)
Doubles - 95 (2017)
Wins In a Single Season - 39 (2015)
Winning Percentage - .736 (2015)
Saves - 10 (2015)
Shutouts - 12 (2015)
Home Runs - 53 (2014)
RBI - 253 (2014)
Runs Scored - 281 (2014)
10 consecutive appearances in the Atlantic 10 Championship
Aside from the successes on the field, Clark’s teams also thrive in the classroom and in the community. Gabby Snyder was the first Flyer under coach Clark's tutelage to be named a first-team Academic All-American in 2017. In 2022, Alyssa Cacini was selected as one of 30 candidates for the Senior CLASS Award and Laura Matthews earned a second-team selection on the 2008 ESPN The Magazine Academic All-America Softball Team. Emma Schutter became Clark's second Academic All-America Second Team honoree in 2023.
In back-to-back seasons, the Flyers produced the Atlantic 10 Rookie of the Year in Emma Schutter (2022) and Izzy Kemp (2023). Schutter followed her A-10 Rookie of the Year award by earning 2023 A-10 Player of the Year accolades. She paced the Flyers in 2023 with with a .467 average (5th NCAA), 85 hits (4th NCAA), 44 runs scored, 13 doubles and 29 stolen bases (29th NCAA) while collecting 67 putouts and five assists to zero errors in center field.
Despite a modified Atlantic 10 schedule in 2021, Dayton made the program's eighth-consecutive and 12th overall appearance in the A-10 Championship, finishing as the tournament's runner-up and placing five Flyers on the All-Championship Team. Dayton placed three on NFCA Mid-Atlantic All-Region Teams, including senior Abby Ehrenborg who finished her tenure as a Flyer holding the program's career records for home runs (44) and RBI (134) while also equaling the single-season home run record (18) in 2021.
Dayton's 2020 season was suspended on March 12 due to COVID-19 and the 2020 Atlantic 10 season and Championship was subsequently canceled. With the Flyers' 2-1 win over Akron on March 8, 2020, coach Clark reached the 300-win milestone for her career at Dayton.
In 2016, the Flyers received high honors in both the Atlantic 10 and Mid-Atlantic region, as Cash earned 2016 A-10 Pitcher of the Year honors as well as a spot on First Team Atlantic 10. The sophomore also made NFCA All-Region First Team. Joining her as a first team member of both the A-10 and Mid-Atlantic region was junior Gabby Snyder. The two anchored a pitching staff that finished seventh in the country in ERA.
In 2015, Clark, the Atlantic 10 Coach of the Year, led her team to a 39-14 overall record, breaking the record for most wins in the program’s history. This was the most wins in a single season for Clark, and her sixth, 20-win season at UD. The Flyers won their first Atlantic 10 Regular Season Championship with a 20-2 record. The Flyers took second in the Atlantic 10 tournament, ending the most successful season in school history.
The Flyers also received many individual honors in 2015: 12 A-10 All-Conference honors, including a sweep of all four major awards: A-10 Player of the Year Tiffany Ricks, A-10 Rookie of the Year Manda Cash, A-10 Pitcher of the Year Kayla English, and Clark earned A-10 Coach of the Year. Plus, the Flyers had a school-record four players on NFCA All-Region teams. Coach Clark also topped a personal coaching milestone, earning her 300th career coaching victory in a 7-1 win over Saint Joseph's
The 2012 roster picked up the first win in program history over a team receiving votes in the national poll with its 3-1 win over USC Upstate on March 3.
Molly Meyer set school records with 197 career hits and had 64 stolen bases in her career as well as 34 in a single season. Meyer also became Dayton’s first softball student-athlete to play internationally (Leksand, Sweden) after her playing career at UD. She was later followed by three more Flyers playing overseas Gabby Snyder (Basel, Switzerland & Adelaide, Australia), Manda Cash (Basel, Switzerland) and Lisa Tassi (Basel, Switzerand).
In her first season at the helm, Clark guided the Flyers to their first 20-win campaign in three years and more than doubled their Atlantic 10 win total in 2008. In addition, Clark’s 20 wins was the most by any first-year head coach at UD.
Clark was named head softball coach for the University of Dayton in July 2007 and joined the Flyer staff after six years at Clarke College.
In her six years at Clarke, she had been instrumental in the program’s success. Clark guided the Crusaders to back-to-back NCAA Tournament appearances in 2003 and 2004. In 2003, the Crusaders made a first-ever NCAA tournament berth claiming the Northern Illinois-Iowa Conference Championship and winning a school record 27 games. The team had five consecutive 20-plus win seasons during her tenure and she tallied a 131-126 overall mark at Clarke.
Under her reign, the Crusaders produced 28 All-Conference honorees, six NFCA All Region honorees, and one Conference Player of the year. In addition, four out of her six years the team was ranked in the Top 25 Nationally in grade point average by the National Fastpitch Coaches Association. Clark was named the NIIC Conference’s Coach of the Year in 2003 and 2004.
In addition to her coaching responsibilities at Clarke, she was also a mental health counselor and served as the Senior Woman Administrator. Clark is a member of the National Fastpitch Coaches Association and a 2008 graduate of the NCAA Women’s Coaches Academy.
A 1999 graduate of Clarke College, Clark earned her degree in psychology and was a student-athlete standout as a two-time first-team Northern Illinois - Iowa Conference Selection. In addition, she earned MVP honors and served as team captain for the Crusaders.
In 2002, she earned her master of education degree in counseling from Western Illinois University.
Coach Clark Highlights:
A-10 Coach of the Year - 2015
A-10 Regular Season Champions - 2015
A-10 Tournament Appearances - 2011, 2013, 2014, 2015, 2016, 2017, 2018, 2019, 2021, 2022, 2023
Dayton record for wins in a season (39) - 2015
NFCA All-Academic Team - 2009
20-win Seasons - 2008, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014, 2015, 2016, 2017, 2018, 2019, 2021, 2022, 2023
NIIC Coach of the Year - 2003, 2004
Division III Independents Coach of the Year Runner-Up - 2007
3 A-10 Players of the Year
2 A-10 Pitchers of the Year
3 A-10 Rookies of the Year
23 A-10 First Team players
19 A-10 Second Team players
18 A-10 All-Rookie Team players
16 A-10 Championship Team players
22 A-10 All-Academic Team players
21 NFCA Mid-Atlantic All-Region players
3 Academic All-Americans
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