DIGEST Profile: Coach Brittany Williams

During Women’s history month, we celebrate all of the beautiful things women have given to society and the world. We sat down with first-year women’s softball coach Brittany Williams this month. Although it is her first year as head coach, she is no stranger to the game as she played four years of collegiate ball at Western Kentucky while earning her master’s degree. She is also married and the mother of three children. Her first series win of the season came against the University of Arkansas-Pine Bluff. She spoke about her team’s effort in that win. “The girls worked hard for the series.” She also talked about the team’s demanding preseason schedule. “It’s like going into the weight room and lifting those heavy weights so that your building muscle and your knowledge of the game.” Although we’re not at the end of the season, we asked Coach Williams what her experience had been like to this point in the year. “It has been a true blessing.” She spoke about seeing the team grow in front of her. “Being able to meet these collegiates athletes and help them grow and coach people with the same drive as you have and are willing to do whatever it takes to make it to the next step.” When asked about the unexpected things she encountered this season, she spoke to the roster. “The roster was pretty low; we had two pitchers on staff recruited as middle infielders who had to step in and take on the pitching only role.” She added that recruitment through the portal had also been a challenge. “I believe this is something that we can overcome.” With it being Women’s history month, we asked Coach Williams what that meant to her. “It means a lot.” She gave an example of what another head coach in her profession exemplified. “I was watching a video about Hutch, she’s the head coach at Michigan University, and she talked about getting her position as head coach at a Big Ten school and all the things she had to do.” “When she was first hired as a women’s head coach for softball, she was a secretary. On one half, she was a secretary, and the other half she was coaching, and of course, the salaries didn’t match those of the other head coaches that were there.” “Knowing the struggle she went through to get me here, I feel that it is an extraordinary opportunity to be in this position.” Coach Williams, when asked about who her inspiration was she spoke glowingly about her sister. “My sister was the second recruit at LSU. Watching her team succeed and go as far as they did was a definite inspiration to me.” She also talked about her sister’s experience in head coaching. “She was a head coach at a younger age in her early 20s at Birmingham Southern College and continued to progress from there.” “Watching her footsteps allowed me to know that I could do that as well.” For our last question, we asked Coach Williams if there was any piece of inspiration or guidance that she could hand down to another woman looking to be a head coach in softball. “I want to let people know that it can be done; you just have to keep pushing, and you will be noticed.”