North Alabama Lions Softball | |
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Founded | 1983 (41 years ago) |
University | University of North Alabama |
Athletic director | Dr.Josh Looney |
All-time Record | 906–789–1 (.534) |
Head coach | Ashley Cozart (10th season) |
Conference | ASUN |
Location | Florence, Alabama |
Home stadium | Hilda B. Anderson Softball Stadium (Capacity: 4,200) |
Nickname | Lions |
Colors | Purple and gold [1] |
NCAA Tournament champions | |
Division II: 2016 | |
NCAA WCWS appearances | |
Divison II: 2016 | |
NCAA Super Regional appearances | |
Division II: 2016 | |
NCAA Tournament appearances | |
Division II: 2006, 2013, 2014, 2015, 2016, 2017, 2018 | |
Conference Tournament championships | |
Gulf South Conference: 1986, 1987, 2016, 2018 | |
Regular Season Conference championships | |
Gulf South Conference: 2016, 2018 |
The North Alabama Lions softball team represents the University of North Alabama in NCAA Division I College softball. The team competes in the Atlantic Sun Conference, and plays its home games at Hilda B. Anderson Softball Stadium in Florence, Alabama. The Lions are currently led by head coach Ashley Cozart.
North Alabama has won their conference title 4 times, has been to the NCAA Division II Tournament 7 times and has won the one NCAA Division II Softball Championship in 2016.
North Alabama began official play in 1983 after a year of exhibition play and was led by head coach Ande Jones. [2] From 1983 to 1985, the Lions and the rest of the Gulf South Conference competed in slow-pitch softball. In 1985, the GSC and the Lions switched to fast pitch and made the jump to Division II play. [3] The Lions would win the first two GSC championships under fast pitch rules, beating Mississippi College both times. [4] [5]
Success continued for the Lions into the 1990s. Michele Logan would be picked to the All-GSC team three times while Jodi Johnson would become a four-time All-GSC performer in 1999. From 2000 to 2004, the Lions would have 118-151 record before returning to the GSC tournament in 2005.
In 2006, the Lions made their first ever appearance in the NCAA Division II Tournament. They would go 1-2 in tournament play after losing to FGCU and Barry and beating Kentucky State.
From 2013 to 2018, the Lions made 6 straight NCAA Division II tournaments. In 2016, North Alabama won their first GSC title in 29 years under the coaching of Ashley Cozart. [6] The Lions would go on to the Division II World Series and beat Humboldt State to win their first National Championship. [7] The title would be the university's first national title since 2003 when the women's volleyball team took home the Division II championship.
In 2019, the Lions began play in the Atlantic Sun Conference as they made the jump to Division I play. They would finish 26-20 in their first season as a Division I team. In 2022, North Alabama went 40-20 and received an invitation to the NISC [8] and found victory against UNLV and Tarleton State as they finished 2-2 in tournament play.
In 2023, North Alabama made the ASUN Conference tournament finals but lost to Central Arkansas. [9] [10]
Originally known as the UNA Softball Complex at Cox Creek Park, [11] the Lions have played at the Hilda B. Anderson Softball Complex since its conception. In 2006, a $630,000 renovation transformed the field into its current state by adding a new press box, concourse area, and grandstands. [12] Since then, the complex has continued to be improved. In 2010, a new scoreboard was added along with viewing decks in the outfield. In 2023, a new indoor batting facility and fieldhouse was built along the right foul line and in 2024, artificial turf was installed. [13] [14]
In 2019, the field was renamed to the Hilda B. Anderson Softball Complex to honor her commitment to UNA softball as she and her family were and continue to be one of the biggest donors to the program. [15]
The Gulf South Conference (GSC) is a college athletic conference affiliated with the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) at the Division II level, which operates in the Southeastern United States.
Robert Hue Wallace is an American former college football coach and athletics administrator. He served as head football coach at the University of North Alabama at 1988 to 1997 and again from 2012 to 2016, at Temple University from 1998 to 2005, and at the University of West Alabama from 2006 to 2010. Wallace led the North Alabama Lions to three consecutive NCAA Division II Football Championships, from 1993 to 1995. He was also the athletic director at West Alabama from 2018 to 2021.
The North Alabama Lions football program represents the University of North Alabama (UNA) in college football as the NCAA Division I Football Championship Subdivision (FCS) level as a member of the United Athletic Conference (UAC). The conference, which played its first season in 2023, is a merger of the football leagues of UNA's primary home of the ASUN Conference and the Western Athletic Conference (WAC). UNA had played the 2022 season in the ASUN, and before that had played football in the Big South Conference for three seasons. UNA plays its home games at Braly Municipal Stadium in Florence, Alabama. The team's head coach is Brent Dearmon. UNA was an NCAA Division II from member from 1972 to 2017.
The North Alabama Lions men's basketball team represents University of North Alabama in Florence, Alabama, United States. The school's team currently competes in the ASUN Conference. On July 1, 2018, they joined the Atlantic Sun Conference. Since joining NCAA Division I, the Lions have not yet appeared in the NCAA Tournament. At the NCAA Division II level, North Alabama won the 1979 and 1991 national championship.
The University of North Alabama women's volleyball program is one of the most successful collegiate athletic programs in the United States, holding numerous conference and regional titles and one Division II national championship, earned in 2003.
The North Alabama Lions are the athletic teams of the University of North Alabama, located in Florence, Alabama. The Lions are a member of the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Division I and compete within the ASUN Conference for all sports except football, which plays in the United Athletic Conference. The university has a total of 14 varsity sports teams, six men's teams and eight women's teams. The fall of 2018 marked the Lion's first year of their transition into Division I. They have a storied tradition in Division II and have earned numerous national titles competing in NCAA Division II's Gulf South Conference.
The West Alabama Tigers are the athletic teams that represent the University of West Alabama, located in Livingston, Alabama, in intercollegiate sports at the Division II level of the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA). The Tigers have primarily competed in the Gulf South Conference since the 1970–71 academic year. Men's and women's rodeo compete as affiliate members in the Ozark Region of the National Intercollegiate Rodeo Association.
The Valdosta State Blazers are the athletic teams that represent the Valdosta State University, located in Valdosta, Georgia, in intercollegiate sports at the Division II level of the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA). The Blazers have primarily competed in the Gulf South Conference since the 1981–82 academic year.
The Alabama–Huntsville Chargers are the athletic teams that represent the University of Alabama in Huntsville, located in Huntsville, Alabama, in intercollegiate sports at the Division II level of the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA). The Chargers have primarily competed in the Gulf South Conference since the 1993–94 academic year.
Will Hall is an American football coach who is currently the head coach at the University of Southern Mississippi. Hall served as the head football coach at the University of West Alabama from 2011 to 2013 and at the University of West Georgia 2014 to 2016. He also served as offensive coordinator for the University of Louisiana at Lafayette in 2017. He grew up in Mississippi and attended the University of North Alabama where he played quarterback from 2002 to 2003. He won the Harlon Hill Trophy in 2003. He began his coaching career in 2004 and held assistant coaching positions at Presbyterian, Henderson State, Southwest Baptist, Arkansas-Monticello and West Alabama.
The Montevallo Falcons are the athletic teams that represent the University of Montevallo, in Montevallo, Alabama, in intercollegiate sports at the Division II level of the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA). The Falcons have primarily competed in the Gulf South Conference since the 2017–18 academic year. Rivals include West Alabama, Auburn Montgomery, Alabama–Huntsville, and North Alabama.
The North Alabama Lions baseball team represents the University of North Alabama, which is located in Florence, Alabama. The Lions are an NCAA Division I college baseball program that competes in the ASUN Conference. They began competing in Division I in 2019 and joined the ASUN Conference the same season.
The North Alabama Lions women's basketball team represents University of North Alabama in Florence, Alabama, United States. The school's team currently competes in the Gulf South Conference. In 2018, they joined the ASUN Conference in all sports, including women's basketball.
The 2018–19 North Alabama Lions men's basketball team represented the University of North Alabama during the 2018–19 NCAA Division I men's basketball season. They were led by head coach Tony Pujol in his first season at North Alabama. The Lions played their home games at the Flowers Hall in Florence, Alabama as first-time members of the Atlantic Sun Conference.
The 2018–19 North Alabama Lions women's basketball team represented University of North Alabama during the 2018–19 NCAA Division I women's basketball season. They were led by head coach Missy Tiber in her sixth season at North Alabama. The Lions played their home games at the Flowers Hall in Florence, Alabama as members of the Atlantic Sun Conference.
The 2019–20 North Alabama Lions men's basketball team represented the University of North Alabama in the 2019–20 NCAA Division I men's basketball season. The Lions, led by second-year head coach Tony Pujol, played their home games at Flowers Hall in Florence, Alabama as members of the Atlantic Sun Conference (ASUN). They finished the season 13–17, 8–8 in ASUN play, to finish in fifth place. They lost in the quarterfinals of the ASUN tournament to Stetson.
Mike D. Lane Field is a baseball venue in Florence, Alabama, United States. It is home to the North Alabama Lions baseball team of the NCAA Division I ASUN Conference. The facility has a capacity of 1,500 spectators and is named for former head coach Mike D. Lane who has the most wins in North Alabama history.
The 2020–21 North Alabama Lions men's basketball team represented the University of North Alabama in the 2020–21 NCAA Division I men's basketball season. The Lions, led by third-year head coach Tony Pujol, played their home games at Flowers Hall in Florence, Alabama, as members of the Atlantic Sun Conference (ASUN).
The 2020–21 North Alabama Lions women's basketball team represented University of North Alabama during the 2020–21 NCAA Division I women's basketball season. They were led by head coach Missy Tiber in her eighth season at North Alabama. The Lions played their home games at the Flowers Hall in Florence, Alabama as members of the Atlantic Sun Conference.
The 2021–22 North Alabama Lions women's basketball team represented University of North Alabama during the 2021–22 NCAA Division I women's basketball season. They were led by ninth-year head coach Missy Tiber. The Lions played their home games at the Flowers Hall in Florence, Alabama as members of the Atlantic Sun Conference (ASUN).