Texas Softball is Set to Lose Major Piece of Coaching Staff

The dust has now settled on the Texas Longhorns' second consecutive national championship, as the team make it back-to-back successful trips to Oklahoma City to capture another national title over the Texas Tech Red Raiders.

However, now with the final chapter being written in the 2026 season, the Longhorns will be facing some changes when it comes to their squad heading into 2027.

The Longhorns will be seeing new faces on the field as they lose several key seniors and a few players to the transfer portal. However, the roster won't be the only area where the Longhorns will see a new face, with a change occurring to their coaching staff.

Texas Will Be Without Key Member of Coaching Staff in 2027

Texas Longhorns head coach Mike White looks on in the sixth inning against the Nebraska Cornhuskers. | Brett Rojo-Imagn Images

On Monday, while the majority of the college softball world has its eyes set on the wild west of the college softball transfer portal opening up, the Longhorns are seeing one of their top assistant coaches leave the program.

As Justin McLeod of D1 Softball reported on Monday afternoon, Texas associate head coach Kristen Zaleski will not be returning to the program for the 2027 season. Zaleski has spent the last four seasons with the Longhorns and helped the program claim its first two national championships in program history.

Filed to @D1Softball: Kristen Zaleski is not returning to the Texas coaching staff in 2027.https://t.co/pYSLZ5GcNE
— Justin McLeod (@justfactsmaam) June 8, 2026

Zaleski was in for a big-time promotion after helping the Longhorns capture their first national title in 2025 and was a part of the Texas coaching staff that was honored as the NFCA Coaching Staff of the Year.

Texas head coach Mike White promoted Zaleski from assistant coach to associate head coach before this season. White spoke about the impact that Zaleski had in her first three seasons on the Forty Acres in a press release earlier this year on Feb. 2.

"Coach Zaleski's promotion to Associate Head Coach is richly deserved," said White. "She has been instrumental to our success – leading our outfielders, serving as first base coach on game day, and elevating our hitters with her approach. Her standards, teaching acumen, and ability to connect with our student-athletes has raised our program's ceiling year-after-year. Texas Softball is better because of Coach Zaleski, and I'm thrilled to keep building with her in this expanded role. Hook 'Em."

Before arriving at the Longhorns program ahead of the 2023 season, Zaleski spent the 2022 season above the Red River as a volunteer assistant with the Oklahoma Sooners on head coach Patty Gasso's staff. Zaleski would be a part of an Oklahoma team that would capture a fourth straight national title and take down the Longhorns in the process.

Now, as White looks to build up his roster for the 2027 season, he will also have hiring decisions to make with an opening on his coaching staff.

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