EKU Softball Announces Coaching Changes

EKU softball announced several coaching changes and additions. | EKU Athletics

Eastern Kentucky University softball head coach Jane Worthington announced several changes and additions to her coaching staff for the 2026 season on Monday. 

Assistant coaches Zoe Schafer and Mollie Paulick were promoted to associate head coach for hitting and pitching, while former Colonel Sammi Miller has been hired as a new assistant coach. 

Schafer and Paulick have been with the program for the last two seasons, guiding the team to an 80-26 record, including a 38-16 record in 2025 that ended with a runner-up finish in the ASUN Championship. In 2024, they captured an ASUN regular-season title with a record of 42-10. 

Zoe Schafer, Associate Head Coach, Hitting 

EKU Coaching Highlights

• EKU led the league in batting average (.299), runs scored (297), total hits (399), RBIs (273), and slugging percentage (.461) in 2024
• Jeanay Riley became just the fourth player in program history to be named the league’s Player of the Year with a .378 batting average and a team-leading 62 hits under Schafer’s direction. 

Before coming to Richmond, Schafer spent one season as an assistant coach at Tennessee Tech, where she assisted in student-athlete development and recruiting, while guiding the team to a 33-22 record and an appearance in the Ohio Valley Conference Tournament during the 2021-22 season. 

A legend at SIUE, Schafer finished her career as the program’s all-time leader in home runs and RBIs while ranking second in doubles. Additionally, she earned All-OVC honors three times in 2018, 2019, and 2021.

Mollie Paulick, Associate Head Coach, Pitching

Paulick returned to her alma mater in 2023 after two seasons at Bellarmine, where she served as an assistant coach and interim head coach. 

EKU Coaching Highlights

• Lowered the team’s ERA to 2.91 and more than doubled strikeouts with 345 in 2025, compared to a 5.13 ERA with 126 strikeouts in 2023. 
• EKU pitchers went 38-16 in 2025, led by NFCA First Team All-Region selection Maddi Rutan, who totaled 227 strikeouts in 176.0 innings pitched, tied for the 11th-most in the NCAA and the first Colonel pitcher with 200 or more strikeouts since 2016.
• In 2024, EKU had the third-best ERA in the conference at 2.53 with the most wins of any staff at 41, with 14 shutout wins. 

As a player, Paulick marked a 72-28 record with a 2.35 ERA and 655 strikeouts. In 2021, she led EKU to its third conference championship in program history and an NCAA Knoxville Regional appearance.

EKU Athletics

Sammi Miller – Assistant Coach

Miller returns to her alma mater after spending two seasons as an assistant coach at Tennessee Tech.

Collegiate Career Highlights

• Finished her career with a .388 batting average, 214 hits, 156 runs scored, and 61 stolen bases. 
• In 2021, she was a key piece in the program winning the Ohio Valley Conference championship, hitting 400 with 62 hits, 13 doubles, three triples, five home runs, 24 RBIs, 28 walks and 16 stolen bases. 
• Led the team in batting average, doubles, triples, walks, and stolen bases in 2021.
• OVC All-Tournament Team honoree
• 2022 ASUN Preseason Player of the Year 

EKU Athletics

After graduating from EKU, Miller started her coaching career at Manchester University from 2022-23, where she helped lead the team to a 23-20 record, which marked their first 20-win season since 2016.