Western Illinois University Athletics

After coaching Western Illinois softball for 11 seasons, Holly Van Vlymen has transitioned to the role of Assistant Athletic Director - Academics and Student-Athlete Development in 2017. She will oversee the academic services department, directing all aspects of the Athletic Academic Services office, serving as the faculty advisor to the Student Athlete Advisory Committee (SAAC) and representing the department at various university events.

Softball Head Coaching Record

Head Coaching Highlights

• 2007, 2009 and 2010 Summit League Coach of the Year
• Coached 2013, 2014 Summit League Player of the Year
• Coached the 2012 and 2013 NCAA Stolen Base Champion
• Coached the 2007 and 2009 Summit League Pitcher of the Year
• Coached the 2007 and 2009 Summit League Freshman of the Year
• 54 Academic All-League Honorees
• 43 All-Summit League selections
• Six CoSIDA/ESPN The Magazine All-District Selections
• Summit League Regular-Season Champions (2007, 2009, 2010)
• Summit League Tournament Title (2008)

At Western Illinois: The coaching years

In eleven seasons, Western Illinois head softball coach Holly Van Vlymen led the Fighting Leathernecks to the school’s first NCAA Tournament win, a Summit League Tournament Title and three regular-season conference titles, as well as being named the conference’s Coach of the Year three times.

Van Vlymen is a member of the NFCA Ethics Committee and was recognized as an NFCA One-Star Master Coach in 2014. Beginning in 2013, Van Vlymen began representing The Summit League on the NFCA Division I Head Coaches Committee and has chaired and served as a member of several 'Hot Topic' working groups. In 2014, she presented at the annual NFCA Convention on the recruiting process along with Nikki Palmer from Utah Valley. She formerly served as the Chair of the NFCA Nominating Committee and was appointed to that role in 2012.

In 2016, Western Illinois claimed a third-place regular season finish in The Summit League, the best finish since the 2010 season. The Leathernecks finished the season with a 9-8 mark in league play and 16-31 overall. Van Vlymen coached freshman Emily Ira to the program's first no-hitter since 2010. Ira earned Second-Team All-Summit League honors and struck out 136 batters on the year. In addition to Ira, Karissa Kouchis and Nina Maggio were also tabbed Second-Team All-Summit League. As a team, Western hit .263 and scored 160 runs.

The Leathernecks returned to the top-four in The Summit League standings in 2015 following an 8-11 conference mark. In a season highlighted by wins at Hawaii and Iowa, Western Illinois finished the year 18-23. The Leathernecks had two First Team All-Summit League selections in Sammy Marshall and Tierney Bottino. Marshall was also named NFCA Third Team All-Region. As a team, the Leathernecks hit .271 and scored 173 runs. Kacyee Hart led Western in the circle with a 3.80 ERA and 87 strikeouts.

The 2014 Leathernecks began the year 10-3 overall and were top five nationally in batting average. The 2014 team consisted of The Summit League's 'Player of the Year' and a First Team All-Summit League selection in Sammy Marshall along with a pair of Second Team honorees in Karissa Kouchis and Alexis Ensminger. Van Vlymen also coached two NFCA All-Region members in Marshall and Teagan Walsh. 

The 2013 Leathernecks boasted The Summit League's 'Player of the Year' and NCAA stolen bases champion in sophomore shortstop Sammy Marshall. Marshall was also tabbed first team and set the WIU record for stolen bases in a career (76) after only her second season at Western. Marshall was also named to the Midwest's 2013 NFCA Division I All-Region Second Team. Also earning all-league honors were Karissa Kouchis and Alex Pflieger who each collected Second Team awards.

As a team, the Leathernecks' biggest league victories came on the road at Oakland, sweeping the Golden Grizzlies 2-0, and at home versus South Dakota State when they beat the Jackrabbits in three straight contests. Western out hit the 2012 team with a .275 batting average. The Leathernecks racked up 259 hits in 941 at bats, 38 doubles, 12 triples and 22 home runs. Western averaged a league-best 289 fans at home games, while also leading the conference in hit by pitch (31). The Leathernecks ranked second in The Summit League in total stolen bases with 67, and third in on-base percentage (.358) and extra base hits (72).

In 2012, Western Illinois softball had a combined batting average of .272 (373 H, 47 2B, 9 3B, 23 HR, 178 RBI), which ranked third in the Summit League standings. The squad posted an on base percentage of .348, slugging percentage of .370 and led the league in stolen bases with 91, ten ahead of the second highest mark.

Van Vlymen saw two student-athletes earn First Team All-Summit League honors (Jamie Goss and Sammy Marshall). Both signed their names in the Western Illinois record book with Goss tying the career RBI mark of 153 set by Bridget Maxwell in 2001. Marshall was crowned the NCAA Stolen Base Champion after going 45-for-45 in stolen bases, giving her the school record and Summit League record for steals in a single season. She also led the team in batting average as a freshman hitting .420, with Goss coming in second with a .358 average (eight doubles, three triples, six homeruns and 40 RBI).

During the 2011 campaign, Van Vlymen's squad exploded offensively setting a program record with a .461 slugging percentage while posting the second most RBI (223) and third most runs (248) in a single season. The Leathernecks also hit the third most homers in a season (38) and pounded out 75 doubles, the fourth best mark in history, while posting the fifth highest batting average (.293) in a single season.

The Leathernecks saw four players selected as All-League selections (Colleen Biebel, Jamie Goss, Nikki Marinec, Erin Schlotfeldt) and one player (Schlotfeldt) named to the Capital One/CoSIDA Academic All-District Team. During the season, Van Vlymen saw several players move up in the record books as Goss posted a single-season record 47 RBI and moved into third with 113 career-RBI while Biebel moved into a second-place tie with 122 career-runs.

In 2010, Van Vlymen's team posted a 35-19 overall record with a 19-2 conference mark. The Leathernecks won the school's 10th conference title since 1983 and won more than 30 games for the 16th time in school history. At the conclusion of the season, five Leathernecks earned all-conference honors as Colleen Biebel, Julie DePolo, Kamren Ferguson and Beth Golitko were selected to the first team while Lori Pankratz earned second team honors. Van Vlymen was also named Coach of the Year for the third time in four years.

Van Vlymen’s 2009 squad won the program’s eighth regular-season title, the most in conference history, after posting a 34-19 overall record and a 21-2 conference record. The 34 wins are the fifth most in history and marked the first time since 2001 that the program has won 30 or more games in a season. The 2009 team broke two Western Illinois records by scoring 270 runs and registering 243 RBI. The team also finished the year with the second most hits (438) and third most home runs (33) in a season.

Van Vlymen had eight players earn all-conference honors highlighted by fifth-year senior Kamren Ferguson’s Pitcher of the Year and Jamie Goss’s Freshman of the Year accolades. Three of her players in Ashley Campbell, Ferguson and Erin Schlotfeldt earned all-conference First Team honors while Colleen Biebel, Julie DePolo, Lauren Furgala, Goss and Lori Pankratz were all-conference Second Team recipients. 

Academic success
Van Vlymen's teams have also been successful off the field, earning national recognition in 2007-08, 2008-09, 2009-10 and 2010-11 for their academic success.

The Western Illinois Leatherneck softball team was honored by the NCAA for being a recipient of the NCAA Public Recognition Award for the 2010-11 season. The NCAA Public Recognition Awards are given to teams that have an NCAA Division I Academic Progress Rate in the 'Top 10' percent of all squads in their respective sports. In NCAA President Mike Emmert's letter, he stated his awareness of head coach Holly Van Vlymen's role in her student-athletes academic success.

Western Illinois finished with an overall team GPA of 3.414 during the 2009-10 academic year, the 15th best in the nation among all Division I softball programs. The Leathernecks had four players named to the CoSIDA/ESPN The Magazine All-District Team and had 14 players named as Summit League Academic-All League selections.

The Leatherneck softball team was named to the NFCA’s Girls Got Game Top 10 All-Academic Division I softball team after finishing the 2008-09 academic year with an overall 3.446 team GPA, the nation's ninth-best grade point average among Division I softball squads. The Leathernecks were the only team in The Summit League and in the state of Illinois to be recognized in the top 10 academically.  

During the 2007-08 academic year, the softball team was recognized with the 15th highest GPA as they earned a 3.38 GPA collectively. In December of 2007, Van Vlymen was recognized by the NCAA, having graduated from the NCAA Women Coaches Academy. 

In addition to team accolades, many individual players have earned national recognition for their success in the classroom. Britt Mason was named to the CoSIDA/ESPN The Magazine All-District V Second Team in 2005 while four players in Colleen Biebel, Julie DePolo, Lauren Furgala and Lori Pankratz were selected to the CoSIDA/ESPN The Magazine All-District V First Team in 2010. Erin Schlotfeldt earned a spot on the Capital One/CoSIDA District V Academic All-District Team in 2011. Sammy Marshall was placed on the 2013 Capital One Academic All-District Second Team for District 5 by CoSIDA.

In 2010, Pankratz was selected as the Western Illinois Department of Biological Sciences Most Outstanding Student as well as being selected as a graduation marshal during her respective undergraduate commencement ceremony. 2010 also saw the Leatherneck softball team post a 3.40 team cumulative grade point average.

Hall of Fame
On September 21, 2012, Van Vlyman was inducted into the Western Illinois Athletics Hall of Fame. One of the most dominant pitchers in Western Illinois and Mid-Continent Conference history, Van Vlymen was a four-time All-Conference performer during her playing days at Western from 1996-2000.

Western’s first NCAA Tournament win in 2008
During the 2008 season, Van Vlymen took Western to its fourth NCAA tournament appearance and recorded the program’s first NCAA tournament win over Drake, 3-1, on May 17, 2008.

The Westerwinds entered the conference tournament as the No. 4 seed and won three-straight games to advance to the NCAA Tournament. It was the first time in conference history that the No. 4 seed defeated all teams in attendance to earn the conference’s automatic bid to the NCAA tournament.

Conference champs in 2007, only her second year at the helm of the program
Under Van Vlymen’s guidance, the Westerwinds finished the 2007 season with an 11-2 conference mark to win the conference’s regular-season title.

In addition to winning the regular-season title, Van Vlymen was named the 2007 The Summit League Coach of the Year in only her second season as head coach.

Also in 2007, Ferguson earned Summit League Pitcher of the Year honors and was named to the NFCA Great Lakes all-Region Second Team. Western also had the conference’s Freshman of the Year in Lauren Furgala after starting every game and posting a .339 batting average, 38 hits and 17 RBI. Six other Westerwinds also earned all-conference recognition at the end of the year.

The Westerwinds broke into the Western Illinois record books at the conclusion of the season as the team finished the year ranked third all time in stolen bases (80) and sixth all time in team batting average (.285).

Van Vlymen becomes only Western's third head coach in 2006
Van Vlymen led the Westerwinds to a third-place finish in the conference with a record of 12-9 in her first season as head coach and also made an appearance in the conference tournament’s championship game.

At the end of the 2006 campaign, Western placed a league-high five players on the all-conference first-team, the most since 2001.

Van Vlymen’s pitchers threw a total of 290 strikeouts, ending the year ranked fourth in school history. The team also posted a .958 team fielding percentage, ending the season tied for sixth place.

One-year stint at Augustana (2004-05)
Van Vlymen continued her assistant coaching career during the 2005 campaign at Augustana College. That season the Vikings went 33-12 and finished second in the College Conference of Illinois and Wisconsin during the regular season.

Van Vlymen coached pitcher Jilian Widick to a 20-4 record and a 1.17 ERA. Widick also earned first team all-conference honors and second team NFCA all-Region honors at the conclusion of the season.

The start of a coaching career: Iowa (2000-04)
Van Vlymen began her coaching career at Iowa in 2000 as the Hawkeyes pitching coach. During her time in Iowa City, the Hawkeyes went 168-73 and won the Big Ten regular-season title in 2003. The 2001 and 2004 squads finished the regular-season as the Big Ten runner up’s.

Van Vlymen was also a member of the Hawkeyes’ 2003 coaching staff that was named NFCA Midwest Region Coaching Staff of the Year.

In 2003, Van Vlymen coached Lisa Birocci to Big Ten Pitcher of the Year honors and NFCA All-American honors. Birocci also finished the year ranked as Iowa’s career strikeout leader.

In 2001, the Hawkeyes advanced to the College World Series with the help of pitcher Kristi Hanks who was named to the NFCA All-American first team. In addition to coaching Hanks to All-American status, Hanks also earned Big Ten Pitcher of the Year honors in 2000 and 2001.

At Western Illinois: The playing years
The former Holly Killion set all but one of Western’s career pitching records during her four seasons in Macomb. She finished her career ranked first in career wins (74), strikeouts (880), strikeouts per inning (1.09), appearances (137), complete games (97) and innings pitched (809.1). Van Vlymen’s 1.39 career earned run average is fourth-best all-time and her 880 strikeouts are 117 more than second-place Kamren Ferguson on the all-time list.

Van Vlymen’s best season came during her senior year when she led the Westerwinds to a 46-16 record, including a 21-1 mark in the conference, and their second NCAA Tournament appearance. She was also named as an NFCA Third Team All-American as a senior. Van Vlymen went 30-7 with a 0.58 ERA and 355 strikeouts in 267.1 innings pitched. She threw 32 complete games while allowing only 22 earned runs and holding opponents to a .161 batting average.

Her accomplishments during the 2000 season established single-season records in every category. Her ERA was second-best in the nation that season and she was seventh in winning percentage (.810) and eighth in strikeouts per seven innings (9.3).

The 2000 GTE Academic All-American Third-Team selection also finished the year ranked first in eight different statistical categories in the Summit League record book. Her 30 wins, 355 strikeouts and 16 shutouts in 2000 are all conference single-season records. Van Vlymen also finished the year as the conference’s record holder in career strikeouts, innings pitched and appearances.

Van Vlymen was named the 2000 Mid-Continent Pitcher of the Year and the 2000 Mid-Continent Tournament Most Valuable Player. She later became just the fourth softball player in school history to have her jersey retired in a ceremony on Feb. 24, 2001.

Personal
The four-time all-conference honoree went on to play professionally after completing her collegiate eligibility, helping the Ohio Pride to a second-place finish in the Women’s Professional Softball League.

A three-time Dean’s List honoree at Western Illinois, Van Vlymen earned a bachelor’s degree in education in 2000. In 2008, she earned a master’s degree in education.

In addition to her playing and coaching in the Macomb area, Van Vlymen also gives back to the community. Within the McDonough County area, Van Vlymen speaks at various schools on the topic of sportsmanship. From 2005-07, she spoke at a program for sixth graders called Straight Talk. At the program she reached nearly 300 students as well as teachers, parents, presenters, volunteers and committee members.

A native of Orion, Ill., she married former Western Illinois football player (1996-97) Jim Van Vlymen on Oct. 19, 2002. They reside in Macomb with their twin sons, Luke and Logan.