Kay Brechtelsbauer
Kay Brechtelsbauer is the former head softball coach at Southern Illinois University at Carbondale, a position that she held for 32 years. At the time, her stint at SIUC was the longest tenure of an active head softball coach at any NCAA school. During her exceptional career, Brechtelsbauer won more games (633) than any coach in the history of women’s sports at SIUC. A member of the SIU Sports Hall of Fame, Brechtelsbauer received the Missouri Valley Coach of the Year award on two occasions and was selected by the University for their Administrative Professional Woman of Distinction award in 1993. Her teams consistently were in the top three of the MVC in hitting, placing first in 1998. Her 1998 SIUC team won the National Invitational Tournament. Retired in 1999, Brechtelsbauer is one of the most widely respected softball coaches in the history of the game.
