Former Tiger Barb Wright Joins Softball Staff
5/22/2003 12:00:00 AM | Softball
May 22, 2003
Barb Wright, the only Tiger to ever be named to the All-American First Team, will join the Mizzou coaching staff next season, Head Coach Ty Singleton announced on Thursday. Wright is a 1997 graduate of the University of Missouri.
"We are excited on many levels to have Barb on board with us here at Missouri," Singleton said. "She brings playing experience at a championship level to this team and is passionate about coaching. We are also very proud to have a Mizzou alum returning to join our program."
Wright finished her career at Missouri with a .329 career batting average and 476 career strikeouts. In 1997, she earned Big 12 Player of the Year honors and helped the Tigers to the Big 12 Conference regular season and tournament titles, along with being an All-American selection.
She has the record for career starts at MU (125), is tied for third in career wins (78) is third in career innings pitched (747), and is fourth in career complete games (24). She also was successful at the plate as she is second in career home runs (24), second in career RBI (139), and second in career slugging percentage (.559).
A 2003 inductee into the Missouri Intercollegiate Athletics Hall of Fame, Wright led Mizzou to three NCAA Regionals including the 1994 team which advanced to the College World Series.
As a freshman at Missouri, she was on the mound in the Tigers' extra inning win in the regional finals which advanced them to the College World Series and as a senior she was named the Big 12 Conference Tournament MVP.
A native of Palmerston, Ontario, Wright was an alternate for the 1996 Olympic team and was captain of Team Canada in 1997. She was also a first round draft pick in the 1997 Women's Pro Softball League. She currently resides in Columbia and was the head softball coach at Hickman High School before being named to the Tiger staff.
"This is a great opportunity to be able come back to my alma mater on the coaching side of things," Wright said. "I look forward to working with the team and learning a lot from Ty, Tom and Karrie."
Wright will join Singleton, the 2003 Big 12 Conference Coach of the Year, and assistant coaches Tom Royder and Karrie Rider on the Tiger staff.
