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Michigan softball coach Carol Hutchins, the sport’s all-time leader in NCAA wins, announced her retirement on Wednesday after nearly four decades with the program.
Hutchins, 65, will relinquish her role after posting a 1,707–555–5 record in 38 seasons at the helm for the Wolverines. Michigan never had a losing season under her leadership and made 12 Women’s College World Series, culminating in the program’s first national championship in 2005.
In an official release from the school, Hutchins said that that she was grateful for the opportunity coach at Michigan and that she would “forever bleed blue.”
“I am most thankful for the relationships that this sport has given me,” Hutchins wrote. “I want to express my respect for and admiration to all of my coaching colleagues and rivals, as the competition has made softball one of the greatest sports in college athletics.
“I thank everyone who has ever served in a support role for Michigan softball, from our athletic trainers and strength coaches to academic counselors, equipment managers, field crew, and the list goes on. They have contributed greatly to our success, and their commitment is so appreciated. I especially want to thank the staffs that served Michigan with me over many years but in particular my longtime assistant coaches Jennifer Brundage and Bonnie Tholl, whose loyalty and commitment is unparalleled. I am forever indebted to and share all success with them.”
Hutchins, who graduated from Michigan State, began her coaching career with one season at Ferris State. She then joined Michigan’s staff as an assistant in 1983, rising the ranks to head coach just two years later.
Along with her accomplishment as the NCAA’s winningest softball coach, Hutchins has 22 Big Ten regular-season titles to her name and is the winningest coach in Michigan athletics history. She was also inducted into the National Fastpitch Coaches Association Hall of Fame in 2006.
Michigan announced in a separate release that former Wolverines standout Bonnie Tholl, a longtime assistant on Hutchins’s staff, would serve as the next head coach of the program.
