Cyclone Softball Camps
Coaching Staff

Stacy Gemeinhardt-Cesler
Head Coach

Iowa State head softball coach Stacy Gemeinhardt-Cesler enters her fifth season at the helm of the program. Gemeinhardt-Cesler has guided the Cyclones to a 91-101 mark in her first four years with the program. She holds a career mark of 244-177 record in eight seasons of coaching collegiate softball.

In 2009, ISU finished 26-29 overall and won a school-record seven games in Big 12 play. After starting slow in league action, ISU was the second-best team in the Big 12 over the final half of the season despite being hampered by a number of injuries to key players, going 6-3 to finish 7-11. The Cyclones advanced to the second round of the Big 12 Championships in back-to-back seasons for the first time in school history.

Iowa State broke the school record, which was previously set in 2008, with 190 runs batted in. They also tied the mark for runs scored (215), which was set in 2008 as well.

Alex Johnson and Rachel Zabriskie were named to the All-Big 12 second team after strong seasons. Johnson drove in 38 runs to become just the second player in school history to drive in 30+ runs in back-to-back seasons. Zabriskie shouldered nearly all the load in the circle and went on to win 18 games, the most by a Cyclone hurler since 1987.

Amanda Bradberry was named to the Big 12 All-Tournament team after going 4-for-6 in the tournament and hitting a two-run homer in the sixth inning against Kansas that broke up a scoreless tie. Bradberry is just the third Cyclone to be named to the team.

The Cyclones continued their success off the field as well with eight players earning academic All-Big 12 accolades. Since Gemeinhardt-Cesler’s arrival, 30 ISU softball players have received the honor.

Gemeinhardt-Cesler coached ISU to an 18-4 mark in 2008 before  missing the season’s final 36 games while taking maternity leave.

ISU finished 29-29 in 2008, the most wins by the school since 1989 and the first time it finished .500 or better since 1995. For the third-straight season, the Cyclones increased their stolen base total, finishing with 67 as a team. Kelsey Kidwell tied the single-season school record with 18 stolen bases.

Iowa State also set school records for runs (215), home runs (38) and runs batted in (187).

First baseman Sydni Jones was voted to the All-Big 12 second team after hitting .319 with three homers in league play. Rachel Zabriskie earned all-tournament team honors for ISU at the Big 12 Championships, tossing a complete-game 10-inning win over Baylor and limiting a potent Texas A&M squad to just one run in a loss to the Aggies. Zabriskie threw three no-hitters during her rookie campaign.

In Gemeinhardt-Cesler’s second season, the coach’s philosophy of blending speed and power began to take shape on the field as Iowa State nearly doubled its stolen base numbers from the previous year with 63 steals. The improved speed didn’t hinder their power as the Cyclones hit 24 homers, the most since 2002.

Individually, Kristy Olsen swiped 17 bases, which is second in school history, and four players belted five or more home runs for the first time in school history. Alex Johnson had a freshman record 62 hits and also hit six homers to capture all-league honors.

Alyssa Ransom earned Big 12 Pitcher-of-the-Week accolades after earning the win in both of ISU’s victories over Kansas. Ransom was the third player under Gemeinhardt-Cesler to be honored by the conference. In the nine years prior to Gemeinhardt-Cesler’s tenure as ISU head coach, the Cyclones garnered two player-of-the-week honors.

In her first season in Ames, ISU showed improvement in nearly every hitting category, including a jump in batting average from just .208 in 2005 to .250 in 2006, the highest team batting average since 2002. Eight ISU hitters had an improved batting average, including all-Big 12 catcher Ashley Killeen, whose average jumped from .257 to .336.

The teams that Gemeinhardt-Cesler has coached throughout her career have displayed a rare blend of speed and power. In her first year at the helm of the ISU program, the Cyclones improved their power numbers and ran the bases more aggressively, en route to the most stolen bases (35) and home runs (19) since 2003.

The Cyclones’ first season under Gemeinhardt-Cesler included wins over No. 15 Texas A&M, No. 16 Nebraska and No. 22 Oklahoma in consecutive Big 12 series. Against the Aggies, ISU showed off its improved offense, pounding out a Big 12 school-record 14 runs in the six-inning win.

Killeen and Jennifer Bigbee were named All-Big 12, while Killeen joined Katie Reichling on the NFCA All-Midwest Region Second Team. Iowa State also placed a league-high nine student-athletes on the academic All-Big 12 teams in 2006.

Gemeinhardt-Cesler, a two-time Mid-America Intercollegiate Athletics Association Coach of the Year selection at Division II Emporia State, compiled a 153-76 record (.668) in just four seasons at ESU. Hired as a graduate assistant coach in August 2001, Gemeinhardt-Cesler took over the Hornet program in November following the retirement of Jo Kord.

The Hornet record book was rewritten during Gemeinhardt-Cesler’s tenure, including the school marks for wins, home runs, runs scored, stolen bases and shutouts. Her players set the single-season mark for strikeouts, hits, doubles, RBI and stolen bases. Pitcher Melissa Stevens was named the league’s 2005 MVP and earned NFCA All-America honors. She was tabbed the MIAA Freshman of the Year in Gemeinhardt-Cesler’s second season.

Gemeinhardt-Cesler, a two-time all-conference performer at Missouri, began her coaching career as a student assistant at her alma mater, spending one season on the Tiger bench. The outfielder was a two-time team MVP for Missouri and earned all-region honors three times. A three-time Big 12 Conference all-tournament selection, Gemeinhardt-Cesler also earned NSCA and ASA All-America recognition, as well as academic All-America honors from the National Fastpitch Coaches Association. She finished her career ranked among the top 10 in nine career statistical categories, helping the Tigers make two NCAA regional appearances and earn the 1997 Big 12 Conference regular-season and tournament championships. Gemeinhardt-Cesler earned a bachelor’s degree in social work from Missouri in 2001 and a master’s of business administration from Emporia State in 2004.

Gemeinhardt-Cesler and her husband, Jeff Cesler, were married in December of 2006 and reside in Ames. The couple has twin boys, Jakoby and Korbin, who were born in June 2008.

Gary Hines
Assistant Coach

In his fifth season as an assistant coach at Iowa State, Gary Hines’ positive impact on the Cyclone pitching staff has been repeatedly demonstrated.

In 2009, the ISU pitching staff continued its improvement by dropping its ERA to 2.73. It marked the second-straight year lowering the team ERA. The Cyclone pitching staff, which was depleted by injury, struck out 275 batters, while walking just 79. The staff was led by Rachel Zabriskie, who earned All-Big 12 second team honors. Zabriskie, who was forced to pitch 271.1 of the 369.2 innings, posted 18 wins in 2009, the most by an ISU pitcher since 1987. She finished eighth in the Big 12 with a 2.37 earned run average.

In 2008, Hines’ staff lowered its ERA to 3.15 from 3.35 in 2007. For the first time since 1995, ISU had two pitchers with a better than .500 winning percentage. Zabriskie finished 15-14 and Charissa Carlin went 10-9 to give ISU two pitchers with an above .500 record and at least 10 wins for the first time since 1989.

Zabriskie tossed three no-hitters in her first four career starts and went on to break the ISU freshman record for strikeouts, finishing with 146. She ended the season 14th in the Big 12 with a 2.62 ERA and was named to the all-tournament team at the Big 12 Championships after pitching ISU to a win over Baylor. She was the first Cyclone to be named to the all-tournament team since 1996.

Under Hines’ leadership, Iowa State’s pitchers struck out 323 hitters in 2007. The total also ranks as the second most in Iowa State single-season history. The staff’s control also showed improvement as ISU allowed just 93 walks after allowing 113 in 2006. Alyssa Ransom wrapped up her career with a career-best 138 strikeouts and 12 wins while posting a 2.71 ERA. After Hines’ arrival at ISU, Ransom’s ERA dropped from 3.00 in her first two seasons to 2.57 during the final two years of her career.

In 2006, Hines’ first season with the team, ISU improved in nearly every category. The Cyclones’ team ERA dropped to 2.52, the lowest since 2003. The Cyclones also struck out 109 more batters than in 2005, while holding opponents to a .265 batting average.

When head coach Stacy Gemeinhardt-Cesler was looking for an assistant coach to work with the pitching staff, she went with a familiar face in Hines. Hines came to Iowa State after serving as a pitching consultant for Gemeinhardt’s Emporia State teams since 2002.

Hines has an impressive resumé of producing top-notch pitching staffs. He served as an assistant at Kansas from 1976-1988, coaching eight all-conference pitchers during his tenure with the Jayhawks under former KU head coach Bob Stanclift.

Hines has been involved with softball for over 30 years as a player or coach. Hines, a Russell, Kan., native, served as pitching coach for the Kansas City Fusion 18 and under team from 2001-05. His summer teams have all qualified for national tournaments, with recent finishes of ninth at the USSSA nationals and fifth at the ASA Northern nationals in 2005.

Five of his former players went on to pitch in the collegiate ranks.

While serving as an assistant and consultant, Hines spent the last 15 years as the Athletic Fields Supervisor in Lawrence, Kan. His duties included supervising six full-time and 20 part-time employees while being responsible for 2,000 acres of park land, including three athletic complexes.

Hines is a member of the National Fastpitch Coaches Association in addition to the National Sports Turf Managers Association. He also holds membership with MOKAN STMA and the Youth Sports Incorporated Management Board.

Hines has over 15 years of experience playing fastpitch.

Jamie Pinkerton
Assistant Coach

Jamie Pinkerton is in his first season as an assistant coach for the Cyclones after serving as head coach at Arkansas for the past five seasons. Pinkerton brings a wealth of experience, having been a head coach for nine seasons overall, four of which came at Tulsa.

The Broken Arrow, Okla., native will coach infield and hitting in addition to taking over the responsibilities of recruiting coordinator.

Pinkerton was at Arkansas for five seasons, leading the Razorbacks to NCAA Tournament appearances in 2008 and 2009. Under Pinkerton’s guidance, the Razorbacks set numerous single-game, single-season and career records, including single-season records of 65 home runs and 291 runs in 2008.

During Pinkerton’s tenure, three players were named to the Southeastern Conference All-Freshman Team as well as the National Fast Pitch Coaches Association South Region First Team. He had 31 student-athletes garner SEC Academic Honor Roll honors and the team was recognized by the NFCA for its GPA.

Pinkerton was selected to the USA Softball National Coaching Pool and will serve from 2009-12. He is one of 14 coaches responsible for the training and preperation of the Women’s National Team program.

Prior to his tenure at Arkansas, Pinkerton coached four years at Tulsa, turning the Golden Hurricanes into a winning program. He coached Tulsa to three-straight 30-win seasons and back-to-back 40-win campaigns. He was named Western Athletic Conference Coach of the year in 2002 and 2004.

A total of 13 Golden Hurricane players captured all-conference honors under Pinkerton, who was also an assistant with the program from 1994-97. He has also assisted at Virginia (1998-2000) and Louisiana-Monroe (1997-98).

Pinkerton was born in Fort Smith, Ark., and grew up in Broken Arrow, Okla. He graduated from Tulsa in 1997 with a bachelor’s degree in history and a minor in secondary education. Pinkerton and his wife, Dori, have two children, a daughter, Sarah, and a son, Dane.

Kate Sinnotte
Graduate Assistant