Liz Beirne joined the UIC softball staff as an assistant coach in Sept. 2016 after spending two years as an assistant under head coach Lynn Curylo at Wright State.
In her time at Wright State, Beirne worked with the pitching staff, aiding in the development of all-Horizon League hurlers Ashley Sharp and Montana Wear, who combined in 2015 and 2016 for 50 wins, 283 strikeouts, 10 shutouts and a 2.15 ERA. The Raiders went 60-56 and 31-13 in conference play in her two years, reaching the championship game in the Horizon League Tournament both seasons.
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Prior to WSU, Beirne served as an assistant for six seasons at Georgia Southern, where she coached the pitchers to five Southern Conference Pitcher of the Year honors, including three consecutive for Sarah Purvis. The Eagles additionally had five NFCA All-Region Second Team selections and one SoCon Freshman of the Year accolade during her tenure. With the help of Beirne, Purvis went down in the NCAA record book with three perfect games and six no-hitters. The Eagles won the SoCon regular season title in 2012 and 2014 and the tournament crown in 2012 and 2013.
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Beirne began her coaching career as a graduate assistant at Liberty before moving on to spend one season as the pitching coach at Tennessee State.
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During her playing career, Beirne was a standout pitcher at Olivet Nazarene, earning placement on the 2003 National Christian Colleges Athletic Association All-American First Team. An All-Chicago Collegiate Athletic Conference selection, she garnered a career record of 74-26 with 32 shutouts and helped Olivet to a third-place finish at the 2003 NAIA national tournament and a team record 61 wins, posting a personal record of 29-7 with a 1.61 ERA.
