Nancy Evans is in her first season at UIC after being hired as the Flames’ new pitching coach in October 2023.
One of the most successful and highly decorated pitchers in NCAA history, Evans won three national championships at the University of Arizona (1994-98). She still holds the NCAA record with a .939 career winning percentage (124-8 overall record), finished with a 0.98 career ERA and was named the 1998 Honda Sports Award recipient as National Player of the Year.
By the time she graduated from Arizona in 1998 with her degree in psychology, Evans was a two-time first-team All-American, the 1997 NCAA College World Series Most Outstanding Player, a three-time College World Series All-Tournament Team selection, and a four-time All-Pacific Region and All-Pac-10 Conference honoree. She was also named to the Pac-12 All-Century Team in 2016, and in 2022, NCAA.com recognized her as one of the 11 best pitchers in collegiate softball history.
Evans played seven seasons of professional softball, first with the Tampa Bay FireStix of the Women’s Professional Softball League (formerly know as Women’s Pro Fastpitch or WPF), helping lead that franchise to the 1999 WPSL title. She later signed with the Arizona Heat of National Pro Fastpitch (NPF), finishing her professional career as a three-time All-Star across both leagues and being named the 2004 NPF All-Star Game MVP.
During her professional career, Evans also began her coaching career back at Arizona from 1999-2007, first as a volunteer assistant and later as a full-time assistant coach. While on the staff at her alma mater, Evans was instrumental in the development of several legendary All-America pitchers including Becky Lemke, Jennie Finch, Alicia Hollowell and Taryne Mowatt.
Evans’ accomplishments as a student-athlete and a coach were later recognized by the University of Arizona. Her jersey number 13 was retired by the school in 2002, and she was inducted into the University of Arizona Sports Hall of Fame in the same year.
Evans most recently coached on the collegiate level from 2011-13 at DePaul University. During her time with the Blue Demons, she helped the program compile a 110-56 record and make two NCAA tournament appearances, while developing two-time All-American Kirsten Verdun in the circle.
Evans also has experience as a coach on the global stage. In 2009, she helped guide the Dutch National Team to the European championship (the country’s first title in 19 years), followed by a strong showing at the 2010 World Championships.
Since 2021, Evans has served on the Italian National Team staff, helping that country to a third-place finish at the 2022 European Championships in Barcelona, Spain. That was followed by two other third-place showings this past summer at the 2023 Canada Cup (in Surrey, British Columbia) and the Women’s Softball World Cup qualifier (in Italy). Currently ranked No. 8 in the world, the Italian National Team has qualified for the 2024 Women’s Softball World Cup Finals that will also be played in Italy.
