Southern States Athletic Conference

MOUNT BERRY, Ga. – In a continuing effort to increase athletic opportunities for students on its 26,000-acre campus, Berry College will add women's softball to its list of varsity sports in 2009-10. Cori Thiermann, a former assistant at the University of Montana, will be the team's first head coach.

"We are excited to announce not only that we are adding softball, but also that we have selected a top-notch head coach to start the program," Athletic Director Todd Brooks said. "We look forward to building on Berry's tradition of successful athletics with this new team."

With the addition of softball, Berry's intercollegiate athletic program will now field a total of 14 different teams, eight for women and six for men. Female students have the opportunity to compete in: cross country, equestrian, soccer, tennis, golf, volleyball, basketball and softball. Men's offerings include: baseball, basketball, cross country, soccer, tennis and golf.

Berry is currently a member of the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA) and the Southern States Athletic Conference (SSAC). With the addition of Berry, the SSAC will now feature 10 members that compete in softball.

Although Berry's newest varsity team definitely will take the field in 2009-10, the location of its home games is yet to be decided. Potential sites, on-campus and off-campus, are being investigated at this time.

Thiermann comes to Berry after two seasons as an assistant coach at the University of Montana at Billings, where she is finishing her master's degree in sports, recreation and fitness management. During her tenure, the Yellow Jackets posted a 54-45 overall record, including an impressive 26-13 mark in conference play. This season the team went 28-21 and was 16-8 against Great Northwest Athletic Conference opponents.

Thiermann holds a bachelor's degree in both business administration and public administration from the University of Wisconsin at Green Bay, where she played NCAA Div. I softball for the Phoenix from 2001-05 and was a four-year Horizon League Honor Roll member. As a senior she was a member of the 2005 team that won the Horizon League championship and advanced to the NCAA Tournament, upsetting then-No. 6 Oregon State along the way.

"I'm very excited for the future of Berry softball," said Thiermann. "It will be a great opportunity to have a hand in creating the tradition of Berry softball. I look forward to joining in the long-standing tradition of successful athletics at Berry."

Although the Berry team will not begin play until 2010, Thiermann will assume her new post in July. The coming academic year will be spent recruiting the first class of Berry softball players and preparing for the start of the new program.

"I look forward to going out and recruiting in my first year and just getting the message out to young players that Berry now has a softball team," said Thiermann. "I think that Berry is located in a hot-bed of talented players and that the campus will be a big draw for them."

If you are interested in joining the Berry softball team or want more information on the program, please contact Coach Thiermann by e-mail at CThiermann@Berry.edu.