Ferris State Softball Announces Resignation Of Head Coach Wally King For D1 Opportunity; Adam Kirkpatrick Appointed Interim Head Coach

Big Rapids, Mich. - Ferris State University has announced the resignation of softball head coach Wally King, who has accepted another coaching opportunity at the NCAA Division I level and will depart after leading the Bulldogs to a 20-game improvement in his lone season at the helm last spring.

With King's departure, the Bulldogs will be lead this fall and for the coming year by Adam Kirkpatrick, who has been tabbed as the Interim Head Coach, along with assistant coach Jasmine Watson. Both served on the Bulldog staff under King and played key roles in the team's success in 2016.

King informed the FSU squad of his decision at a team meeting on Monday (Aug. 29) night. Kirkpatrick's appointment is effective immediately and he will serve as the program's interim coach thru the completion of the 2017 season with a full and complete search to fill the opening taking place next spring.

"Coach King has accepted a Division I opportunity and we are excited for him and wish him well as he advances in his career," said FSU Athletics Director Perk Weisenburger. "Wally did an excellent job of instilling a championship mentality into our program in a short time and we appreciate what he did in leading our team this past year."

"At the same time, we have the utmost confidence in Coaches Kirkpatrick, Watson and the upper class team leaders as they prepare for the coming year," he added. "Both Adam & Jaz have solid softball backgrounds and we look forward to their contributions and effort in continuing to build our program."

Both Kirkpatrick and Watson helped FSU to a major turnaround this past season under King's watch as FSU posted a 36-18 mark and also finished tied for third overall in the Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (GLIAC). The 36 wins represented a 20-game improvement over the previous 2015 season.

"By naming Adam as our Interim Head Coach, it puts us in the best position for sustained success in the coming year from a competitive, recruiting and program standpoint," said Weisenburger. "He's excited for the chance to build upon the success we achieved last spring."

Ferris State, which made its first GLIAC Tourney appearance in three years in 2016, posted the fourth-most single season wins in school history this past year. Nearly 20 letterwinners are eligible to return this coming season for the Bulldogs, including three all-conference picks along with a pair of all-region honorees in third baseman Bailey Darwin and outfielder Alexx Astorga.

Along with the success last spring, the Bulldog softball program has also recently seen several facility upgrades with the installation of new batting cages, bullpens, playing surface improvements and a new scoreboard at the FSU Softball Field.

A University of Alabama graduate, Kirkpatrick has been heavily involved with softball for more than two decades as both a player and coach. He formerly served for three years on the staff at Cornerstone University and worked with the Bulldog pitchers this past year along with helping coordinate the program's strength and conditioning. The former fastpitch player has also ran his own consulting business in the ACES Fastpitch Academy since 2002 where he's guided numerous prep and collegiate standouts to success.

"I'd like to thank Mr. Weisenburger for this amazing opportunity and I've really enjoyed my time at Ferris State thus far," Kirkpatrick said. "I appreciate everything Coach King has done to lay a foundation for future success."

"I'm excited to be part of the Ferris State community and look forward to leading the program this year," he added. "I'm thrilled Coach Watson is staying with us as her input and abilities are invaluable. Finally, we have a great group of student-athletes both returning and in our incoming class and I look forward to helping Ferris State Softball continue to build towards championship success."

Meanwhile, Watson was a collegiate standout on the NCAA Division I level at Syracuse University where she claimed All-Big East accolades three times for the Orange. She concluded her career as one of the school's all-time best while also becoming the program's career home runs record holder. The California native began her coaching career at Syracuse following her collegiate playing days before coming to FSU.

The Bulldogs will open the fall practice season on the field later this week under Kirkpatrick and Watson's direction.