June 30, 2009

SEATTLE - Head coach Heather Tarr and her entire coaching staff at the University of Washington have been selected as the NFCA's NCAA Division I Coaching Staff of the Year, the National Fastpitch Coaches Association announced on Monday. Tarr and her staff piloted the Huskies to the first NCAA Championship in program history earlier this month.

Tarr led a staff comprised of assistant coaches Gina Carbonatto and Lance Glasoe, volunteer assistant J.T. D'Amico and student assistant Dru Hester.

The Washington Huskies captured the first NCAA softball championship in school history in 2009, sweeping the best-of-three championship series from top-seeded and top-ranked Florida. Washington, the Pac-10 runner-up with a 14-7 conference record (51-12 overall), played its entire postseason schedule away from the friendly confines of Husky Stadium, traveling to Amherst, Mass., where Washington defeated Sacred Heart and UMass to advance to Sunday's regional championship. After dropping that first regional game, the Huskies and Minutewomen engaged in a 15-inning struggle with UW prevailing 6-1. The next trip was to Atlanta, where the Huskies swept Georgia Tech to advance to the WCWS where Washington went 5-1 en route to the title.

Tarr and her staff were also named the Pacific Region Coaching Staff of the Year, joining coaches from nine other regions. The Washington alum is in her fifth year at the helm of the Husky program. Carbonatto, Glasoe and D'Amico were new additions to the coaching staff in 2009 while Hester played for UW in 2008 before becoming a student assistant coach.