The University of Mississippi Athletics
Softball
- Title:
- Assistant Coach/Pitching Coach
Taryne Mowatt, one of the most recognizable and respected names in the softball community, joined the Rebels’ coaching staff in the summer of 2015.
Two years in, and her impact has been felt in a huge way with the recent turnaround of the program. When she took over as pitching coach, she inherited a staff that totaled a 4.30 ERA in 2015. Her pitchers improved that mark to 3.26 in 2016, and shaved off even more in 2017 to 2.10, knocking off more than two runs (2.20) in just two seasons.
She was responsible for taking in two-time JUCO All-American Kaitlin Lee, and forming her into a competitive SEC pitcher. She did that and much more, as Lee went on to lead the SEC in innings pitched (249.2) and tie the school’s wins record of 23, set just a year prior by Madi Osias. Her efforts earned her NFCA All-South Region Third Team honors and All-SEC Second Team accolades.
Behind Lee, freshman Morgan Bruce became the school’s first-ever pitcher to be named to the SEC All-Freshman Team after going 8-5 with a 2.85 ERA. Brittany Finney, a transfer from Oklahoma, stepped in and went 6-1 with a 1.80 ERA. Alyssa Clayton and Elisha Jahnke combined for six wins to contribute to the 43-win campaign and run into NCAA Super Regionals. All five combined for 17 shutouts as a staff, which broke the school record for most in a season.
In her first season on staff, her coaching efforts showed as the Rebel pitching staff helped the team to a 41-win season, and the first NCAA Tournament appearance ever.
Much of the success in 2016 came thanks in part to a much improved pitching staff anchored by senior Madi Osias. Mowatt’s guidance resulted in a drop of more than one in ERA as the staff tallied a 3.26 team ERA in 2016 after posting a 4.30 mark in 2015.
The five pitchers, three of which were new to the team in 2016, combined for 13 shutouts. Osias broke through in her senior campaign for a 23-win season, by far the most of any pitcher in school history, and maintained an ERA below 3.00 at 2.97 in 30 starts and 186 innings. For her efforts Osias earned NFCA All-South Region Third Team honors and was also named SEC Pitcher of the Week during the year.
Mowatt also molded first-year SEC pitchers Elisha Jahnke, Alyssa Clayton and Krista Jacobs, who combined for 174 innings and 28 starts throughout the season. Clayton was well on her way to a breakout season before injury sidelined her, while Jahnke righted the ship in 19 starts and a 10-7 record. Jacobs, a true freshman, went 1-0 in the circle and got quality time with 19 innings in her first collegiate season under Mowatt’s watch.
Mowatt was recently an assistant coach at California Baptist for three seasons, helping the team to NCAA regional appearances each year along with PacWest Conference championships in 2012 and 2014. As the team’s pitching coach, Mowatt instructed a pitching staff that consisted of program-record holders for wins, innings pitched and complete games. She also coached a conference pitcher of the year, freshman pitcher of the year, and three all-conference honorees.
During her playing days, Mowatt was unstoppable on the mound as she led the University of Arizona to back-to-back national championships in 2006 and 2007. In 2007, she collected numerous awards after breaking single season school records for innings pitched (370), strikeouts (522) and victories (42). Mowatt was named Most Valuable Player at the Women’s College World Series, setting four tournament records during the Wildcats’ 2007 national title run. After a season that went down as one of the best in NCAA softball history, Mowatt collected two ESPY awards as the Best Female Athlete and the Best Female College Athlete.
Following her successful collegiate career, Mowatt was selected in the first round of the 2008 National Pro Fastpitch Draft. She played for five teams throughout her six years as a professional, including one season in Holland competing for the Den Bosch Gryphons. In National Pro Fastpitch, Mowatt spent time with the Washington Glory, Akron Racers, Chicago Bandits and New York Comets.
Mowatt received her Bachelor’s degree in Communications from the University of Arizona in 2009.
