When it comes to veteran coaches at UMass Dartmouth, Marilyn Ritz holds the
record for most total years of service. Combining her 18 years as softball
coach and 17 years in field hockey gives her 35 seasons behind the bench
for the Corsairs, the most by any woman coach at UMass Dartmouth.
UMass Dartmouth posted a 12-19-2 overall record during the Spring 2001
season, including a 5-9 record in the Little East Conference. The Corsiars
finished sixth in the LEC and made an appearance in the LEC playoffs.
Since 1984, Ritz has been UMass Dartmouth softball coach, compiling a
record of 267-206-2 during those years. Her softball teams have earned
distinction at all levels of competition during her career, including the
university's first two invitations to the NCAA Division III national
championship softball tournament in 1988, and again in 1990. UMass
Dartmouth's 1990 squad was also the first softball team to post 20
victories in one season, finishing with a 20-8 record.
UMass Dartmouth softball teams have also appeared in four MAIAW tournaments
and 11 ECAC Division III championship tournaments, taking home championship
trophies in 1992 and 1994. UMass Dartmouth's 1994 team finished 24-6 and
set a record for most wins in a season, only to have that record broken the
following year when the Corsairs went 26-10.
A member of the National Fastpitch Coaches Association and the New England
Intercollegiate Softball Coaches Association, Ritz has been very active in
the field of collegiate softball. She has served on the ECAC Softball
Selection and Seeding Committee and on the NCAA Softball Regional Advisory
Committee.
Ritz started her coaching career at Westport High School where she coached
softball and basketball from 1976 through 1978. Ritz is a member of the
Westport High School Athletic Hall of Fame.
