Former Gamecock Ashley Chastain named softball head coach
COLUMBIA, S.C. (WIS) - Ashley Chastain, a former Gamecock student-athlete and graduate assistant, has been named the University of South Carolina’s 11th head softball coach, Athletics Director Ray Tanner announced today.
The hiring comes days after the Gamecocks fired head coach Beverly Smith on Saturday after 14 years.
Chastain is returning to South Carolina after being head coach for the Charlotte 49ers since 2020. In the last five seasons, she led her teams to a 154-96 overall record (61.6 percent), a 65-32 conference mark (67.0 percent), and two NCAA post-season berths.
“Ashley Chastain is the right choice to take our softball program to the next level,” said Tanner. “She has had success in every stop of her coaching career. It is exciting to bring back a South Carolina alum to lead our softball program.”
This season’s Charlotte squad had a 39-18 overall mark, a 21-6 record in the American Athletic Conference, and the program’s first conference tournament championship, advancing to the NCAA Regionals for the second year in a row. The 49ers reached as high as 15th in the NCAA RPI and were ranked 27th in the final RPI before the NCAA Tournament selections.
“I am honored and excited to return to the University of South Carolina to lead this program,” said Chastain. “I am extremely grateful to Coach Tanner for believing in me and giving me this opportunity. As an alumna, this university and program hold a special place in my heart, and I am committed to building on its proud tradition.”
Chastain is the first USC alumnus to be named a Gamecock head coach since Boo Major, a 1981 graduate, was named equestrian head coach in 1998.
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