Women's Softball: Our Coaches

Darci Brownell, Head Coach

Darci begins her 12th season as the Wolverines Head Coach after serving two years as an assistant. In 2009, she helped guide the team to a NorCal Championship and a state runner-up finish with 44 wins, the most in Sierra history. The 2010 Wolverines won the Big 8 Conference championship and reached the NorCal regional finals. Darci was named the Big 8, Northern California and State Coach of the Year in 2010.

In 11 seasons as Sierra’s Head Coach, Darci’s record is 448-129 with three trips to the Elite Eight State Championships and eight trips to the State Playoffs. She has produced 21 All Americans and 68 players have earned scholarships.

Her experience includes 10 years at the high school level where she led Del Campo to the playoffs six times. Four of her teams were CAL Champions, and she was Coach of the Year in 1993. Her overall record at the varsity level was 139-26. Darci played at CSU Sacramento for four years as a catcher and outfielder. She also played ASA summer ball for the NorCal Tremors. She received her B.A. degree from CSUS in Childhood Development with a minor in Physical Education. She has a Master's in Education and Curriculum.

Michelle Granger, Assistant Coach

 Michele joined the Sierra College coaching staff in 2009 as a volunteer pitching coach. She made a major impact on Sam Baker’s rise to All American status in 2010.

A power pitcher originally from Alaska, Michele was key in clinching the gold medal at the 1996 Olympic Games for the U.S. Olympic softball team. In the final game against China, she struck out eight and allowed three hits in five and two-thirds innings. She finished the Olympics with a 2-0 record and 0.87 ERA.

Michele has been clocked at 72 M.P.H. pitching from 40 feet, which would be a 110 M.P.H. fastball in baseball. She compiled unprecedented statistics while at the University of California, Berkeley. From 1989-1993, Michele amassed 1,640 strikeouts and 94 shutouts in 183 games, both NCAA records.

Michele’s dominance as a collegian is perhaps best exemplified by her 25 no-hitters, five of which were perfect games. She broke the Bears' previous career record of six no-hitters in her sophomore year, and had six such outings against Stanford alone. She is the only player in history to compete in the ISF Jr. Girls' World Championships, the U.S. Olympic Festival, the Pan American Games and the ASA Women's Major National Championships in the same year (1987). She holds 20 records at Cal, and six NCAA records, including the most strikeouts in a career

Cortney Jones, Assistant Coach 

Cortney begins her second season on the Sierra staff. She played softball for 13 years before ending her competitive playing career with the 2009 Sierra College team that finished second in the state. Cortney will spend the majority of her time working with Wolverine pitchers and catchers.

Cortney spent most of her playing career behind the plate and at third and first base. Prior to her two years playing at Sierra, she spent three years coaching at Colfax High School and with the NorCal Freeze. She also served as an Assistant Commissioner on the NorCal Girls Fastpitch board for six years, running their winterball program.

Cortney is currently working towards a degree in Kinesiology. The former Wolverine is the mother of two future Wolverines, Kennedie (7) and Rylee (6).

Rich Murray, Assistant Coach

Rich is in his 12th season as an assistant coach at Sierra College. He joined the staff after two years as Head Coach and three years as an Assistant Coach at Del Campo High School. He has coached various A.S.A. travel teams in Sacramento for the past ten years. While he oversees the Sierra pitching staff, Rich’s vast experience carries over to all aspects of the game.

Rich earned a B.S. degree in Business Administration and a B.A. degree in Recreation Administration at CSU Sacramento. He currently lives with his wife, Barbara, in Lincoln. His daughter, Nicole, played softball at and graduated from the University of Tennessee.

Maryanne Dempsey, Assistant Coach

Maryanne is one of the newest members of the Sierra College softball coaching staff. Having grown up in Ione, CA and attending Argonaut High School, she brings over 15 years of fast-pitch experience to the team. Her primary role on the field was as catcher, but would fill in at 3rd base when needed.

Through individual training and dedication to the sport, she was able to land herself a full softball scholarship to South Dakota State University. She played for the Jackrabbits for 1 year and returned to California her sophomore year, accepting a softball scholarship to Bethany College. It was there she was the starting catcher for 3 years.

After graduating from Bethany with a B.A. in Social Science and a Minor in Psychology, she accepted the Assistant Softball Coaching position at Bethany. She continued to coach for the next 2 years and left Bethany University to return home to be closer to family. She is looking forward to her new role with the Sierra Softball team, and hopes to help players be successful in a sport that has given her so much