Erin Kinberger enters her third year as head coach of the Fort Hays State softball team in 2014. She was named the head softball coach at FHSU on June 20, 2011, becoming the seventh head coach of the Tigers in program history. Kinberger has a career record of 78-31 (.716 win percentage) entering 2014.
Kinberger guided Fort Hays State to the best season in program history in 2013. The Tigers finished with an overall record of 47-12, won the MIAA Tournament Championship, and claimed the No. 1 seed in the Central Regional of the NCAA Tournament. It was just the second NCAA Tournament appearance in the program's history, the last being a decade earlier in 2003. Kinberger guided FHSU to its first ever season of 40 or more wins and the highest single-season win percentage (.797) in school history. She also guided FHSU to its first ever national ranking in 2013, entering the NFCA Top 25 Poll on March 13, then held a spot in the poll the remainder of the season. FHSU entered the NCAA Tournament ranked No. 10 in the nation, its highest ranking of the season. Fort Hays State hosted the NCAA Regional as the No. 1 seed, another first for the program. Â
Fort Hays State finished second in the MIAA regular season to eventual national champion Central Oklahoma in 2013, but won the MIAA Tournament for the program's first conference championship in a decade. It was the first MIAA Championship for FHSU in softball. The only previous conference championship for FHSU was in 2003, when it won the Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference Tournament. Â
Kinberger's 2013 squad accomplished a great deal in the classroom as well, finishing the spring with a team GPA of 3.414.
Kinberger has coached 14 All-MIAA selections at FHSU, including three first-team selections, after eight players earned honors in 2013. Senior Maddie Holub led the eight selections, the first player ever to be named both the MIAA Pitcher and Player of the Year for both her pitching and offense combined. Holub was also named the Central Region Pitcher of the Year and a First Team All-American by the NFCA and Daktronics. Holub was just the second All-America selection in Fort Hays State's NCAA softball history. Outfielder Amanda Vaupel was also an all-region selection in the outfield, giving Kinberger two players with all-region accolades in her coaching career. Kinberger also coached the MIAA Defensive Player of the Year, Adriana Wortley, in 2012.
In just two seasons as a head coach, Kinberger has an overall record of 78-31, a win percentage of .716. That would rank in the Top 15 nationally among active head coaches at the NCAA Division II level if she met the five-year minimum requirement. Kinberger currently owns the highest career win percentage among head coaches in the Mid-America Intercollegiate Athletics Association.
Kinberger’s 2012 squad finished with a 31-19 record and posted the third-highest winning percentage (.620) in school history. The Tigers placed third in the MIAA and had six players earn All-MIAA honors.
Kinberger (formerly Brunt) took over the reins of the program after spending three seasons as the assistant coach of the Tigers. She helped lead the team to three consecutive 30-win seasons, including a runner-up finish at the MIAA Tournament in 2011. As an assistant, Kinberger was responsible for helping with all areas of the Tigers softball program, focusing mainly on the development of catchers and infielders. Under her tutelage, Tiger catcher Malinee Powell earned All-MIAA and All-South Central Region First Team selections in 2011. Off the field, her duties included assisting in team management, recruiting, scouting, fundraising, and alumni relations.
Kinberger came to Fort Hays State from Saint Leo University in Saint Leo, Florida, where she spent one year as a graduate assistant following a solid four-year playing career as the Lions' catcher. Her graduate assistant duties included recruiting, scouting, tutoring student-athletes, organizing community service, and field maintenance. During her year as a graduate assistant, the Lions finished 37-15, tying for second place in the Sunshine State Conference. They finished third in the South Region rankings, and 19th in the NFCA Division II poll.
As a player, Kinberger was part of two teams that qualified for the NCAA Division II South Regional, earning all-conference honors all four years and Second Team All-South Region in 2006. In addition to those honors, she was the recipient of the 2006 Women in Sports Sodexho Scholarship; 2007 Sunshine State Conference Female Sportsmanship Award; 2005-2006 SLU Female Scholar Athlete of the Year Award; 2005-2006 SLU Community Award; 2004-2005 SLU Personal Development Award; and was a four time NFCA All-American Scholar Athlete. Kinberger was a career .291 hitter; finishing third all-time in Lions softball history with career home runs (12) and fourth all-time in career doubles (40).
Kinberger was the Head Coach in the summer of 2007 for Team FLA 16U and moved up to Head Coach of Team FLA 18U Gold in the summer of 2008.
A native of Clearwater, Fla., Kinberger earned a bachelor's degree in Elementary Education from Saint Leo University in 2007 and earned a master's degree in Health and Human Performance from Fort Hays State University in 2009.
