Samantha Jo Findlay (born February 22, 1986) is an American

softball Softball is a Variations of baseball, variation of baseball, the difference being that it is played with a larger ball, on a smaller field, and with only underhand pitches (where the ball is released while the hand is primarily below the ball) ...

coach and former softball player. She is currently an assistant coach with the

DePaul Blue Demons The DePaul Blue Demons are the athletic teams that represent DePaul University, located in Chicago, Illinois. The Blue Demons participate in NCAA Division I and are a member of the Big East Conference. DePaul's Athletic Director is DeWayne Pe ...

softball team. She previously played professional softball in the

National Pro Fastpitch National Pro Fastpitch (NPF), formerly the Women's Pro Softball League (WPSL), was a professional women's softball league in the United States. The teams battled for the Cowles Cup. The WPSL was founded in 1997 and folded in 2001; the NPF revive ...

league (NPF) for the

Chicago Bandits The Chicago Bandits were a women's professional softball team based in Rosemont, Illinois. Since the 2005 season, they have played as a member of National Pro Fastpitch (NPF). The Bandits won the 2008 NPF championship, defeating the Washington ...

(2008-2010) and

USSSA Pride The USSSA Pride is a professional softball team based in Viera, Florida, and a former member of Women's Professional Fastpitch (WPF). Founded in 2009, they previously played in National Pro Fastpitch (NPF) from 2009 to 2019. They play their home ...

(2011). Findlay also played

college softball College softball is softball as played on the intercollegiate level at institutions of higher education, predominantly in the United States. College softball is normally played by women at the Intercollegiate level, whereas college baseball is nor ...

for the

Michigan Wolverines softball The Michigan Wolverines softball team represents the University of Michigan in National Collegiate Athletics Association (NCAA) Division I (NCAA), Division I competition. College softball became a varsity sport at the University of Michigan in 1 ...

team from 2005 to 2008. She was selected as the Most Valuable Player in the 2005 Women's College World Series after hitting a three-run home run in the 10th inning of the championship game against

UCLA The University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) is a public land-grant research university in Los Angeles, California, United States. Its academic roots were established in 1881 as a normal school then known as the southern branch of the C ...

. She was also selected as a first-team All-American at second base in 2007 and holds

University of Michigan The University of Michigan (U-M, U of M, or Michigan) is a public university, public research university in Ann Arbor, Michigan, United States. Founded in 1817, it is the oldest institution of higher education in the state. The University of Mi ...

records for

home run In baseball, a home run (abbreviated HR) is scored when the Baseball (ball), ball is hit in such a way that the batting (baseball), batter is able to circle the bases and reach home plate safe (baseball), safely in one play without any error ( ...

s in a career (62), RBIs in a career (219), career

slugging percentage In baseball statistics, slugging percentage (SLG) is a measure of the batting productivity of a hitter. It is calculated as total bases divided by at-bats, through the following formula, where ''AB'' is the number of at-bats for a given player, an ...

(.677), and RBIs in a season (77).

Early years

Findlay was born in 1986 in

Lockport, Illinois Lockport is a city in Will County, Illinois, United States, located 30 miles southwest of Chicago. Per the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, the population was 26,094. The city was incorporated in 1853. It is situated along the Illinois a ...

, 30 miles southwest of

Chicago Chicago is the List of municipalities in Illinois, most populous city in the U.S. state of Illinois and in the Midwestern United States. With a population of 2,746,388, as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, it is the List of Unite ...

. She attended

Lockport Township High School Lockport Township High School (LTHS) is a public high school in Lockport, Illinois, United States. In addition to the city of Lockport and Lockport Township, Lockport Township High School also serves the communities of Homer Glen, most of Cres ...

where she was an all-state softball player. She graduated in 2004.

University of Michigan

Findlay enrolled at the

in the fall of 2004. As a freshman in

2005 2005 was designated as the International Year for Sport and Physical Education and the International Year of Microcredit. The beginning of 2005 also marked the end of the International Decade of the World's Indigenous Peoples, Internationa ...

, she hit .361, broke Michigan's single-season record with 77 RBIs, and tied the single-season record with 21 home runs. Following an outstanding season, she was named Big Ten Conference Freshman of the Year. On June 8, 2005, she drove in all four of Michigan's runs, including a three-run homer, in the 4-1 win over

in the championship game of the 2005 Women's College World Series and won the Most Outstanding Player award of the tournament. At the end of the 2005 season, Findlay played for Team USA in the 2005 Intercontinental Cup in Spain. As a sophomore in 2006 and junior in 2007, Findlay started every game at first base for Michigan. As a senior in 2008, Findlay moved from first to second base. She led the team with a .382 batting average and tied her own Michigan single-season records with 21 home runs, three grand slams and 69 RBIs. At the end of the 2008 season, she was selected as a first-team All-American at second base. She was also selected as the Most Outstanding Player on the 2008 Michigan softball team. Findlay was also selected as first-team NFCA All-Great Lakes Region player in 2005 (first base), 2007 (first base), and 2008 (second base). In four years playing for the Michigan softball team, Findlay played in 251 games for Michigan, all of them as a starter. She compiled a career batting average of .348. She holds Michigan career records with 62 home runs, 219 RBIs, and a .677 slugging percentage. She also holds Michigan's single-season record with 77 RBIs. She previously held the career record with 157 walks, but that record was bested by Dorian Shaw in 2011. She also previously held Michigan's single-season record with 21 home runs, but that record was broken in 2013 by

Sierra Romero Sierra Joy Romero (born March 19, 1994) is an American professional softball player for the Volts of the Athletes Unlimited Softball League (AUSL). She previously was a volunteer assistant softball coach for the Oregon Ducks softball team. She pl ...

. She was inducted in 2022 into the

University of Michigan Athletic Hall of Honor The University of Michigan Athletic Hall of Honor, founded in 1978, recognizes University of Michigan#Athletics, University of Michigan sportsperson, athletes, Coach (sports), coaches, and administrators who have made significant contributions to t ...

Professional playing career

From 2008 to 2010, Findlay played professional softball as a first baseman for the

, including the Bandits' 2008 Cowles Cup championship season. In three seasons with the Bandits, she had 31 home runs and 73 RBIs. She also played one season for the

. In February 2012, she announced her retirement from professional softball.

Coaching career

In 2008, Findlay joined the coaching staff of the

softball team as a volunteer coach. In August 2010, she was hired as DePaul's Director of Softball Operations. She was named as an assistant coach at DePaul in September 2011 and was on staff for the 2012 and 2013 seasons.

Personal life

Findlay resides in Lockport, IL has two children, Logan and Annabelle. After leaving DePaul, Findlay became a human resources manager with a construction company Ozinga in Chicago.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Findlay, Samantha 1986 births Living people DePaul Blue Demons softball coaches Michigan Wolverines softball players Sportspeople from Lockport, Illinois Softball coaches from Illinois Softball players from Illinois Women's College World Series Most Outstanding Player Award winners