The Wright File

126-129 in five seasons at ISU (179-181 in seven seasons overall)
2013 Big Sky Conference Champions
2014 Big Sky Conference Champions
2015 Big Sky Conference Champions

Player Honors
2015 NFCA All-Pacific Region- Vicky Galasso (second-team)
2015 Big Sky MVP- Vicky Galasso
2015 Big Sky Co-Newcomer of the Year- Sophie Slagle
2014 first-team Academic-All-American - Terah Blackwell
2014 NFCA All-Pacific Region - Vicky Galasso (second-team), Hailey Breakwell (second-team), Kacie Burnett (second-team), Terah Blackwell (third-team)
2014 Big Sky Conferenec Player of the Year- Hailey Breakwell
2014 Big Sky Conference Freshman of the Year- Kacie Burnett
2013 NFCA second-team All-Pacific Region team - Vicky Galasso and Amanda Fitzsimmons
2013 Big Sky Player of the Year - Vicky Galasso
2013 Big Sky Freshman of the Year - Maddie Hickman
2012 PCSC Mountain Division Player of the Year - Amanda Fitzsimmons

34 - All-Conference Players
31 - Academic All-Conference
5 - NFCA All-America Scholar

2014 NCAA Rankings
Batting Average - 4th
Scoring - 5th
Slugging Percentage - 13th
Homeruns Per Game - 28th

2013 NCAA Rankings
Slugging Percentage - 5th
Home Runs - 7th
Batting Average - 8th
Scoring - 12th
Double Plays - 20th
Triples - 28th

In five seasons Julie Wright has turned the Idaho State softball program into a dominant team in the Big Sky Conference and a team that garners attention on a regional and national level. The Bengal softball program has rewritten the records under Wright’s watch while winning back-to-back-toback Big Sky Conference championships.

Wright has a 126-169 record at ISU but in the last three seasons she has totaled a 98-61 mark.

The turnaround took off in 2013 when ISU won the first-ever Big Sky Conference regular season title while winning a school record 29 games. The win record was eclipsed a year later when ISU finished 35-20 and added another Big Sky Conference regular season title to its trophy case. The Bengals hosted the Big Sky Conference tournament after winning the regular season championship for the third straight season in 2015. ISU finished the year 34-18 and 17-4 in league.

As the wins started to mount the recognition started to pour in for the team and individuals within the program.

Since the Big Sky Conference added softball in 2013, the conference MVP has come from Pocatello as Vicky Galasso won the honor in 2013 and 2015 and Hailey Breakwell won the award in 2014. Sophie Slagle earned the Big Sky Conference Co-Newcomer of the Year award in 2015 while Maddy Hickman and Kacie Burnett were named the conference's Freshman of the Year in 2013 and 2014.  Wright has seen 34 players earn all-conference honors during her time at Idaho State.

During Wright’s tenure the Bengals have boasted the program’s first-ever first-team Academic All-American in Terah Blackwell and the Bengals have boasted players on the NFCA All-Region team for the first-time in program history. In 2013 Galasso and Amanda Fitzsimmons earned all-region honors while in 2014, Galasso (second-team), Breakwell (second-team), Burnett (second-team) and Blackwell (third-team) all were named to NFCA All-Region team. Galasso earned second-team all-region honors in 2015.

Under Wright, the Bengals have turned into one of the most potent offensive teams in the nation.

In 2013 the Bengals were near the top of the NCAA in many statistics including slugging percentage-5th (.552), home runs-7th (1.50 per game), batting average-8th (.329), scoring-12th (6.46 per game), double plays-20th (.42 per game) and triples-28th (.25 per game).

A year later the Bengals had the fourth best batting average in the country at .342 and they ranked fifth in scoring at .684 runs a game. ISU ranked 13th in slugging percentage (.517) and 28th in home runs per game (1.05).

The 2014 season saw four different players ranked in the Top 10 nationally in many offensive statistical categories. With a record 11 players earning all-conference players in 2014, Wright has coached 26 all-conference players at Idaho State.

Becky Molyneaux and Katelyn Marquez were both honored as All-America Scholar-Athletes by the National Fastpitch Caoches Association in 2013.
 
Wright was also part of the planning process of the Bengals first on campus softball facility, Miller Ranch Stadium. Since coming to Idaho State, Wright’s teams have displayed academic excellence in the classroom has 31 student-athletes have earned academic all-conference in her first three years.

Wright is the seventh head coach in program history.

At Wisconsin she handled recruiting, scheduling, and served as the teams' academic liaison. She also was in charge of the teams' slappers and defense. Under her watch Wisconsin's defense improved dramatically, raising their fielding percentage in two seasons from .955 to .968. She also showed dramatic improvement with her offensive charges, helping Jen Krueger go from a .156 batting average to .323, with Krueger setting the Wisconsin single-season stolen base record to boot.

During Wright's time at Wisconsin she was responsible for the on field development of all-region selection Molly Spence, who also set 10 school records as a freshman, and three Big 10 honorees in Krueger, Shannel Blackshear and Letty Olivarez. In 2007, Sam Polito and Katie Hnatyk earned all-region awards.

Wright spent two seasons with the Akron Zips as head coach, leading the team to a 53-52 record overall in her two seasons, including a 27-27 mark in her first year in 2005, leading the Zips to their first appearance in the Mid-American Conference Tournament in four years. The team followed that up with a 26-25 record overall and a 13-9 MAC mark in 2006, again making it to the conference tournament.

During her two years at Akron she was involved in the design and fundraising for a new softball stadium and locker room that was completed in 2005. Wright also had eight student-athletes earn all-conference honors between 2005 and 2006.

She also has spent time as an assistant at the University of Kansas (1999-04) and Ohio (1996-99). At Kansas, she was the primary coach offensively and defensively for All-American Christi Musser.

Wright has been heavily involved speaking to various groups. She was selected to speak at the Ohio High School Coaches Association Convention where topics included leading from the heart, Indoor Defensive Drills and How to Mentally Prepare to Hit. All told, in her last 10 years as an assistant coach, associate head coach, or a head coach, Wright has finished .500 or better nine times, including five 30-win campaigns.

Wright graduated with her bachelor's in Sociology/Criminology and a minor in psychology from Ohio University in 1995.