Chrissy Schoonmaker Named Softball Head Coach - University of Houston Athletics

HOUSTON – Chrissy Schoonmaker, the 2022 Atlantic 10 Coach of the Year and former University of Houston Softball assistant coach was named the third coach in program history, Vice President for Athletics Eddie Nuñez announced Tuesday.

Schoonmaker’s hiring is pending UH System Board of Regents approval.

“I am excited to welcome Chrissy Schoonmaker back to Houston as our third head coach,” Nuñez said. “This was an exhaustive process where Coach Schoonmaker continued to rise to the top. She has a track record of success in building a program and mentoring young women into the best teammates and versions of themselves. I am confident our Softball program is in good hands and that with the support from the tremendous softball community in the City of Houston, the Cougars will compete at the highest level.”

Schoonmaker returns to Houston after four seasons as the head coach at George Washington where she led the Buff and Blue to a 113-92 record and the 2022 Atlantic 10 regular-season championship in her first season at the helm. She was the fastest coach in Buff and Blue history to reach 100 wins and currently ranks as the second winningest coach in the program’s history while leading the Revolutionaries to the most Atlantic 10 wins over her tenure.

I am honored to join the University of Houston as the next leader of the softball program. I look forward to connecting with our remarkable student-athletes and developing them into champions both in the classroom and on the playing field. Houston is an incredible school with a rich tradition of competitive excellence. This university is special and offers opportunities to young people that are life changing. I look forward to making an impact on the lives of our student-athletes and building this program into a contender in both the Big 12 and on the national scene.

- Head Softball Coach Chrissy Schoonmaker

Thank you to the University of Houston, Chancellor Renu Khator, Eddie Nuñez, David Williams, DeJuena Chizer and the entire search committee for their belief in my vision for this program and their continued investments into driving the team and university forward. It is an exciting time to be a Houston Cougar and I am overjoyed to return to this remarkable city.”

In 2025, Schoonmaker tutored her second A-10 Pitcher of the Year in four seasons while guiding George Washington to the 25th-best ERA in the nation and leading the A-10 in ERA, strikeout-to-walk ratio, shutouts, strikeouts per seven innings and WHIP. Previously in 2024, Schoonmaker guided the Buff and Blue to the top spot in the A-10 in batting average, on-base percentage, slugging and scoring.

Over four seasons at George Washington, Schoonmaker led GW to two 30+ win seasons and turned the Revolutionaries around from 17 wins in 2023 to 27 victories in 2024 and 33 wins in 2025, a 16-win improvement over the last two years. She stands as the only head coach to lead GW to three winning seasons in the program’s history.

Schoonmaker rejoins the Big 12 Conference after beginning her coaching career at Texas Tech in 2012 and has mentored 18 All-Conference selections, six All-Region honorees, two Pitchers of the Year, a Player of the Year and an All-American.

Led by NFCA All-American Sierra Lange and A-10 Player of the Year Alexa Williams, GW went 36-17 in 2022, including a 21-3 mark in conference play, and advanced to the A-10 Championship final before concluding its season at the National Invitational Softball Championship in Fort Collins, Colo.

After a 6-10 start, the group surged down the stretch by winning 27 of 30 to finish the regular season, highlighted by a 13-game winning streak which tied a program record.

The Buff and Blue finished the regular season ranked among the top 100 nationally in RPI and ended up among the national leaders in several statistical categories. They were recognized for a memorable spring with Lange and Williams pacing a program-record five All-Conference First-Team selections.

Schoonmaker also led George Washington to academic success. During her tenure, the Revolutionaries collected 15 academic honors from College Sport Communicators as well as 30 student-athletes to academic awards from the National Fastpitch Coaches Association.

“I would also like to thank George Washington University, along with our former student-athletes, coaching staffs and support staff for their contributions during my tenure in Washington, D.C.,” Schoonmaker said. “I am grateful for the opportunity to have been a guardian of the program and it was a privilege to be surrounded by such incredible people. Our time together was special and I wish the team continued success.”

A veteran leader with more than a decade of experience at the highest levels of the sport, Schoonmaker arrived at Houston for her second head coach position after four years at GW and assistant coach stints at Harvard, UConn, Houston, Texas Tech and her alma mater South Carolina.

Schoonmaker spent the 2020-21 academic year on staff at Harvard, during which she helped lead the Crimson's virtual programming amid the COVID-19 pandemic with an emphasis on team building and leadership development through core value study. The Sebastian, Fla., native also contributed to the SEC Network's softball coverage as a game analyst this spring for the second consecutive season.

Before heading to the Ivy League, Schoonmaker spent a year as assistant director of development at South Carolina where she was part of major-gift fundraising efforts for the athletics department, including creating an initiative – The Women of South Carolina – which has raised more than $1 million to date to provide resources for female student-athletes at her alma mater.

Schoonmaker’s latest tenure at USC followed five seasons as lead assistant at UConn. Her wide-ranging responsibilities included practice planning, scouting and recruiting for the Huskies, who recorded 95 wins from 2015-19 competing in the American Athletic Conference. In her final campaign, the program produced five All-AAC performers, including a pair of First-Team picks, as well as 14 AAC All-Academic Team honorees.

In 2014, Schoonmaker was on staff for Houston’s run to the NCAA Regionals. The Cougars totaled 33 victories and earned an at-large berth in the Waco Regional. She served as infield coach for a group that set a single-season program record for double plays turned and helped increase the team fielding percentage by 12 points from the previous spring.

Schoonmaker began her collegiate coaching career with three seasons working at the Power Five level. She served as assistant coach and recruiting coordinator at Texas Tech during the 2013 season, helping the Red Raiders record 30 victories after two years as a volunteer assistant at her alma mater.

Following the end of her playing career, Schoonmaker also spent two seasons in the high school coaching ranks at Dreher High School in Columbia, S.C., rising to become co-head coach during the spring of 2010.

At South Carolina, Schoonmaker was a four-year captain, member of two NCAA squads and versatile contributor who logged time at nearly every position on the diamond over her five seasons with the Gamecocks.

She was named to the SEC All-Defensive Team as a graduate student in 2008 and received the Athletic Department’s Gamecock Inspiration Award that year in recognition of her determined comeback after sustaining a broken neck in a car accident that kept her out of the 2007 season.

A five-time SEC All-Academic Honor Roll selection, Schoonmaker earned her undergraduate degree from South Carolina majoring in psychology in 2007 before earning a master’s in mass communication and journalism in 2009.

At Florida’s Sebastian River High School, she was a two-time All-State softball performer, also lettering in basketball, soccer, volleyball and track.

SUPPORT YOUR COOGS
Fans can make a direct impact on the success of Houston Softball by supporting LinkingCoogs – UH’s very own NIL collective – and by joining the Diamond Club which provides financial support directly to Houston Softball for needs beyond its operating budget.

STAY CONNECTED
Fans can receive updates by following @UHCougarSB on X, formerly known as Twitter, and catch up with the latest news and notes on the team by clicking LIKE on the team’s Facebook page at Houston Softball. Fans also can follow the team on Instagram at @UHCougarSB.

- UHCougars.com -