DePaul coach Tracie Adix-Zins picks up right where she left off
CHICAGO (BVM) — Beginning at a program as a player and then reuniting as head coach is nothing short of emotional.
鈥淭here was a lot of, 鈥楾his is legitimate, this is happening,鈥欌�� DePaul head softball coach Tracie Adix-Zins said. 鈥淲e鈥檙e gonna go, we鈥檙e gonna do it, and we鈥檙e gonna try to do it to the best of our ability.鈥�
Coach Adix-Zins started her collegiate career at DePaul University and finished her career with two Women鈥檚 College World Series appearances. Following her senior year, she played a short professional career before going to South Dakota State for a graduate assistant position. She then ventured to three Division I schools as an assistant before returning to DePaul as the head softball coach.
Adix-Zins started her softball career at a young age and continued into collegiate softball at DePaul. She was an All-American pitcher her senior year, recording an ERA of 0.89.
鈥淚 was never one to really care about stats,鈥� Adix-Zins said. 鈥淏ut I won鈥檛 lie, I remember sitting in our hotel lobby at the World Series waiting for them to announce the All-Americans because at that point I was actually invested in it. I had thought about how hard I worked over the last four years and I was like 鈥榯his would be kind of awesome.鈥欌��
She also helped the Blue Demons advance to the 2007 Women鈥檚 College World Series where they beat Arizona State but ended up losing to the national champion Arizona Wildcats in the second round. This was Adix-Zins鈥� second World Series appearance after losing to Alabama and the national champion Michigan Wolverines in 2005.
Following her senior year, she played a short professional career in the Czech Republic before returning to the United States for a graduate position at South Dakota State University.
鈥淚 knew I liked softball and I knew that I did have knowledge of the game so I was like, 鈥榃hy not get into coaching?鈥欌�� she said.
After three years at South Dakota State, she first became an assistant coach at Wisconsin University under one of her former coaches in Yvette Healy.
鈥淭he reason I left was to grow more as a coach and be more outside my comfort zone,鈥� Adix-Zins said.
She then ventured to Oklahoma State where she got her first opportunity as the pitching coach. This tenure only lasted a year before Adix-Zins accepted another assistant role at North Carolina State. There she spent roughly four years before getting the chance to interview for DePaul鈥檚 head coaching position.
鈥淚t was unique,鈥� Adix-Zins said. 鈥淚t really did feel like coming home.鈥�
After getting the news that she had been hired as the head softball coach, she reacted like most people would.
鈥淚 cried,鈥� she said. 鈥淚t was a big deal.鈥�
Adix-Zins also admits she had fears immediately after the hiring.
鈥淔or me it was a fear; I don鈥檛 want my program to suck,鈥� Adix-Zins said. 鈥淚 treat it like I was as a player. I don鈥檛 want to come in and run it into the ground.鈥�
She has conquered these fears and has continued to lead the program in the right direction. In her first year, she led the Blue Demons to a Big East championship and made an appearance in the NCAA Tournament. This year, her squad finished with a 25-11 record and finished first in the conference standings. They were unable to win the Big East championship, and ended the season against Villanova.
However, her ability to maintain the excellence previously set by DePaul players and coaches is remarkable.
鈥淲e鈥檙e trying to keep it to where we鈥檙e in that championship game every year vying for that Big East championship,鈥� Adix-Zins said.
What鈥檚 even more impressive is her ability to balance coaching and being a mother of two.
鈥淚 want people to see that you can be a mom,鈥� Adix-Zins said. 鈥淚 want people to understand that we can still be very successful and run a high rate program, but also be moms.鈥�
As a head coach, Adix-Zins wants to win and she has successfully done so in her first two years. Yet even if they do not manage to win, she still embraces that family mentality throughout her program.
鈥淭hat is my biggest thing that I try at DePaul,鈥� Adix-Zins said. 鈥淚 want to bring in that family aspect.鈥�
