Wingate, N.C.----Wingate University head coach Jamie Stanclift has announced the addition of Makayla Bowman as the softball assistant coach. Bowman joins the Bulldog staff after a standout career for 2022 NCAA Division II national champion Rogers State.

Bowman spent her first two collegiate seasons playing at Northeastern Oklahoma A&M, earning NJCAA All-Tournament team accolades in 2018 and 2019. She spent her final two seasons at Rogers State, earning All-MIAA and NFCA All-Region accolades for the national champion Hillcats.

Bowman started all 68 games during the 2022 national championship season, hitting .317 with 11 homers, 12 doubles, 40 RBI and 35 runs scored. The Hillcats were dominant all season, going 58-10 overall and 20-6 in the MIAA. Rogers State swept through the conference tournament to claim the MIAA tourney title, while going 4-1 in regionals to advance to super regionals, where the Hillcats outscored Central Oklahoma 15-2 in the two victories to punch a ticket to the World Series. Rogers State continued its dominance in the World Series, winning all five games to claim the national title, with Bowman collecting hits in four of the five World Series games with an RBI in each of the final two contests.

Bowman wrapped up her collegiate career by hitting .354 with 283 hits including 47 homers, driving in 216 runs during her four-year career.

Bowman earned her undergraduate degree and master's degree at Rogers State, earning her MBA in 2022. She has spent seven years as a private instructor and summer ball coach. Last year, Bowman was an assistant coach at Crandall ISD in Dallas, Texas.

Bowman joins a Wingate softball program that is in the midst of the greatest two-year stretch in program history. The Bulldogs have piled up 97 wins over the last two seasons, with the 48 victories in 2024 setting a program record, one more than the 47 wins in 2023. The 'Dogs have won back-to-back regular season SAC titles, going 40-8 in league play. The Bulldogs have earned hosting duties at the NCAA Southeast Regionals each of the last two years. Wingate was ranked in the NFCA top 25 throughout the 2024 season, climbing as high as #7 while compiling a 22-game winning streak.

WINGATE UNIVERSITY
 
Wingate University is a lab of difference-making that serves more than 3,400 students in North Carolina and offers 60 degree pathways, including 37 undergraduate majors, 10 pre-professional tracks and five dual-degree programs. Graduate students choose from seven master's and five doctoral programs. The University is home to the Cannon College of Arts and Sciences, the Levine College of Health Sciences, the Byrum School of Business, the Thayer School of Education and the School of Sport Sciences.
 
Founded in 1896, Wingate University is a leader in healthcare education where nearly one in five undergraduate students is preparing to be a pharmacist, physician assistant, physical therapist, occupational therapist or nurse. Student-athletes on Wingate's 26 teams compete in NCAA Division II and have brought home the SAC Echols Athletic Excellence Award the past 16 times it has been awarded. The University's motto is "Faith, Knowledge, Service." View current news and videos at www.wingate.edu.