Lani Shaffer Ries enters her seventh season as the head softball coach at Wingate University in 2019. Shaffer Ries guided the Bulldogs to a pair of NCAA Tournament appearances in her first two years. She is 178-129-1 in her Wingate career, with a 72-50 record in the SAC.
The Bulldogs went 23-26 in 2018, with an 11-9 SAC record. Wingate won nine of its last 10 games to close out the regular season, finishing in a tie for third in the league standings.
Aubrey Reep earned All-SAC honors as a DP, while earning All-Region accolades as a Utility/Pitcher.
The Bulldogs went 25-25 in 2017, Shafer Ries's fifth season at the helm. Wingate was led by All-SAC honorees
Naomi Sapp and
Taylor Wells. Sapp also earned All-Region honors in her sophomore season, while being named the SAC Scholar-Athlete of the Year Award winner for softball.
Shaffer Ries led the Bulldogs to a 32-16 record in 2016, posting a 15-7 record in league play. Senior
Mellena Helms was named the SAC Player of the Year, while picking up honorable mention All-American accolades. She was joined on All-SAC and All-Region teams by
Stacey Houser,
Taylor Laskey,
Jordan Wilson,
Misty Doran and
Naomi Sapp.
The Bulldogs went 27-20 in 2015, going 13-9 in the conference. Wingate had six all-conference selections, highlighted by SAC Player of the Year
Alexis Burrell. Helms joined Burrell on the first team, while Laskey, Houser,
Morgan Hendrix and
Emily Usiak earned second team honors.
Shaffer Ries guided the Bulldogs to a 38-win season in 2014, leading Wingate to a third-place finish in the conference. The Bulldogs earned an at-large bid to the NCAA Tournament after reaching championship Sunday in the SAC Tournament. Wingate picked up a pair of wins in the tournament, both coming against No. 24 Lenoir-Rhyne. Senior designated player
Kayla Saliga, along with
Houser and sophomore catcher Laskey earned first team All-SAC honors for the Bulldogs in 2014, while Helms was a second team all-conference selection. Saliga earned first team Academic All-America honors, while Saliga, Houser and Laskey all earned multiple All-Region accolades.
In her first season at Wingate, the Bulldogs went 33-22-1 overall, with a 9-9 mark in conference play. The Bulldogs finished the regular season by winning six straight games, and 12 of their last 14. Wingate won three SAC Tournament games, with the two losses coming by a combined three runs against eventual tournament champion Lenoir-Rhyne.
The Bulldogs earned an at-large bid to the NCAA Tournament in 2013, the firs trip for Wingate since the 2009 season. Wingate picked up a win against Mount Olive in the regionals, while losing a pair of one-run games to fourth-ranked Armstrong Atlantic. The final loss of the season came to the Pirates in nine innings. Freshman pitcher Stacey Houser led the SAC in innings pitched and complete games in 2013, ranking second in wins and ERA to earn All-SAC honors. Senior outfielder Kelsey Maffucci earned first team all-conference honors, while juniors Kayla Saliga and Hayley Whitley earned second team All-SAC accolades.
Lani Shaffer Ries was introduced as Wingate's new head softball coach during a press conference on Thursday, Aug. 2, 2012. Most recently, Shaffer Ries served as the assistant softball coach at Bowling Green State University. In her five years as the assistant coach, Shaffer Ries coached the outfield, hitting and base running, while also serving as the first and third base coach. She was responsible for daily travel, practices, recruiting and scouting reports, while also monitoring the academic progress of the student-athletes. Bowling Green State softball ranked in the top five in the country academically in 2010 and 2011.
Shaffer Ries was also a key part of fund-raising over $30,000 for the BGSU program through camps. During her time at Bowling Green State, Shaffer Ries helped the team have the biggest turnaround in the country in 2012, winning 24 more games than the previous year. The team finished second in winning percentage in the Mid-American Conference in 2008, while the 35 homers hit the same year were good for second in school history.
In her five years at Bowling Green State, Shaffer Ries coached seven first team All-Mid-American Conference selections and three second team honorees. She also had four players earn All-MAC Tournament honors. Shaffer Ries coached two All-Region selections; she mentored the 2010 MAC Freshman of the Year. She was also responsible for six players earning Academic All-MAC honors, with two student-athletes earning Academic All-America® accolades.
Prior to her time at Bowling Green State, Shaffer Ries spent two years coaching at Gardner-Webb University. She was in charge of outfield and hitting, while her duties included preparing and conducting practice, recruiting, preparing scouting reports, assisting in fundraising, ordering equipment, maintaining the softball field as well as supervising camps and clinics. She guided the Runnin’ Bulldogs to the ninth-best turnaround in NCAA history in 2007, going from 12 wins in 2006 to 35 in 2007.
The 2007 squad set school records in hits, batting average, runs, homers, extra-base hits, total bases, RBI, walks and stolen bases. The 35 wins rank second in school history, while Gardner-Webb made it to the Atlantic Sun Conference championship game for the first time in school history. Shaffer Ries coached three all-conference selections and three all-freshman honorees. She coached a player who ranked 10th nationally in RBI per game, while also coaching the nation’s 15th-ranked player in triples.
Shaffer Ries played her college softball at Gardner-Webb. She was twice named the team’s co-Offensive MVP, while also being named the team’s defensive MVP her junior year. Shaffer stole 55 consecutive bases in her career, which ranks fifth in NCAA Division I history. She is the school’s all-time leader in runs, consecutive steals and walks. She ranks second in triples, stolen bases, games played and games started, while ranking third in hits and RBI.
Shaffer Ries graduated from Gardner-Webb in 2004 with a Bachelor of Science degree in Psychology with a minor in Coaching. In 2007, she earned her Master’s degree from Gardner-Webb in Sport Science and Pedagogy. Shaffer Ries is a member of the National Physique Committee (NPC). She has placed in the top five in five NPC competitions since 2005, including two second-place finishes in 2011. She also played professional softball for the Michigan Ice in 2006-07.
Lani Shaffer Ries Year-by-Year Record
| Year |
Overall Record |
SAC Record |
| 2013 |
33-22-1 |
9-9 |
| 2014 |
38-20 |
14-6 |
| 2015 |
27-20 |
13-9 |
| 2016 |
32-16 |
15-7 |
| 2017 |
25-25 |
10-10 |
| 2018 |
23-26 |
11-9 |
| All-Time |
Overall |
SAC |
| 6 years |
178-129-1 |
72-50 |
