Kirin Kumar (pictured) has been selected as Ohio State’s new softball coach. Credit: Courtesy of Ohio State Athletics
The Buckeyes officially have a new softball coach.
Ohio State hired Kirin Kumar as the program’s next head softball coach just 21 days after parting ways with former head coach Kelly Kovach Schoenly, the athletic department announced Tuesday.
“It’s an honor to be chosen to lead the Ohio State softball program,” Kumar said in a Tuesday email statement. “My immediate sense during the interview process was that Ohio State is a place that truly combines elite athletics with world-class people. I can’t wait to get started and build on the great tradition of excellence at Ohio State.”
Prior to signing on with Ohio State, Kumar spent four years as head coach at Miami University in Oxford, Ohio. Across those four seasons, Kumar held 174-56-1 and was twice awarded Mid-American Conference (MAC) Coach of the Year honors. Kumar also led the RedHawks to four straight MAC regular season titles, paired with NCAA Tournament appearances in each of those seasons.
“We’re excited to welcome Kirin to the Buckeye family,” said Mike Penner, the executive associate athletics director, in the same Tuesday email statement. “What she did in a relatively short amount of time at Miami was remarkable. As we got to know her during this process, her passion for the game and for the student-athlete experience shined through. The future is bright under her leadership.”
This past season, Kumar led Miami to a program-record 49 wins. This meant the softball squad was ranked in the national polls for the first time in its history.
Before Miami, Kumar was an assistant coach at six different universities between 2006-20. In her collegiate days, Kumar — a Santa Ana, California native — played college softball at Georgia Tech and was a four-year letterwinner for the Yellow Jackets.
