Tuesday, August 5, 2003
MEDFORD -- Softball wasn't the main reason Cheryl Milligan decided to enroll at Tufts University in 1991. She was a shortstop out of North Penn, Pennsylvania recruited by Division I programs, but it was the academic opportunity that led her to Medford. Softball would soon become the most important part of her experience at Tufts, though. She and three teammates from the Class of 1995 led the young program to regional respect over their four years.
Since then, the Tufts softball program has blossomed into one of New England's best. The Jumbos earned seven straight NCAA Tournament berths from 1997-2003 under the direction of Head Coach Kris Herman. Milligan was a part of six of those teams as an assistant coach, including the 2000 squad that won the NCAA New England championship and played in the College World Series.
Unexpectedly, the next chapter of Milligan's involvement with the Tufts softball program has now begun. Herman left Tufts after 16 seasons to become the head coach at Williams College effective on August 1. Milligan has been promoted to Head Coach of the Jumbos on an interim basis.
"Our main priority was to maintain the continuity of one of our most successful programs," said Director of Athletic Bill Gehling. "Cheryl is highly respected by both present and former players and by the softball community. I fully expect her to put her own stamp on the strong tradition of Tufts Softball."
Herman built the softball team into a perennial conference champion and NCAA Tournament qualifier. She was a member of the first varsity Tufts Softball team in 1985 and graduated from the University in 1986. After spending one season as an assistant coach on the team, she was promoted to head coach in August 1987. Under her guidance the Jumbos made the first of seven consecutive NCAA Tournament appearances in 1997. Herman's record at Tufts was 339-154-3 for a .684 winning percentage.
"In a lot of ways, Kris combines many of the things that I feel are most important in a successful college coach," Gehling said. "She's dedicated, a hard worker, and very competitive. Perhaps most importantly, she has a deep caring for the kids who play for her. She'll obviously be missed."
Milligan, 30, played shortstop for Herman in every inning of the 120 games during her Tufts softball career. Her .377 career batting average is fourth all-time at Tufts, and she is second on the team's career runs scored list with 119. Along with Jodi Beach, Beth Arruda and Jen Dellagalla, Milligan was a member of the class that vaulted the softball program into annual post-season contention. Along the way they formed a lifelong bond with each other and to the program. The 1995 team hosted and won the ECAC North Championship and finished with 31 wins, the most in the history of the program. However, it was the team's exclusion from the NCAA Tournament that season that Milligan said was a major turning point for the program.
"We seniors were upset about that," she said. "We were good enough to go and didn't go. It lit a fire for the rest of the team, and they built on that."
After living in California for a few years after graduation, Milligan returned to Massachusetts in 1997. During a casual visit to the office, Herman mentioned that a position as her graduate assistant coach was open after the previous GA left abruptly. For two seasons, Milligan handled grunt work for the team such as bed checks on the road and the laundry. In 2000 she took on a greater coaching role, serving as the team's hitting and outfielders instructor. She worked with All-Americans like C/OF Randee McArdle and C Lis Drake. Once Herman left, she was in the right place at the right time, but also the perfect person for the job.
"The kids are very positive about it," Milligan said. "It's important that they walk in and don't see a stranger. There will be some changes, but there's no need to reinvent the wheel here."
The seventh Tufts graduate to become a head coach at her alma mater, Milligan is the fourth head coach of the Tufts softball program. She follows Herman (1988-2003), Dave Caputi (1986-87) and Lori Ford (1985). Born in Lansdale, Pennsylvania, Milligan attended North Penn High School in Lansdale. She will also serve as the director of the intramural program at Tufts.
"It's a really hard set of shoes to fill because Tufts softball has never existed without Kris," she said. "She was very personally involved in it. For many of our alumni, when they think of Tufts, they think about softball. I'm one of them. It will be a challenge to keep up the history of the program, which has been short but somewhat decorated."
Tufts
won its third straight NESCAC championship last spring and finished 26-13
overall.
Milligan earned a graduate degree in education from Tufts in 1999, in addition to her undergraduate degree in biology and environmental science. She is currently in the midst of coursework towards a Ph.D at the Tufts School of Nutrition, but isn't sure about her plans towards that pursuit now that she has a new job.
"Softball became more a part of my life at Tufts than it was for anyone I ever met," Milligan said while sitting in her office. "My best friend then and still now was my double-play partner (Dellagalla). I never dreamed I'd be sitting in this seat. It wasn't my goal, but I'm glad it turned out the way that it did."
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