Updated 7/9/09

University of Delaware softball head coach B.J. Ferguson has announced that Jessica Vonch has joined her staff as an assistant coach.

Vonch will serve as Delaware's pitching coach and will also assist in the Blue Hens' recruiting process.

Vonch, a native of Denver, Colo., comes to Delaware after spending one season as the pitching coach at the Colorado School of Mines. Last season Vonch managed a staff that led the Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference with a 3.45 earned run average and 319 strikeouts, while three pitchers earned all-conference honors.

Vonch also served as head coach at Denver East High School from August through October, 2008, leading the team to a second place finish in the Denver Prep League. Additionally Vonch was a private pitching instructor at the Colorado Softball and Baseball Academy during the last year, where she gave private pitching lessons to girls of all ages and experience levels.

Vonch served as a private pitching instructor and camp coordinator at The K Zone from 2006 through 2008, as she coordinated, planned and executed pitching clinics for groups of young girls.

Vonch was a two-year letterwinner on the University of South Carolina softball team before a shoulder injury sidelined her career. She went 4-3 with a 1.57 earned run average and two shutouts during her freshman season in 2005, and was 3-4 with a 1.77 ERA and two shutouts in 2006. A Dean’s List and President’s List student, Vonch was a four-year member of the Southeastern Conference Student-Athlete Honor Roll. She graduated from South Carolina in May, 2008 with a degree in sport and entertainment management.

“I look forward to having Jessica on board as part of our program,” said Ferguson, who will begin her 30th year leading the Blue Hens in 2010. “She has experience on the mound and in all levels of teaching and coaching both pitchers and catchers. She has dealt with all ages of players from eight-year-olds through college players, and understands the finer points of the game. She will be an asset both on the field and in the dugout for our program.”