SIU’s Blaylock named to NFCA board of directors

Louisville, Ky. – The National Fastpitch Coaches Association named Saluki coach Kerri Blaylock to its board of directors today as its Division I Representative.

Blaylock joins a board of directors made up of her fellow coaches from programs including Tennessee, Notre Dame, Auburn, Nebraska and Purdue. Blaylock will act as a representative for matters regarding her coaching peers at the Division I level and work on the Head Coaches Committee which provides representation to all Division I Conferences in the discussion of legislation and playing rules.
 
The NFCA was founded in 1983 to advance the sport by creating awards programs, hosting a national coaching convention and providing a forum for coaches discuss issues effecting their game.
 
Blaylock, who is entering her 19th season, has won 628 games as the head coach of the Saluki Softball program. She has the best winning percentage of all 500-win coaches in Missouri Valley Conference history, and she is the only coach in conference history to lead a program to five-consecutive NCAA Tournaments.
 
Including her nine seasons as an assistant under her mentor, Saluki Hall-of-Famer Kay Brechtelsbauer, and her 18 years as the team’s skipper, Blaylock has helped Saluki softball maintain its position as one of the elite programs in the MVC while elevating the program to national prominence. 
 
As a head coach, Blaylock has led SIU to five MVC titles with seven NCAA Tournament appearances while producing 87 All-Conference selections. She holds a .677 winning percentage in MVC games (292-139) and has been a member of five MVC Coaching Staffs of the Year. She is the fastest coach in MVC history to reach 500 wins overall and 250 MVC wins. On February 18, 2017, Blaylock won her 600th game as a head coach in a 4-2 win over Michigan State.