Photo by: Ross Turteltaub
Softball’s Lisa Fernandez Named AUSL General Manager
November 25, 2024 | Softball
The Mark Kalmansohn UCLA Associate Head Softball Coach Lisa Fernandez was announced as a general manager for next summer's inaugural season of the Athletes Unlimited Softball League (AUSL), following the conclusion of the Bruins' 2025 season.
Fernandez was part of a four-team announcement by the AUSL, featuring four general managers and four head coaches in the first year of the league. Fernandez is paired with head coach Howard Dobson, a former longtime assistant coach at LSU.
Fernandez enters her 27th season on the Bruins' coaching staff in 2025. In her 26 seasons at her alma mater, the Bruins have posted a 1,212-259-2 record (.822 winning percentage) and have claimed five NCAA championships (1999, 2003, 2004, 2010, and 2019).
Fernandez is widely recognized as one of the greatest softball players in the sport's history. A three-time Olympic gold medal winner for Team USA (1996, 2000, and 2004), Fernandez posted a 0.33 ERA in the 1996 Olympics and earned the save in the United States' gold medal victory over China during the sport's inaugural appearance in the Olympics. Fernandez was a two-time national champion and four-time First Team All-American while starring for the Bruins from 1990-93
Stacey Nuveman Deniz, one of the greatest hitters in UCLA softball history and current leader of the San Diego State program, was also announced as one of four AUSL head coaches.
"This unprecedented collection of general managers and head coaches, with their decades of elite softball experience, unique perspectives, and intense drive, sets the stage for AUSL to meet the moment to deliver an action-packed, world-class softball league that this sport has deserved for so long," said Kim Ng, Senior Advisor to the AUSL charged with designing and launching the league.
Other general managers include softball icons Jenny Dalton-Hill, Cat Osterman and Dana Sorenson. Joining Dobson and Nuveman Deniz as AUSL head coaches are Kelly Kretschman and Alisa Goler.
UCLA legend Natasha Watley, a 2003 NCAA Champion and 2004 Olympic Gold Medalist, also serves as an advisor to the AUSL.
Players will be assigned to teams in the AUSL Allocation Draft, set for early 2025. Later in the spring, teams will fill out their 15-player rosters with a college draft prior to the beginning of the season in June.
In its first season, the AUSL will have four teams, each playing 30 games for a total of 60 across four weeks. The league will travel, with games taking place in six to eight different cities. Following the season, the AUSL is bringing back the AUSL All-Star Cup (formerly known as the AU Pro Softball Championship Season). ESPN is the founding broadcast partner of the AUSL and will televise at least 30 games on its networks next summer.
In 2026, the league will shift to a city-based league.
Fernandez was part of a four-team announcement by the AUSL, featuring four general managers and four head coaches in the first year of the league. Fernandez is paired with head coach Howard Dobson, a former longtime assistant coach at LSU.
Fernandez enters her 27th season on the Bruins' coaching staff in 2025. In her 26 seasons at her alma mater, the Bruins have posted a 1,212-259-2 record (.822 winning percentage) and have claimed five NCAA championships (1999, 2003, 2004, 2010, and 2019).
Fernandez is widely recognized as one of the greatest softball players in the sport's history. A three-time Olympic gold medal winner for Team USA (1996, 2000, and 2004), Fernandez posted a 0.33 ERA in the 1996 Olympics and earned the save in the United States' gold medal victory over China during the sport's inaugural appearance in the Olympics. Fernandez was a two-time national champion and four-time First Team All-American while starring for the Bruins from 1990-93
Stacey Nuveman Deniz, one of the greatest hitters in UCLA softball history and current leader of the San Diego State program, was also announced as one of four AUSL head coaches.
"This unprecedented collection of general managers and head coaches, with their decades of elite softball experience, unique perspectives, and intense drive, sets the stage for AUSL to meet the moment to deliver an action-packed, world-class softball league that this sport has deserved for so long," said Kim Ng, Senior Advisor to the AUSL charged with designing and launching the league.
Other general managers include softball icons Jenny Dalton-Hill, Cat Osterman and Dana Sorenson. Joining Dobson and Nuveman Deniz as AUSL head coaches are Kelly Kretschman and Alisa Goler.
UCLA legend Natasha Watley, a 2003 NCAA Champion and 2004 Olympic Gold Medalist, also serves as an advisor to the AUSL.
Players will be assigned to teams in the AUSL Allocation Draft, set for early 2025. Later in the spring, teams will fill out their 15-player rosters with a college draft prior to the beginning of the season in June.
In its first season, the AUSL will have four teams, each playing 30 games for a total of 60 across four weeks. The league will travel, with games taking place in six to eight different cities. Following the season, the AUSL is bringing back the AUSL All-Star Cup (formerly known as the AU Pro Softball Championship Season). ESPN is the founding broadcast partner of the AUSL and will televise at least 30 games on its networks next summer.
In 2026, the league will shift to a city-based league.
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