SCHUMANN ADDS TWO TO ISLANDER SOFTBALL STAFF

Second-year Texas A&M-Corpus Christi softball head coach Jake Schumann has added a pair of coaches for the upcoming season with the additions of assistant coaches Teresa Flores and Rachel Townsend.

Flores, who prepped in Corpus Christi at Miller High School, was an All-American shortstop at Texas Women's University and now will work with the infielders and hitters. She will also assist with recruiting.

A standout shortstop, Flores was the Lonestar Conference Player of the Year in 2004 and was named to the All-South Central Region. Flores was named Academic All-District VI First Team two years in a row and holds or shares 30 TWU team records and four Lone Star Conference records.

After graduating from TWU with a bachelor's degree in kinesiology and minors in both adaptive physical education and special education, Flores earned her masters degree in special education from the University of Texas where she served as a manager with the Longhorn softball program during the 2007-08 year. Flores also was a student volunteer coach at TWU in 2004-05 and a volunteer coach at the University of Incarnate Word in 2007.

Townsend, will work with the Islander outfielders and is in charge of field maintenance, joins the program as a graduate assistant after spending the 2007-08 season as the head softball coach of Desert Pines High School in Nevada. Like, Flores, Townsend played at TWU for legendary softball coach Diane Baker. She was an honorable mention all-conference selection at third base as a senior.

"Both are proven winners, which I think you need to surround yourself with when you are trying to rebuild a program," said Schumann "It starts with getting players and coaches that buy into what we are trying to do. Both Rachel and Teresa fit the bill.

"Both are young, knowledgeable, and enthusiastic about coaching. There are two types of people in the world – energy givers and energy takers. Rachel and Teresa are both energy givers and I can't wait to see the effects it has on our team this season."