Fresno State Athletics
5/13/2002 12:00:00 AM | Softball
Brian Kolze
Cal State Northridge, '84
Career Record: 313-245-1
Pacific Record: 170-140-1
Brian Kolze enters his 10th season as head coach of the Pacific softball program as the winningest coach in program history. Last season, he established a program record
for single season wins when the Tigers posted a 50-13 record.
Kolze was named Big West coach of the Year in 2001 for the Tigers outstanding performance. It was his second recognition as conference coach of the year, the first recognition came in 1998. Kolze and assistant coach Heather Tarr were named 2001 Pacific Region Coaching Staff of the Year.
In 2000, Kolze established a program record for career coaching victories (207) as the Tigers posted an 11-0 shutout victory at Utah State on April 2. He enters the 2002 season with a career record of 271-230-1. Kolze has a Big West Conference record of 128-125-1.
Kolze came to Pacific in 1992 to build the top 25 program he envisioned. He accomplished the feat in just his second year as he led Pacific to a .500 finish in 1994, the first since 1990, with a 30-30 overall record and a 14-18 conference mark. The Tigers were among the top 25 for most of the 1994 season, and again broke into the top 25 in 1996, ranking as high as 20th in the NFCA/USA Today Coaches Poll.
In 1999, Pacific earned its second consecutive NCAA Regional berth with a 38-22 overall mark and a 16-8 record in Big West Conference action. The 38 victories accounted for the highest win total in Kolze's tenure. Pacific's season was highlighted by a 2-1 victory at #2 Fresno State on Apr. 20, the same site where the Tigers would compete in NCAA Regional action.
Pacific made its first NCAA Regional appearance in 1998 since the 1985 season, as Kolze guided the Tigers to their best-ever Big West conference record (19-10). For his efforts, Kolze was named the 1998 Big West Conference Coach of the Year. The Tigers fell just two victories shy of reaching the College World Series for the first time since 1983.
Kolze was an assistant coach at UNLV from 1988-91, where he served as the team's recruiting coordinator and academic consultant. During his stay at Las Vegas, he helped land All-Americans Tricia Reimche and Chris Parris, who led the Rebels to two consecutive College World Series appearances in 1990 and 1991. After his successful stint at UNLV, he went to Sacramento State, where he was an assistant for one season before taking over the helm of the Pacific program.
During the summer of 2000, Kolze served as envoy for Major League Baseball International in Norway and Denmark. There he worked with the national and club teams for both baseball and softball. Kolze was the head coach for the Norwegian national baseball team and led the team to a gold medal in the Nordic Championships.
He also served as a coach and technical advisor in British Columbia for the White Rock Renegades. The Renegades are the country's most successful softball organization. As an assistant coach, the Renegades finished second at the Canadian National Championships in 1991.
Kolze is a nationally known clinician, having sat on the legislative committee for the National Fastpitch Coaches Association from 1993-95. He served as the chair of the NFCA All-America Committee from 1996-99 and was and a member of the NCAA Softball Rules Committee from 1996-99.
A 1984 graduate of Cal State Northridge with a journalism degree and a minor in political science, Kolze is regarded as one of the finest recruiters in the country. He has recruited All-Americans at UNLV, Sacramento State, and Pacific.
Kolze prepped at nearby Tokay High School in Lodi, Calif. Also a Tiger at Tokay, he played baseball and soccer prior to attending San Joaquin Delta College and Cal State Northridge, where he played baseball. He was a player/coach for Stockton's Robertson Homes Class "B" men's fastpitch softball team which finished third at the 1989 national tournament.
