D1 or Bust with guest Sara Curran-Headley

Behind The Dish Softball

Guest Sara Curran-Headley joins the podcast to talk about the myth of "HAVING" to go D1 or esle you're a bust. it's not true. Let's talk about it.

Guest BIO:
Sara is headed into her ninth season as the head coach of the SUNY Oneonta softball program in the 2021-2022 school year. In 2021, the Red Dragons finish 2nd on the East side of the SUNYAC Conference. Kristen Collins and Caroline Koch were named to the All-SUNYAC team.
In Curran-Headley’s six years with the program the team has produced 28 All-SUNYAC recipients, two SUNYAC Players of the Year, three SUNYAC Rookies of the Year and eight NFCA All-Region players.
In Curran-Headley’s first season in 2014, she directed the greatest one season turnaround in program history and the fourth best single season improvement in the history of NCAA Division III softball with a 22-win improvement from the previous season. The Red Dragons finished 30-11 after completing an 8-28 season in 2013. Oneonta won the SUNYAC regular season title and capped it off with an 8-0 win against Cortland in the SUNYAC Conference Tournament Championship. The Red Dragons earned the automatic berth to the NCAA tournament for the fourth time in program history, its first since the 2004 season.
Curran-Headley arrived in Oneonta after spending the previous 10 years as the head coach at Division II Mercyhurst University in Erie, Pa. During her tenure, she recorded eight, 20-win, seasons while becoming the winningest coach in the program’s history. While at Mercyhurst, she coached 31 All-Conference, eight NFCA All-Region, six Daktronics All-Region and two Daktronics All-Americans. She also had a pair of Academic All-Americans with her team consistently holding a team GPA of 3.3 or better. Her 2010 squad finished second on the NFCA Top Ten Academic list with a 3.619 GPA.
Prior to Mercyhurst, Curran-Headley served as the first assistant at Division I Florida International University. The Florida International team made its first-ever NCAA Regional appearance in 2003. Curran-Headley spent two years as a graduate assistant softball coach at the University of Augusta in Augusta, Georgia. She earned her Master of Business Administration degree there in May 2001.
Curran-Headley played her college ball as a catcher at Robert Morris University. She was named All-Northeast Region in 1997, selected to the All-Northeast Conference squads in 1997 and 1998, and was chosen NEC Academic Player of the Year in 1998. She was named ECAC Female Athlete of the Year and Woman of the Year for Robert Morris in 1999. She graduated cum laude from Robert Morris in 1999 with a degree in Business Administration/Sport Management.