Western Michigan University Athletics

Kathy Leitke enters her 22nd season in Kalamazoo and 31st overall as a head coach for the 2022 campaign. She has more than 700 career wins and is the longest tenured and winningest coach in Western Michigan softball history.

While leading the WMU dugout, Leitke has amassed 456 overall victories and 238 in the Mid-American Conference, both program highs. Her tenure has been highlighted by 2003 and 2011 MAC tournament crowns, leading to NCAA regional appearances.
 
The Broncos began the 2021 campaign with a 9-3 win at DePaul on Feb. 12, and registered wins over Morehead State and Mississippi Valley state in early season tournament play. WMU came away with 11 MAC victories, including a 6-3 win in the season finale at Kent State. Leitke oversaw 11 Academic All-MAC selections.
 
Outfielder Mackenzie Swinehart earned All-MAC First Team honors, after pacing the Broncos with a .393 batting average (fifth in the MAC) and 66 hits (second in the MAC). She started all 52 games, and finished with nine double and nine home runs.
 
Sydney Stefanick started 46 games in 2021, and was an All-MAC Second Team selection. She batted .326 with four home runs, and led the team in RBI (26), walks (19) and steals (four). Stefanick was also second on the team with five wins in the circle, five complete games, and 86.2 innings pitched. She was also named a MAC Distinguished Scholar Athlete.

The 2020 season was cut short due to the coronavirus pandemic as the Broncos played just 21 games, none against MAC competition. Still, WMU picked up another top-25 victory with a 9-7 win at No. 22 Arizona State on February 8. The Broncos also captured victories in two of their final three games in Clearwater, Fla., during the Clearwater Spring Break Invitational.

Leitke guided Stefanick to a .364 batting average and team-high 24 hits during the shortened campaign. Stefanick was also the Broncos’ top option in the circle, recording three wins, four complete games and 48 strikeouts while yielding 22 walks. She picked up the win versus the Sun Devils by throwing all seven innings, striking out five and scattering eight hits.

The WMU offense also got a boost in 2020 from seniors Cari Padula and Kaylen Glenfield, who combined to drive in 25 runs and score 17. Padula exploded with 15 runs batted in during 20 games played after totaling three RBI during her first three years with the program.

In 2019, the Brown & Gold scored 184 runs on 353 hits, 57 doubles, and 28 home runs to end their season 18-28, 9-11 in the MAC. After a tough string of nonconference opponents, WMU began the league campaign with three consecutive wins and claimed series victories against rival Central Michigan and Bowling Green.

Eight Broncos were named to the 2019 Academic All-MAC team, with two MAC Distinguished Scholar-Athletes. Stefanik earned National Fastpitch Coaches Association (NFCA) DI All-Region First Team and All-MAC first team honors while Glenfield made second team all-league.

The Broncos finished the 2018 season 29-25 with a 14-10 MAC record. A robust offense combined to hit .288 overall and set program records for doubles (76) and home runs (43). In conference games, WMU posted the second-highest batting average (.247). The team’s shining offensive performance came against Purdue with a season-high 15 runs off 14 RBI and five home runs. Half of the team’s RBI were from Brooke Wyman as the Broncos defeated the Boilermakers 15-7.

Western Michigan placed nine on the Academic All-MAC team in 2018 and had Samantha Coffel and Stefanik on the All-MAC first team. Coffel was also a MAC All-Freshman Team honoree while Jordan Kurth made second team all-league. Coffel finished first in the league in hits (34) and total bases (59), and second in doubles (8).

Western Michigan had a high-powered offense in 2017, setting program records for runs scored (241) and doubles (75) while tying the school record for home runs (38) and finishing with the second-highest team batting average (.290) and RBI total (212) in school history.

Senior Kelsea Cichocki became the WMU career leader in RBI (116) and set the school’s single-season RBI record (46). Cichocki also finished second in WMU history in career batting average (.355), single-season batting average (.405) and single-season hits (68) while placing third in career hits (204). Cichocki led the MAC in overall batting average during the 2017 season and earned NFCA All-Region and CoSIDA Academic All-District recognition. Senior Ivy Schaaf set the career record for runs scored (124) and single-season runs scored (40).

The Broncos won seven of their last nine league contests. In the MAC tournament, the No. 8 seed Broncos defeated No. 1 seed and regular season champion Central Michigan, as well as No. 7 Akron, to reach the final four.

Three Bronco seniors received first team All-MAC recognition in 2016: second baseman Melissa Palmer, shortstop Sabrina Gamboa and pitcher Allyson Kus. In addition, Cichocki earned second team honors. Palmer finished as WMU’s leader in career hits with 219. Kus spent most of her career as the program’s ace in the circle, logging more than 646 innings and 364 strikeouts. Gamboa became the second Bronco to hit 20 career home runs and junior Erin Binkowski set the single-season home run record (11). 

In 2015, Leitke led WMU to the MAC tournament’s championship game as the No. 5 seed. The Broncos dropped their opening game but came back strong with four wins against higher seeds in elimination games. Six players earned All-MAC honors and four were named to the MAC All-Tournament Team. WMU was one of the best hitting teams in the league, with an overall season average of .288. The squad batted .290 against league opponents and .287 during the MAC tournament. Ten players combined to hit 38 home runs, including four grand slams. The Broncos defeated Big Ten opponents Indiana (5-4) and Michigan State (4-3) with the win in East Lansing the program’s first over the Spartans since 2006.

The Broncos achieved 17 wins and eight league triumphs in 2014. Loren Nagy was a second team all-league selection and Cichocki earned all-freshman accolades

Leitke surpassed a pair of coaching milestones in 2013, winning her 600th career game as a head coach and reaching the 300-win plateau at Western Michigan.

In 2012, Western Michigan reached championship day at the conference tournament for the second year in a row before falling to Miami in the consolation final.

The 2011 season was one for the record books as Western Michigan captured the MAC regular season and tournament titles in the same season for the first time. The Broncos also boasted a MAC Player of the Year (Gracie Barstad) for the first time in program history. Leitke was named MAC Coach of the Year for the second time, the only Broncos coach to accomplish the feat.

In 2009 Leitke surpassed the 200-win mark at Western Michigan and amassed at least 20 victories for the eighth-straight time in nine seasons at the helm, advancing to the MAC tournament title game for the second time in four years. WMU, which finished the year 25-22 and 16-6 in the MAC, had three all-conference selections with Lexi Jager and Meredith Whitney earning first team and Brittney Reist earning second team accolades. Whitney was also named the MAC Freshman of the Year, the second Bronco to earn the honor.

Jager received First Team Louisville Slugger/NFCA All-Great Lakes Region recognition and broke the single-season and career home run records in 2009. During the campaign, Broncos earned MAC Player/Pitcher of the Week honors five times.  Western Michigan won at least 16 conference games for the fourth time under Leitke and finished second in the MAC West Division for the fourth time.  WMU ended the regular season with the second-best conference record in the MAC and earned a spot in the MAC tournament title game for the sixth time, and second since 2006.

In 2008, Leitke reached two significant coaching milestones. On April 25, she recorded her 500th career coaching victory with a 13-3 win over Akron.  Two weeks earlier, Leitke reached the 100-win mark in MAC games with a 7-2 victory over Buffalo.

The Broncos boasted two first team All-MAC selections in 2008 with Becky Bartosz and Kyla Sullivan. Jager became the program’s second MAC All-Freshman Team selection in three years and was named second team All-MAC.

WMU notched another 20-win season in 2007 with Kyla Sullivan receiving second team all-region honors.

Leitke led the Broncos to their third MAC regular season title in 2006, when they went 34-14 and 18-4 in the league. The Broncos earned the top seed in the postseason tournament and fell in the championship game. Leitke was named MAC Coach of the Year for the first time, becoming the second WMU coach to win the award (Kim Worden, 1997), and the only one to win it outright.

Kristi Strange led the nation in doubles per game (0.48) in 2006, while also setting the team and conference marks for doubles in a season. Under Leitke’s tutelage, Amanda Heckaman set the school record for RBI in a game with seven.

The Broncos finished second in the MAC West Division for the second-straight year in 2005, earning another appearance in the league’s tournament. WMU finished 14-9 in league action and had a pair of student-athletes tabbed first team All-MAC with Tricia VanDerSilk and Katie Niemi.

The 2004 season included another deep run into the conference tournament and a second-place finish in the MAC West Division. The all-conference rosters were full of Broncos, including Strange as the MAC Freshman of the Year. Strange was joined by Jaymie Voss and Laura Stewart on the league’s first team. Voss was also a first team Academic All-America selection at the end of the season.

A 30-win campaign in 2003 was highlighted by a MAC West Division title and an appearance in the NCAA Tournament. The Broncos posted a 3-0 record in the league tournament en route to the title and earned the MAC’s automatic postseason bid.

The 2002 Bronco squad improved its win total by nine games from the previous year and advanced to the six-team MAC tournament for the first time since 1997. WMU posted a winning league slate at 11-10, its most conference victories since 1998. The roster also featured the program’s first .300 hitter and all-league selections since 1999.

Leitke, who arrived in Kalamazoo from nearby Lake Michigan College in Benton Harbor, is WMU’s fourth head coach since the softball program began in 1976.

At LMC, Leitke guided the Indians to a 312-167 (.651) record in nine seasons, including a National Junior College Athletic Association (NJCAA) National Championship in 1993. Leitke’s tenure also produced six Western Conference titles, five Region XII championships and five national tournament appearances.

Highly respected in her profession, Leitke was named NJCAA and NFCA Coach of the Year in 1993. She was tabbed the regional coach of the year five times, league coach of the year on four occasions and NFCA East Region Coach of the Year three times.

In 1999, Leitke was selected to coach a team of junior college all-stars in Canada. The team competed against world-ranked teams that participated in the 2000 Olympics.

Prior to taking over the head coaching post at LMC in 1991, Leitke served as both assistant coach (1988-91, 1985-87) and assistant director of intercollegiate athletics (1988-91) at the school.

In 1991, Leitke was also named the college’s director of athletics. Leitke served as an assistant, the Indians claimed five league titles, four region championships and made four national tournament appearances.

Leitke served as an assistant coach for the Broncos in 1988 under head coach Kim Worden.

After beginning her collegiate studies at Lake Michigan College (1980-83), where she was a two-time All-American, Leitke earned a bachelor’s degree in physical education from Central Michigan in 1985.

The youngest of six children, Leitke’s parents (Rein and Tina) have been lifelong residents of nearby Dowagiac, Mich. Her sister, Judy Truitt, graduated from Western Michigan University. Leitke has a total of 16 nieces and nephews, five great nieces and two great nephews.