Daytona Beach, Fla. (August 14, 2018) – Daytona State College (DSC) was on the hunt to find a new head Women's Softball Coach for the 2018-2019 academic season, following Coach Manhart's resignation in May after twelve years as the head Falcon softball coach. After receiving numerous applications, DSC has selected Keli Harrell as the Falcon's new head women's softball coach. Harrell, who spent the last year as an assistant coach at Campbell University in Buies Creek, North Carolina, brings nearly a decade of experience with her to Daytona; she was an Assistant Coach, Graduate Assistant coach in NCAA D-I programs (Campbell and University of Louisiana Monroe, and East Carolina University).  She was also an all-star pitcher for Tracey Kee at East Carolina University where she broke and set many of the Pirates pitching records during her time in Greenville, North Carolina.

"Keli comes to us with an excellent track record, and the kind of leadership we want to impart on our student-athletes," said Tom LoBasso, president of Daytona State. "We have set a high bar for academic and athletic performance at Daytona State, and we believe Keli will be a great asset to advancing our women's softball program in both areas."

I want to thank Dr. Tom LoBasso and Will Dunne for this wonderful opportunity. I feel incredibly blessed to be entrusted with the responsibility of leading the Daytona State softball program forward. I have no doubt this is where God wants me to be, and I am so excited to embark on this new journey. I can't wait to help build on an already great reputation of academics and athletics," said Harrell.  "I have always considered Daytona State one of the premier jobs in the country. After meeting with Dr. LoBasso and Will Dunne, I can deduce the Falcon athletic department is a special place with unparalleled support and tenacious vision. Our team core values, program standards, and daily purpose will be to assist young women in reaching their full potential and become productive members of society through the values learned in our Falcon softball program."

Coach Harrell spoke on what the fans can expect next season. "Our style of play will be disciplined and exciting!  We will take pride in doing the little things, in order to get big results. Reliable pitching and defense will be the cornerstone of our game, as well as overall physical fitness and mental preparedness. We will play a fundamental, yet aggressive style of play and try to balance our offense with speed and power. This will be a fun team to support and watch play the game of softball."

"When you find a young coach with Keli's vision, work ethic, passion, and pedigree, you know you're getting a quality coach who's not only going to be a great leader on the softball field, but someone who will really bring the best out of our student-athletes as citizens in our community and students in the classroom as well," said Will Dunne, Daytona State's Athletic Director.

Harrell joins a growing Falcon athletics program that boasts nearly 200 student-athletes with 130 athletic scholarships in ten varsity sports including men's and women's basketball, men's and women's soccer, women's golf, men's and women's cross country, fast-pitch softball, baseball, and volleyball. DSC offers an all-around sports complex, including the L. Gale Lemerand Health, Wellness and Community Education Center, an indoor pool, two notch playing fields for baseball and softball, a field house, and a newly built state-of-the-art soccer complex and stadium with a Daktronics videoboard. 

Pirate Accolades:

Became Conference USA's All-Time Strike Out Leader in senior season, and finished college career with 948 K's

2006 Conference USA Preseason Pitcher of the Year 

3-time All-Conference USA player

Named to Louisville Slugger/NFCA All-Southeast Region second team in 2005

3-time NCCSIA all-state selection 

8-time Conference USA Pitcher-of-the-Week

Set a new ECU single season strikeout record sophomore year with 338 K's 

Ranked first in saves in ECU history with 14

Pitched 32 shutouts and 3 no-hitters 

Sophomore year pitched 282 innings, making 51 appearances, pitching 35 complete games with a 1.39 ERA, 338 K's, 7 saves, and an opposing batting average of just .170

Finished career with a 1.83 ERA, 88 wins, 894.1 total innings pitched, 32 shutouts, and 3 no-hitters

Post College: 

Played professionally for the Michigan Ice in the summer of 2007.

In 2008, played for the Twins in Oosterhout, Netherlands 

In 2009, played in the European Cup for the Superfund Wanderers out of Vienna, Austria. Led the Cup in strikeouts.  

Daytona State carries a winning tradition in both competition and academics. Falcon teams consistently earn state and national recognition for their academic achievements. Over 90 percent of DSC student-athlete graduates transfer to a university with full or partial athletic scholarships.