| Current position | |||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Title | Head coach | ||||||||||||||
| Record | 615–455 (.575) | ||||||||||||||
| Biographical details | |||||||||||||||
| Born | October 10, 1958 Zeeland, Michigan, U.S. | ||||||||||||||
| Alma mater | Grand Valley State University Texas Woman's University California State University, Chico | ||||||||||||||
| Coaching career (HC unless noted) | |||||||||||||||
| 1997–2002 | Mississippi State | ||||||||||||||
| 2003–2009 | Oregon | ||||||||||||||
| Head coaching record | |||||||||||||||
| Overall | 615–455 (.575) | ||||||||||||||
Medal record
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Kathy Arendsen (born October 10, 1958) is an American softball head coach and former professional player. Arendsen pitched for Holland Christian High School, where she won the state championship, before embarking on a successful collegiate and professional career. During her college years, Arendsen pitched for Texas Woman's University and California State University, Chico, where she led both teams to national championships. In recognition of her efforts, she received the 1978 Broderick Award as the nation's outstanding female athlete in softball. She was also selected to pitch for Team USA at the 1979 and 1983 Pan American Games, winning a gold and silver medal respectively.
Upon concluding her collegiate career, Arendsen played professional softball with the Raybestos Brakettes for 15 years. During this time, she earned All-American honors 13 times, won nine national championships, and three world championships. As a result of her college play, she was named the national Broderick Award winner in softball for three consecutive years. In an exhibition game, during the 1981 Major League Baseball strike, she drew the attention of Major League Baseball player Reggie Jackson, whom she struck out three times. She was also ranked by Sports Illustrated as one of the 50 greatest sports figures from Michigan in 1999.
As she concluded her professional career, Arendsen was hired to coach at Mississippi State University and the University of Oregon, the former at which she became the winningest coach in program history. Between 2003 and 2009, Arendsen led the Oregon Ducks softball team to their best start in school history and their first playoff run since the 2000 season.