The UAB Blazers softball team is a varsity intercollegiate athletic team of the University of Alabama at Birmingham in Birmingham, Alabama, United States. The team is a member of the American Conference, which is part of the National Collegiate Athletic Association's Division I. UAB's first softball team was fielded in 2000. The team plays its home games at Mary Bowers Field in Birmingham, Alabama.

History The UAB softball program began competition in 2000 under its first head coach, Marla Townsend. The team competed in Conference USA and recorded 39 wins in 2002, when Townsend was named Conference USA Coach of the Year. Early highlights for the program included a notable 2003 victory over No. 8 Oklahoma. Throughout its first decade, the Blazers focused on building a consistent presence within the conference, amassing over 250 wins by the end of the 2009 season.

From 2010 to 2014, UAB made five consecutive NCAA Tournament appearances. Mary Bowers Field opened in 2010 as the program’s home venue. In 2013, UAB captured its first Conference USA regular-season title. Also, in 2013, the team reached the NCAA super regionals and finished the season ranked No. 16 in national polls.

Following Marla Townsend’s tenure, Amanda Ellis and Jimmy Kolaitis each served as head coach.The 2020 season was shortened to 26 games due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Joe Guthrie was named head coach in July 2020, and coached the team for the 2021 and 2022 seasons. A.J. Daugherty was named head coach prior to the 2023 season, preceding the program’s move to the American Conference. A.J Daugherty resigned following the 2024 season, with Taylor Smartt being selected to replace him. Smartt led the Blazers to a 24-31 record during the 2025 season.

Taylor Smartt stepped away from the program on April 28, 2026, amid misconduct allegations. Smartt did not coach the final five games of the 2026 season or in the conference tournament. Although she was not formally named interim head coach, Anna Shelnutt assumed head coaching duties for the remainder of the season. Following an investigation, UAB announced on July 9, 2026, that Smartt would not return to the program and named Shelnutt interim head coach. Megan Curry was hired on July 27, 2026 to be the program's head coach.

Conference affiliation

NCAA

Conference USA (2000-2023) American Conference (2023–present)

Head coaches Record through the 2026 season. Coach Years Seasons Overall Pct. Conf. Pct. Postseason Marla Townsend 1999–2017 19 532–507 211–214 5 NCAA (1 Super Regional) Amanda Ellis (Interim) 2018 1 26–32–1 10–13–1 — Jimmy Kolaitis 2019–2020 2 34–42 12–19 — Joe Guthrie 2021–2022 2 56–43 28–15 — A.J. Daugherty 2023–2024 2 52–54 30–21 — Taylor Smartt 2025–2026. 2 45–64 .413 18–36 — Total 5 NCAA Berths

Year by year results UAB softball history year-by-year results. Season Coach Overall Conference Standing Postseason Conference USA (2000–2023) 2000 Marla Townsend 23–38 6–12 5th — 2001 Marla Townsend 27–35 10–11 5th — 2002 Marla Townsend 39–22 14–10 4th — 2003 Marla Townsend 28–28 10–14 T–6th — 2004 Marla Townsend 20–36 7–17 9th — 2005 Marla Townsend 21–37 6–18 9th — 2006 Marla Townsend 31–22 15–9 3rd — 2007 Marla Townsend 27–35 10–14 6th — 2008 Marla Townsend 26–31 9–15 7th — 2009 Marla Townsend 21–34 8–16 8th — 2010 Marla Townsend 37–22 15–9 3rd NCAA Regional 2011 Marla Townsend 39–19 17–6 2nd NCAA Regional 2012 Marla Townsend 37–22 17–7 2nd NCAA Regional 2013 Marla Townsend 40–19 19–4 1st NCAA Super Regional 2014 Marla Townsend 32–27 15–8 2nd NCAA Regional 2015 Marla Townsend 32–19 15–7 2nd — 2016 Marla Townsend 26–33 12–12 3rd (West) — 2017 Marla Townsend 21–32 12–12 5th (West) — 2018 Amanda Ellis 26–32–1 10–13–1 4th (West) — 2019 Jimmy Kolaitis 19–31 8–15 5th (West) — 2020 Jimmy Kolaitis 15–11 4–4 N/A Season cancelled (COVID-19) 2021 Joe Guthrie 31–19 15–5 2nd (West) — 2022 Joe Guthrie 25–24 13–10 4th (West) — 2023 A.J. Daugherty 25–25 16–8 2nd — American Conference (2024–Present) 2024 A.J. Daugherty 27–29 14–13 6th — 2025 Taylor Smartt 24–31 10–17 8th — 2026 Taylor Smartt 21–33 8–19 9th — Total — 5 NCAA Berths

  Conference regular season champion   NCAA Tournament appearance

Post-season results 2010 NCAA Tournament (Tuscaloosa Regional) Date Opponent Result Score May 21 Lipscomb Loss 4–1 May 22 Alcorn State Win 10–1 May 22 Lipscomb Loss 7–6 2011 NCAA Tournament (Athens Regional) Date Opponent Result Score May 20 Florida State Win 2–0 May 21 Georgia Loss 9–2 May 21 Florida State Loss 13–1 2012 NCAA Tournament (Knoxville Regional) Date Opponent Result Score May 18 Virginia Tech Loss 4–1 May 19 Tennessee Loss 8–0 2013 NCAA Tournament (Louisville Regional) Date Opponent Result Score May 17 UCLA Win 6–3 May 18 Louisville Win 7–4 May 19 UCLA Loss 4–1 May 19 UCLA Win 3–2 2013 NCAA Tournament (Gainesville Super Regional) Date Opponent Result Score May 25 Florida Loss 4–3 May 26 Florida Loss 1–0 2014 NCAA Tournament (Athens Regional) Date Opponent Result Score May 16 NC State Loss 4–0 May 17 Chattanooga Win 9–2 May 17 Georgia Loss 3–0

Facilities

Mary Bowers Field In 2010, the team moved to an on-campus stadium. Before moving to the on campus stadium UAB played their games at George Ward Park The facility was renamed Mary Bowers Field in 2016 in recognition of gifts from Mary and Keith A. Bowers.

References