LA JOLLA, Calif. – UC San Diego Director of Athletics Earl W. Edwards has announced a change in leadership of the Tritons softball program and that Patti Gerckens will no longer serve as head coach.

"I would like to thank Patti for her 32 years of service as head coach of the softball program at UC San Diego," Edwards said. "Since arriving in La Jolla in 1993, she led our program from Division III to Division II in 2000-01 and into our Division I transition period in 2020-21. Patti has made an indelible mark on the Triton athletics program and I wish her well in her future endeavors."

The all-time wins leader in UC San Diego softball history, Gerckens led the program to a pair of national championship appearances – including a Division II NCAA national title in 2011. Under Gerckens, the Tritons made 13 NCAA postseason appearances. She coached 63 all-region selections and five All-Americans. 
 
Edwards announced a national search process will begin immediately for the program's next head coach.

About UC San Diego Athletics
After two decades as one of the most successful programs in NCAA Division II, the UC San Diego intercollegiate athletics program began a new era in 2020 as a member of The Big West Conference in NCAA Division I. The 23-sport Tritons earned 30 team and nearly 150 individual national championships during its time in Divisions II and III and helped guide 1,400 scholar-athletes to All-America honors. A total of 83 Tritons have earned Academic All-America honors, while 38 have garnered prestigious NCAA Post Graduate Scholarships. UC San Diego scholar-athletes exemplify the academic ideals of one of the world's preeminent institutions, graduating at an average rate of 91 percent, one of the highest rates among institutions at all divisions.