Tina Deese Position: Head Coach Education:: Florida State (1986)

2002 SEC Coach of the Year

Speak of Auburn softball and the name Tina Deese immediately comes to mind. The architect of the softball program at Auburn, Deese has turned the Tigers into a national power by stressing academics, leadership, hard work and loyalty.

Deese has achieved success two-fold. Her teams win on the field and in the classroom, paving the way for Auburn student-athletes to achieve success after their collegiate careers.

Auburn rolled to a program-record 50 victories in 2005 and hosted its first ever NCAA Regional at picturesque Jane B. Moore Field. For the second straight season, the Tigers finished in the top 25 of both collegiate polls.

Deese guided Auburn to its second straight, second-place finish in the SEC's Western Division in 2005. The Tigers went 21-8 in conference play, and did not allow Alabama to clinch first until the second-to-last day of regular season play.

Auburn made an unprecedented second straight appearance in postseason play, and went 1-2 in the NCAA Regional at Jane B. Moore Field. Even though the Tigers failed to advance to a Super Regional, Deese's program showed it will continue to be a force to be reckoned with.

With the creation of a program comes hurdles. Deese has met these head on, and, as the only head coach in Auburn's history, she has been successful every step of the way.

In 12 seasons with the Tigers, Deese has guided Auburn to five winning seasons, including three in the last four years. Those winning seasons have coincided with Auburn's NCAA Regional appearances as the Tigers have become postseason veterans.

Auburn's players have done it right in the classroom as well. The team placed seven players on the 2005 SEC Academic Honor Roll, a program record. In nine seasons, the Tigers have seen 42 players on the conference's honor roll. Auburn has had at least two in every season.

The 12th-year head coach has stressed the importance of giving back to the community as well. Her players often visit children at schools in the Lee County community. In September, members of the Auburn softball team helped raise money for the American Red Cross which helped fund recovery efforts for the victims of Hurricane Katrina.

Deese has proved to be a master at finding and developing talent. In the past three seasons, two of her players -- Holly Currie and Tara Donaldson -- have joined the program after being named Miss Softball of Alabama.

In turn, Deese has mentored five All-Americans and nine All-Region players. She has been recognized in the SEC as well, as 15 Tigers -- including a program-record four in 2005 -- have been named to the All-SEC Team. Last season, the Tigers placed three players on the first-team, tying for most in the conference.

On a conference note, Deese's hard work into building the Tigers into an SEC and national power has not gone unnoticed. In 2002, after guiding Auburn to a then-program best 38-27 record, she was named the Co-SEC Coach of the Year.

Deese helped oversee the creation of Jane B. Moore Field, a sparkling facility on the edge of the Auburn campus. Since 1998, the team has called the field on the edge of campus home but it wasn't until 2003 when the final phase of Jane B. Moore Field was completed that the Tigers could truly call it home.

Deese has used that home-field advantage. Since 1999, the Tigers have gone 124-76 at the picturesque stadium. In the past three seasons, the Tigers have dominated opponents on the Plains, going an impressive 67-33.

In 2005, that home field advantage was never more prevalent. The Tigers went 26-5 at home. Deese parlayed that dominance and made Jane B. Moore Field an NCAA Regional host site for the first time in program history.

Deese took over the program before its first season in 1997. Since then, she has built the program to one which expects an NCAA Tournament berth every year. Among her many achievements at Auburn, which includes close to 300 wins, Deese has led Auburn to one season with 50 victories, two with 40 or more wins and seven seasons with 30 or more victories.

In 2004, Deese posted a 42-18 record with the Tigers, the best season in program history. The Tigers won 19 games in the SEC, finishing second in the Western Division, and were a game away from earning a spot in the SEC Championship game. Auburn finished the season ranked 20th, a program first.

In her first season, Deese led Auburn to a 34-35 overall record and a third-place finish in the SEC Tournament. However, tough times followed as the Tigers suffered two more losing seasons before Deese guided the program to its first winning season in 2000. That team finished 34-31 overall and proved that Auburn was a program on the rise.

Deese was also responsible for starting the softball program at Huntingdon College in Montgomery, Ala. In her eight seasons at Huntingdon, Deese proved her ability to build a program as she amassed a 286-123 record.

She led her teams to seven straight winning seasons and third-place finishes in the NAIA (National Association for Intercollegiate Athletics) in 1992 and 1994. Those years, she won 49 and 55 games, respectively. In 1992, Deese was named NAIA District 27 Coach of the Year.

In addition to her duties as Huntingdon softball coach, Deese also handled volleyball head coaching duties. Prior to her arrival at Huntingdon, Deese served as a pitching coach at her alma mater, Florida State, from 1985-86.

Deese began her playing career in 1982 as a member of Golden West College's (Calif.) Varsity Softball team. She helped lead the team to the California State Championship in 1983 and was named the California State Championship Most Valuable Player.

Her accomplishments at Golden West led her to Florida State where she once again was greeted with immediate success. In 1984, her first season with the Seminoles, Deese led the nation in strikeouts per seven innings at 11.6, which remains tied for fifth in NCAA history.

As a result, she was named the Lady Seminoles Most Valuable Player while helping lead the team to the Florida State Championship. She was also named to the All-Southeast Region First Team -- a feat she duplicated her second season and final season at Florida State. Deese received a bachelor of science degree in leisure services and studies from Florida State in 1986.

She later received a bachelor of arts degree from Huntingdon College in human performance and kinesiology in 1994. She completed her master of arts in teaching from Troy State University in 1995.

Deese and her husband, Allen, have one son, Kyler, 14, and daughter, Jessi, 10.