Head Coach Deb Neff

Deb Neff was named head coach of the Eureka softball program on July 3, 2012.

Neff will direct the Eureka softball program after a 16-year run as head coach at East Peoria Community High School.  She led the Raiders to 355 victories, three Mid-Illini Conference titles and a pair of IHSA regional crowns.  Neff was a three-time Illinois Coaches Association Coach of the Year and also served as the IHSA State Softball Tournament Manager at Eastside Centre in East Peoria.  She owns an undergraduate degree from Illinois State and a master’s degree in sports administration from Western Illinois.

Assistant Coach Sara Eggleston

Former NAIA pitching standout Sara Eggleston will enter her second season with the Eureka softball coaching staff.  Eggleston will work primarily with the Eureka pitching staff.

A four-year pitcher at Culver-Stockton in Canton, Mo., Eggleston was a three-time All-Heart of America Athletic Conference (HAAC) choice for the Wildcats, including a First Team selection as a junior in 2007.  Eggleston led the Wildcats that season with 16 victories, 183.2 innings pitched, 126 strikeouts and a 1.94 earned run average, while opposing batters hit just .230 against her.

The Memphis, Mo. native compiled a 40-31 career record in 92 total appearances, including 72 starts.  She struck out 322 batters in 496.2 innings pitched and concluded her four-year career in 2008 with a 2.75 earned run average.  The Wildcats won 98 games in Eggleston’s four seasons.

Additionally, Eggleston is in her first year as Eureka’s first full-time assistant athletic trainer.  She earned a B.S. in athletic training from Culver-Stockton in May 2008.

She later served as a graduate assistant athletic trainer with the softball team at the University of Northern Iowa in Cedar Falls, Iowa, earning a master of science degree in athletic training in July 2010.