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Portions of the following release information was issued by Arizona State and the Missouri Sports Hall of Fame and information and photos courtesy of Arizona State and the Missouri Sports Hall of Fame…
Missouri Sports Hall of Fame Release
SPRINGFIELD, Mo. — Former Arizona State and Minnesota head coach Linda Wells was recently inducted into the Missouri Sports Hall of Fame.
Wells crafted a legendary career on the field of play in the Women’s Major Division of the America Softball Association as well as serving as a head coach at the high school and collegiate levels. She also served on the coaching staff for Team USA and was the head coach for the Greece and Netherlands Olympic teams.
A graduate of Pacific High School, Wells played summer Khoury League and Women’s Major Fastpitch softball, garnering all-star and most valuable player honors while with the St. Louis Browns, Kirkwood Chargers, Kutis and later the pro Hummers. She was a five-sport athlete at Southeast Missouri State University and later became one of the nation’s best collegiate softball coaches – first at the University of Minnesota and then at Arizona State University. Her 914 career wins at one time ranked in the top 10 in NCAA history.
Wells began her coaching career in 1973 at the University of Minnesota, where she served as head women’s basketball coach (1973-77), head volleyball coach (1974-81) and head softball coach (1974-88). She finished her tenure with each sport on a winning note, advancing to the national tournament in basketball in 1977, volleyball in 1981 and softball in 1981, 1986 and 1988.
During her 15-year tenure, Wells led the Golden Gophers to three Big Ten softball crowns and compiled a 351-264-1 overall record She earned Big Ten Coach of the Year in 1988 by posting a 31-25 record en route to the Big Ten championship, a berth in the NCAA Tournament and a No. 11 national ranking.
Wells was head coach of Sun Devil softball from 1990-2005 and holds the program record with 564 wins. She guided the team to 12 NCAA Regional appearances and made the Women’s College World Series in 1999 and 2002.
During her time leading the program, ASU had seven players earn a total of 12 All-American awards. There were also 75 All-Pac 10 recipients, including a program record eight following the 2003 season. ASU also had three Academic All-Americans during her tenure.
She was on the coaching staffs for the gold medal-winning USA teams in the South Pacific Classic and Pan American Games in 1985 and 1987. Eventually in the 2000s, she coached in the Olympics with the Greek and Netherlands teams.
Wells is also a member of the NSCA Hall of Fame, the University of Minnesota Hall of Fame in volleyball and softball, and the State of Minnesota Hall of Fame.
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