Laura Heberling Named Kansas Pitching Coach

The following release information was issued by Kansas and information and photos courtesy of Kansas…

LAWRENCE, Kan. – Head coach Jennifer McFalls announced the addition of Laura Heberling as the new pitching coach for the Kansas softball team. An 18-year coaching veteran with various experiences, Heberling comes to KU from Maryland, where she served as the pitching coach in 2023.

Throughout her coaching career, Heberling has served as a head coach, associate head coach, assistant coach and student assistant. As the pitching coach at Maryland in 2023, Heberling helped lead the Terps to their best season since 2011 as they posted a 38-19 record. The pitching staff posted a 3.15 ERA and totaled 312 strikeouts.

“We are thrilled to have Laura and her family join Jayhawk Nation. The experience and pitching expertise she brings will make a huge impact on our program. She’s a strong believer in building relationships and I know our players, our entire Kansas Athletics family and all of our fans will be excited to get to know her and watch her coach.” McFalls said.

At Maryland, Heberling coached freshman Keira Bucher, who led the nation in saves and holds the Big Ten single-season record with 12 saves. Two seniors on the team were named to All-Big Ten teams and received NFCA Midwest All-Region honors.

“I want to thank Coach McFalls for sharing her love for this program and the University, which drew me to campus where I was welcomed by her staff. The moment I arrived, it immediately felt like home. I am so excited for this opportunity to be the pitching coach at Kansas and to get going with a great team.”

Before Maryland, Heberling served as the associate head coach at Utah State from 2020-22. In 2022, the Utah State pitching staff posted a 4.38 ERA, led by Kapri Toone. Toone earned Second-Team All-Mountain West Honors. That season, the Aggies finished with their second-highest conference record in program history. Heberling also spent four seasons as an assistant coach at Utah State before being promoted to associate head coach in 2020.

Prior to Utah State, Heberling was promoted to head coach at USC-Beaufort after serving as an assistant coach for two seasons. She was the head coach for five seasons from 2013-17 as she posted an overall record of 177-92, including a conference record of 55-38. As the head coach, Heberling coached 27 All-Sun Conference performers, two NAIA All-Americans, 12 Sun Conference All-Academic honorees, eight CSC Academic All-District players and one CSC Academic All-American.

In 2015, Heberling was named the Sun Conference Coach of the Year after posting a 42-14 record en route to a Sun Conference Tournament championship and an NAIA Opening Round appearance.

Heberling’s playing career spanned three schools, including Young Harris College, Virginia Intermont College and UNC Pembroke. She immediately got into the coaching ranks as a student assistant at UNC Pembroke in 2005, before moving on to William Woods and Iowa Wesleyan, before her time at USC-Beaufort.

The Fort Lauderdale, Fla., native graduated from UNC Pembroke with a bachelor’s degree in Exercise Science and a master’s in Athletics/Activities Administration from William Woods University. Heberling and her husband, Ed, have two sons, Hollis and Hayes.