Candrea retires after 36 seasons
Arizona Hall of Fame softball coach elevated the game of college softball
TUSCON, Ariz. ( KYMA, KECY-TV ) - After Saturday's Women's College World Series loss to Florida State, Arizona head coach Mike Candrea was asked if he would be back for another season.
"I usually at the end of every year, once you get to my age you kind of evaluate life and things and the only thing I can tell you is when that day comes, I will do it on my own terms and make that decision," Candrea said. "I feel bad for these kids and we just busted our butts to try to keep playing so I will let it all absorb."
Candrea needed less than two days to absorb what his next move would be. On Monday, he announced his retirement.
"It has been an honor to represent the University of Arizona for 36 years," Candrea said in the press release. "I am indebted to every player, coach and member of my support staff that has made the Arizona softball experience one that I will cherish forever. When I arrived in 1985, I wanted to build a culture of excellence and compete consistently at the highest levels of Division 1 softball. Most of all, our goal was to prepare our student-athletes for life after softball and build relationships that would last a lifetime."
Candrea's coaching career goes beyond the utterly impressive statistics. Eight national championships, 24 appearances in the Women's College World Series, 34 postseason berths, 10 conference championships, over 50 All-Americans coached, Olympic gold and silver medals as well as 1,674 career wins. The jaw-dropping nature of that resume transcends just softball as Candrea tallied the fourth most wins of any coach in any NCAA sport.
A retirement press conference is scheduled for 10:30 a.m. on Tuesday morning on the floor of McKale Center.
Arizona Athletics has announced the promotion of Caitlin Lowe, who has been chosen as the next head coach of Arizona Softball. Lowe will be officially introduced on Wednesday morning.
