After 31 seasons, Bertagnolli retires as Cal’s softball coach
Vulcans won 7 PSAC titles, 2 national championships
CALIFORNIA – Rick Bertagnolli, who coached the women’s softball program at PennWest California for 31 years and guided the Vulcans to a pair of NCAA Division II national championships, announced his retirement Monday.
The stunning move comes six weeks before California is scheduled to begin its 2025 season. Nikki Yanchak, who joined the program last year as an assistant coach, will serve as interim head coach this season. A nationwide search for a head coach will begin in the coming months.
Bertagnolli, who turned 65 last month, led Cal to unprecedented success, amassing a 972-389 record and a .714 winning percentage during his tenure, highlighted by back-to-back national championships in 1997 and 1998. In 31 seasons, Bertagnolli guided Cal to 21 appearances in the NCAA tournament with six regional championships, including a four-peat from 1996-99.
“Rick Bertagnolli built a legacy in the softball program as one of the most dominating teams within the PSAC each year and a national powerhouse in the sport,” said Cal athletic director Dr. Karen Hjerpe. “He built champions on the field while stressing academic success in the classroom. He was a true teacher of the game and developed the skills of the players in his program. His passion for the sport showed in the countless hours of dedication to his team.”
The Vulcans won seven PSAC championships under Bertagnolli, including five in a row (1996-2000). Cal later appeared in the championship game four times before winning back-to-back conference titles in 2014 and 2015. The Vulcans won the PSAC West 20 times under Bertagnolli, highlighted by an 88-game winning streak in conference play from 1994-99.
Bertagnolli coached more than 30 All-Americans and 16 standouts that were selected to the California Athletic Hall of Fame. Pitcher Danielle Penner was honored as the 1998 NFCA National Player of the Year and Olympic bronze medalist Natalie Wideman was chosen as the 2014 NFCA National Catcher of the Year. In 2022, Caleigh Rister became the program’s first NFCA National Freshman of the Year.
Bertagnolli’s run at Cal began in 1994 and in his first season the Vulcans had a 38-13 record, advanced to the PSAC championship game and won the regional championship.
After 93 wins over the next two seasons, the stage was set for a historic 1997 season. With Penner dominating in the circle, the Vulcans rolled to a 53-5 record and won the first national championship in any sport in school history.
In 1998, Cal became only the fourth, and the most recent, school in NCAA Division II softball history to win back-to-back national championships. The Vulcans went 47-7 behind the play of five All-Americans, including Penner. Bertagnolli and his staff were named NFCA Division II National Coaching Staff of the Year.
In 2014, Bertagnolli was hired as the first manager of the Pennsylvania Rebellion team in the National Pro Fastpitch professional women’s softball league. That lasted only 12 games before Bertagnolli resigned.
Bertagnolli started his college coaching career at Wabash Valley Junior College for three seasons before serving as head coach at South Carolina-Spartanburg for two years. His all-time coaching record is 1,235-439.