Cabrini University Athletics

Coaching softball was never the career path Bridget Orchard saw for herself.  After an internship at a sports law firm, the pre-law major knew a courtroom was not the place for her either.  But while working in the Villanova athletic office after graduation, a local Division III college was looking for a head coach.  And the rest was history.

All she did over the next four years was lead the club to 129 victories, including three Pennsylvania Athletic Conference championships and two NCAA Division III Regional Finals.

“All of our success was due to the hard work and attitude of our players,” Orchard said.  “From the first day of tryouts in 1998, the ladies were ready to work and to be challenged.  They took pride in their underdog status and were willing to do whatever it took to be successful.”

Orchard took over the Cabrini softball program in 1998, just one season after finishing her own stand-out career for the Wildcats.   She wasn’t quite sure what to expect on that first day.  While 15 players showed up, some even without gloves, what she found was a group of talented players who wanted to be successful.

Orchard had few expectations for the 1998 team as the club had no real home, practicing on any open field it could find.  Their hard work paid off, as the squad posted a 22-12-1 mark and was off and running.

Orchard hit the recruiting trail hard after the season, landing Hall of Famer Megan Johnston as her first recruit.  In Johnston’s words “I decided to play for Cabrini having never met any of the girls on the team.  I talked with the coach (Orchard) and really liked her so that was enough for me.”

Orchard then used Johnston and the other upperclassmen to help in the recruiting process to assemble one of the most successful athletic teams in school history.  In 2000, the Cavaliers finished 39-9 and advanced to the NCAA Atlantic Regional Final.

The following year the team was ranked 10th in the nation by the USA Today and finished 42-5, including 21-1 in the PAC, reaching the NCAA East Regional Final.  Four players earned NFCA All-American honors in 2001, including Johnston, fellow Hall of Famer Rita Horning, Erin Brooks and Jamie Dautel.  Orchard was named Division III East Regional Coach of the Year as the Blue and White led the nation in fielding, hitting and pitching.     

While 2001 was Orchard’s last season at Cabrini, she continues to carry her memories and experiences with the Cavaliers.  

“As a new coach and mother, I learned so much from those players and their families,” Orchard said.  “They helped me find a love for the game from the coaching perspective with their spirit, enthusiasm and willingness to do whatever it took to be successful.”