Bio

Laura North is in her second year as Head Softball Coach.

In her first year at the helm, North led three players to all-Heart of America Athletic Conference awards.  She has also coached nine Heart Scholar-Athletes and 12 NAIA Scholar-Athletes.

North came to William Penn with 10 years of collegiate head coaching experience and a career record of 195-111.

North was the head coach at Indian Hills Community College from 2015-2018; she joined the staff as the associate head coach in 2014.  As head coach, she owned a 152-60 record and guided the Warriors to regular season conference and NJCAA Region XII titles in 2015, 2016, 2017, and 2018.  The team qualified for two NJCAA Division I National Tournaments as well.  She was named Region XII Coach of the Year all four years at IHCC.

North was hired in August of 2022 as head coach at NCAA Division II Upper Iowa University.  The Peacocks recently concluded their 2023 season with a 17-26 record, including a 9-16 mark in the Northern Sun Conference.

North also has collegiate coaching experience as an assistant coach at Central College from 2010-2013 and as head coach at Cloud County Community College in Kansas, where she took the program from a 1-52 record the year prior to a 26-25 mark.

North has coached at the prep level as well with stops at Holdrege (Neb.), Logan-Magnolia, and Des Moines Lincoln High Schools.

Outside of coaching, North has also served as president of the Oskaloosa Indoor Sports Complex and is the founder of Diamond Life, LLC, which provides lessons, camps, clinics, and mentoring for youth softball players.

North was a successful collegiate athlete, playing at the University of Nebraska at Kearney from 1996-1999.  She was named Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference Player of the Year in 1997 and 1998.  North owned or was ranked in the top five for numerous school records, including posting a .425 batting average in 1998.

She was named UNK Female Scholar Athlete of the Year, earned a CoSIDA Academic All-America award, and also helped the Lopers to four NCAA Division II National Championships appearances.  The 1999 team was national runner-up and the 1996 squad reached the semifinals.  Since graduating, she has been selected to the RMAC All-Century Team as well as the UNK Hall of Fame.

North is a 1999 graduate of Nebraska at Kearney with a degree in Education and a Master's of Science in Sports Management from Nova Southeastern University.

North lives in Oskaloosa with her husband Dave.  The couple has four sons: Charlie, Aiden, Jake, and Tommy.

North's Career at William Penn

2024 21-27 (10-14 HEART)
21-27 (10-14 CONF) (.438)