University of Connecticut Softball

Valentino enters her seventh season as the head coach of the UConn softball program in 2025-26. Valentino led the Huskies to one of the most successful seasons in program history in 2025, winning the BIG EAST Tournament Championship for the first time since 2001, bringing the Huskies back to the NCAA Tournament for the first time in 24 years. Finishing with a 35-19 record on the year, the Huskies have now put together four straight 30 win seasons under Valentino. She coached a conference best, five players to All-BIG EAST First Team honors, and two players to the second team, totaling seven selections. The Huskies claimed back-to-back BIG EAST Players of the Year awards winners in Grace Jenkins (2025) and Lexi Hastings (2024). Cat Petteys earned BIG EAST Freshman of the Year honors, the third player to garner the award under Valentino. UConn also placed four student-athletes to NFCA All-Region teams, the second most in a season in program history. Valentino and her staff guided the Huskies to a record breaking season, surpassing six single season team program records and six individual single season records. As a team, UConn set new program high marks in batting average (.321), run scored (387), home runs (77), doubles (89), RBI (363), walks (195), and total bases (829). Three Huskies each surpassed the previous single season home runs (13) and RBI (47) records, while two Huskies surpassed the previous runs (63) and walks (29) records that were set prior to the 2025 season. I

Alana Butler has served as an academic counselor in the Student Athlete Success Program (SASP) at the University of Connecticut since 2006, where she has worked with student-athletes across multiple teams - currently supporting the men’s ice hockey and softball programs. In addition, she works closely with campus partners, the Division of Athletics, and Husky Advantage to design and facilitate programming focused on student-athlete celebration, education, and community building in helping students and staff from around the world engage in the shared Husky experience. Alana also serves as a curriculum coordinator and instructor for UNIV 1820: Holistic Development in Intercollegiate Athletics. She supports campus web-based academic systems, previously served as tutor coordinator for a decade, and remains active in NACADA and N4A. Before joining UConn, Alana spent four years as a collegiate field hockey coach and earned her master’s degree in Athletic Counseling from Springfield College in 2005. A UConn alumna, she was a four-year letter winner in field hockey, contributing to two NCAA quarterfinal appearances, two NCAA semifinal appearances, and four BIG EAST Championships during her playing career. Alana currently resides in Mansfield, CT with her wife, Moe, and daughter, Calynn.

Giselle Juarez-Presley enters her second season as the Huskies pitching coach in 2026. She joined the Huskies coaching staff in June of 2024. In her first season in Storrs, Juarez-Presley was instrumental in guiding the Huskies to the program's first BIG EAST Tournament Championship since 2001. Her pitching staff posted a collective 4.37 era notching over 200 strikeouts across 54 games in 2025. Juarez-Presley coached two pitchers to double digit wins in Payton Kinney (15) and Hope Jenkins (11). She coached Kinney to All-BIG EAST First Team and NFCA All-Region Second Team honors. Under Juarez, Kinney shined in the postseason for the Huskies, earning the BIG EAST Tournament Most Outstanding Player award, leading the Huskies to the program's eighth BIG EAST Tournament title. Before coming to UConn, Juarez-Presley was a graduate assistant at the University of Oklahoma assisting the Sooners to their fourth national championship in a row. Before her time at Oklahoma as a graduate assistant, Juarez-Presley served as an assistant coach with the Birmingham Thunderbolts from 2022 to 2023. Juarez-Presley earned her Bachelor of Science degree at the University of Oklahoma in 2021 where she played three seasons for NFCA Hall of Fame coach, Patty Gasso. In the circle, she helped lead the Sooners to a national championship in 2021 where she earned Most Outstanding Player honors in the 2021 Women's College World Series. Juarez-Presley started her playing career at Arizona State in 2017 befor

Kyle Cusson joined the University of Connecticut Sports Performance staff in 2021 and currently oversees all aspects of strength and conditioning for Softball, Women's Volleyball, and Women's Swimming & Diving. He has played a role in the 2025 Softball Big East Tournament Championship and Volleyball's program record-tying win total during their 2024 season. Prior to UConn, Cusson was an assistant strength and conditioning coach at Trinity College, where he oversaw eight varsity programs and led nutrition education initiatives. His earlier experience includes coaching youth and high school athletes, along with various and extensive roles in personal training and group fitness spanning back to 2015. In addition to his coaching responsibilities, Cusson serves as an adjunct professor in UConn's Department of Kinesiology. A native of Springfield, Massachusetts, he holds degrees from Springfield College and Concordia University Chicago. He lives in Ludlow MA with his wife, Karina and Aussie Shepard, Hattie.

Mackenzie Keyes joined Laura Valentino's staff in 2023 and enters her third year as the Huskies hitting coach in 2026. Keyes also serves as the Huskies recruiting coordinator. In 2025 Keyes led the Huskies to an historic season offensively, surpassing six team single season program records, finishing as one of the top offenses in the country. Keyes coached seven players to All-BIG EAST honors including, the BIG EAST Player and Freshman of the Year awards. She also coached four players to NFCA All-Region selections, the second most in a season in program history. Keyes had three players surpass the previous single season home run record (13), in Grace Jenkins (21), Kaitlyn Breslin (16), and Cat Petteys (15). Keyes also had seven players record a batting average above .300. In route to the program's ninth BIG EAST Tournament title, Keyes offense shined in the tournament, outscoring their opponents 35-9 in three games. In the Championship game, the Huskies offense scored BIG EAST Tournament record 18 runs, with 12 runs coming in the second inning. Under Keyes, the Huskies set new single season program high marks in team batting average (.321), runs scored (387), home runs (77), doubles (89), RBI (363), walks (195), and total bases (829). In Keyes first season as the hitting coach, she was instrumental in the Huskies success at the plate, coaching four players above a .300 batting average, and five players with six or more home runs. Under her guidance, UConn tied the program rec

Sydney Fleming joined Laura Valentino's coaching staff in August of 2025. Fleming previously served as an operations intern for Major League Baseball at the Jackie Robinson Training Complex. Fleming is a recent graduate of Williams College in 2025, where she was a standout student-athlete for the softball program, serving as a two-time team co-captain. She helped lead the Ephs to back-to-back NESCAC Championships in 2023 and 2024. She was a key contributor to their NCAA Regional Championship in 2024, being named to the Regional All-Tournament Team. In her senior season, Fleming was named the NESCAC Player of the Year and was selected as an All-American, breaking the single season program record in home runs with 21, and RBI with 52. She holds the career home runs record at Williams (49) and was a multi-time All-Region, and All-League selection. Fleming served as the co-president of the Student-Athlete Advisory Committee (SAAC) for two years. She also worked in the Williams Athletic Department as a student assistant for four years. In recognition of her leadership and service, Fleming was the recipient of the Kate Hogan Athletics Award, honoring her commitment and contributions to the athletic department. She majored in Psychology and History, earning her Bachelor of Arts degree from Williams College in 2025.