NEW ROCHELLE, NY – Iona College Director of Athletics Matthew Glovaski announced the appointment of Alyssa Tiumalu as head coach of the softball program. Tiumalu, a former four-year letterwinner at UCLA, joins the Maroon & Gold after most recently serving as an assistant on the St. John's University coaching staff.
"We are ecstatic to have Alyssa join us as the new leader of the Iona softball program," Glovaski said. "The program has had great success and support throughout the years and I'm excited to watch Alyssa continue to raise the bar and take the program to new heights."
Tiumalu helped guide the Red Storm to two Big East Regular Season Championships and was a part of the conference's Coaching Staff of the Year in 2017 and 2019. St. John's qualified for the Big East Tournament in three of Tiumalu's four full seasons as an assistant, appearing in the title game in the 2017 season.
"I am so honored to be the new head softball coach at Iona. I would like to thank Matt and the search committee for believing in me to lead this program," Tiumalu said. "Iona College and the softball program have a great reputation and exceptional people who love this institution. That is what made me want to be a Gael and I am so excited to get to work."
Tiumalu assisted in the mentorship of more than 20 All-Big East honorees, including four major award winners. St. John's set numerous single-season program records during Tiumalu's tenure, including wins, home runs, runs scored and runs batted in.
Prior to her time at St. John's, Tiumalu served as an assistant at Canyon View High School during the 2015 spring season before joining Southern Utah University.
As a student-athlete with UCLA, Tiumalu appeared in the NCAA Tournament in all four seasons. The Bruins made a trip to the NCAA Super Regional during her senior season. She was an All-PAC-10 Freshman Team selection in 2011, finishing her rookie campaign with a .302 batting average and nine homers. Overall, Tiumalu started 151 games across six different positions, hitting 18 bombs, driving in 64 runs and scoring 49 times.