Valparaiso University Softball Camps

Valparaiso University Softball Camps

Coaching Staff

Head Coach Randy Schneider

The winningest coach in Valpo softball history, Randy Schneider begins his fifth season with the Crusader softball program and will join the Horizon League for the first time this spring.

Schneider's 2007 campaign was the most successful of his four seasons, as he guided Valpo to 27 victories, the most in a single season breaking 2006’s single season record of 22 wins. Schneider’s team also broke over 25 school records and completed the season with six all-conference selections.

In 2006, with his 21st win of the season, Schneider moved into first among Crusader head coaches in victories, and entered the 2007 campaign with 55 wins at Valpo. His team's victories included the program's second win against Purdue under Schneider.

Schneider's arrival on campus brought a 14-game turnaround in 2004, when the Brown and Gold won 21 games and earned a spot in the Mid-Continent Conference Tournament for the first time in five seasons. The 2004 Crusaders even picked up a win at the conference tournament before falling in the championship game to Centenary.

After graduating six seniors off the 2004 team, Schneider's 2005 club played one of the most difficult non-conference schedules in America. The young Crusaders struggled to get wins, but gained valuable experience leading to a 10-game improvement last season.

Schneider has coached sixteen all-conference players in his four years at the helm, including three first team selections. Five of his players were honored following the 2006 campaign, matching the most by any team in the Mid-Con. The 2004 squad also had four players earn Mid-Con All-Tournament honors.

Coach Schneider arrived at Valpo from Wartburg College in Iowa where he led the Knights to a 100-37-1 record in four seasons. Wartburg won an Iowa Intercollegiate Athletic Conference title in 2001, the first in the school's history. That same year he guided the Knights to the NCAA Division III Tournament where they finished as Central Region runner-up, and Schneider was named IIAC and Region Coach of the Year.

Schneider earned his bachelor's degree from Wartburg in 1988 with a degree in physical education. He and his wife Kristy have three children, Karli (6), Alec (3) and Bryn (1).

Assistant Coach Daniel Amling

Daniel Amling is a Valparaiso native and graduated from Chesterton High School in 1984 where he competed in basketball, track, and on the debate team (State championship).

Amling attended Louisiana State University in Baton Rouge for two years before transferring to Purdue University, West Lafayette, where he volunteered as a football manager and lettered three years. He graduated with a BS in Biology and a BS in Secondary Science Education in 1990.

Early in Amling’s coaching career he was a High School teacher at Hanover Central High School in Cedar Lake, IN and the girls JV basketball coach, assistant baseball coach, and science Olympiad coach.

Amling began coaching fastpitch softball in 2004 as a volunteer assistant and has been assisting Coach Schneider in some capacity ever since.

Daniel is currently working as a Chemist at the Burns Harbor facility of ArcelorMittal, USA. He and his wife Suzanne have four children, Jessica (17), Megan (14), Michael (11), and Eric (8).

Assistant Coach Amy Wittgenstein

Coach Amy Wittgenstein is in her first season with the Crusader softball team working primarily with the outfielders and catchers. Amy is also responsible for the operations of other various duties including monthly team newsletters and coordinating clinics and camps. Wittgenstein, a St. Paul, Minnesota native started 173 of the 197 games she played at South Dakota State University. A four-year starter and the Jackrabbits regular catcher, Wittgenstein earned academic all-conference honors both her junior and senior seasons. In her career, she recorded a cumulative .984 fielding percentage and ranks in the top five at SDSU for games played and career sacrifice bunts. Coach Witt graduated from SDSU in the Spring of 2006 with a degree in public recreation while minoring in business. She began pursuing her master’s degree in sports administration at SDSU while assistant coaching for the Jackrabbit softball team. Wittgenstein is currently working to complete her master’s degree in sports management at Valparaiso.

Members of the Valparaiso Softball Team

Members of the Valparaiso Softball Team will be participating in the coaching at the Valparaiso Softball Clinics 2008. Look for several players all throughout camp!