FARMVILLE, Va. -- Former Kent State head coach and Mid-American Conference Coach of the Year Eric Oakley has been named the seventh head coach in Longwood softball history, Vice President for Intercollegiate Athletics Tim Hall announced on Tuesday.
With more than 20 years of collegiate softball coaching experience, Oakley has spent over a decade as a Division I head coach, leading programs at Kent State, North Dakota and the University of Dallas. He has also served as a Division I assistant coach at Columbia and Eastern Michigan.
"Eric has demonstrated throughout his career that he knows how to build successful programs, develop student-athletes and compete at a high level," Hall said. "His vision for Longwood softball, combined with his proven success as a Division I head coach, made him the right fit to lead our program. We are excited to welcome Eric and Casey to the Longwood family."
Oakley's most successful tenure came at Kent State, where he spent nine seasons and guided the Golden Flashes to sustained success in the Mid-American Conference. After serving as an assistant coach in 2015, he was named interim head coach for the 2016 season before earning the permanent position later that year.
During his tenure, Oakley led Kent State to the 2016 MAC regular-season championship, the 2017 MAC tournament title and an NCAA tournament appearance. He was named the 2016 MAC Coach of the Year after guiding the Golden Flashes to one of the winningest seasons in program history.
Oakley led Kent State to top-four conference finishes in five seasons and became the fastest coach in program history to reach 100 career victories. His teams consistently produced standout student-athletes, including the program's first First Team All-American, multiple conference Players and Pitchers of the Year and Academic All-Americans.
The Golden Flashes also earned national attention during Oakley's tenure, highlighted by a victory over Pac-12 opponent Oregon State in the 2017 NCAA tournament after capturing the MAC tournament championship.
"I'm humbled and honored to be joining the storied softball history at Longwood University," Oakley said. "I want to thank President Reveley, Tim Hall and Tom Mandato for the opportunity for my wife Casey and I to be part of the Longwood University family. I'm excited to begin working with the women of Longwood softball as we strive to be stewards of our program's legacy of academic achievement, Big South championships, and community outreach."
Prior to Kent State, Oakley served three seasons as head coach at North Dakota, guiding the program through its transition to full Division I membership and into the Big Sky Conference. His teams produced 16 all-conference selections during his tenure, including nine in the program's first two seasons as a Big Sky member.
Most recently, Oakley served as head coach at the University of Dallas after spending the 2024 season at Columbia as recruiting coordinator and primary hitting coach. At Columbia, he helped improve the Lions' batting average, slugging percentage and home run production from the previous season while coaching two players who tied the program's single-season home run record.
A 2001 graduate of Eastern Michigan and native of Novi, Mich., Oakley is married to his wife, Casey.
