Kristi Paulson was hired as the 14th head coach in Eastern Illinois softball history on July 11, 2024. Paulson comes to EIU following a successful run as the head coach of Parkland College where she led the program to more than 200 wins and has made three appearances in the NJCAA Division II World Series in the last three seasons. Paulson serves as the Panthers co-head coach with her husband Dan. The couple led EIU to an OVC regular season title, OVC Tournament Championship and NCAA Tournament appearance in their first season (2025).
Eastern Illinois
* Hired as 14th head coach in Eastern Illinois Softball history on July 11, 2024
* Third season as head coach at EIU for 2026-27 academic year
* Serves as co-head coach with husband Dan Paulson, hired in late July 2024
* Named OVC Coach of the Year in 2026 after winning OVC regular season title with a 23-3 conference record
* Coached team to OVC Tournament title with a 36-23 record
* Team made 2026 NCAA Tournament appearance in Stillwater Regional
* Posted a 34-22 record in opening season (2025) winning both OVC regular season and OVC tournament titles
* Team won 2025 OVC regular season championship with 21-5 record
* Team made 2025 NCAA Tournament appearance playing in Austin Regional (Texas eventual NCAA Champion)
* Won first EIU game in season opener on February 7, 2025 with 4-3 (8 inning) win over Prairie View A&M
* Picked up win over Big Ten member Illinois
* Coached OVC Player of the Year Kendall Grover (2025)
* Coached OVC Pitcher of the Year McKenzie Oslanzi (2025)
* Coached OVC Player of the Year Lizzie Stiverson (2026)
* Coached five first team All-OVC selections in 2025
* Coached four first team All-OVC selections in 2026
* Has coached two second team All-OVC selections
* Has coached five All-OVC Newcomer selections
* Coached NFCA All-Region selections (Kendall Grover & McKenzie Oslanzi) in 2025
* Coahced NFCA All-Region selection Lizzie Stiverson in 2026
* Team ranked 6th in the nation in GPA for the 2024-25 academic year
* Helped offense set school records in runs scored (317) and RBI (283) in 2026
* Helped offense post top five seasons in batting average, hits, home runs, walks and slugging percentage in 2026
* Helped coach defense to fourth best fielding percentage in school history and record double plays turned (24) in 2026
Prior to Eastern Illinois
* Softball co-Head Coach at Parkland College in Champaign, Illinois for five seasons
* Posted a 205-56 record in five seasons with three NJCAA Division II College World Series appearances
* Had three seasons with 50-plus wins including 58-6 record in 2024 (52 wins in 2023 / 53 wins in 2021)
* Made first of three NJCAA College World Series appearances in 2021 with seventh place finish
* Coached team to 5th place World Series finish in 2023 and 9th place World Series finish in 2024)
* Coached at least one NJCAA All-American pitcher in last four seasons with a total of six All-Americans
* Coached Parkland to four straight MWAC Conference Championships
* Named MWAC Coach of the Year four straight seasons (2021, 2022, 2023, 2024)
* Won three NJCAA Region 24 Championships
* Created Premier Fastpitch in 2011, program has numerous Top-10 finishes in national tournaments
* Program has won eight Illinois State "A" Championships
* Worked as volunteer assistant softball coach at Lake Land College
* Additional softball coaching experience at Tuscola High School and Casey-Westfield
Personal
* Played collegiate softball at Lake Land College in Mattoon
* Helped Lake Land make its first-ever NJCAA Division I World Series appearance as a player in 2006
* Bachelor's degree from Eastern Illinois University, 2011
* Her and husband Dan have four children
* Father Bert Bradley has been a pitching coach and national scout for the San Francisco Giants
* Native of Mattoon, Illinois
| School |
Year |
Overall |
Conference |
Other |
| Parkland College |
2020 |
3-8 |
--- |
Season canceled due to COVID-19 |
| Parkland College |
2021 |
53-9 |
20-4 |
7th NJCAA Division II World Series |
| Parkland College |
2022 |
39-21 |
19-5 |
|
| Parkland College |
2023 |
52-12 |
20-0 |
5th NJCAA Division II World Series |
| Parkland College |
2024 |
58-6 |
23-1 |
9th NJCAA Division II World Series |
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|
|
|
|
| Eastern Illinois |
2025 |
34-22 |
21-5 |
OVC Champions, NCAA Tournament |
| Eastern Illinois |
2026 |
36-23 |
23-3 |
OVC Champions, NCAA Tournament |
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|
| Career Record |
7 Years |
275-89 |
126-18 |
----- |
| Parkland College |
5 Years |
205-56 |
82-10 |
3 NJCAA Division II World Series |
| Eastern Illinois |
2 Years |
70-45 |
44-8 |
2 OVC Championships, 2 NCAA Appearances |
