RICHMOND, Ky. – Eastern Kentucky University Softball Head Coach Jane Worthington has announced multiple staff changes and additions in Richmond on Monday.
 
Ahead of the 2026 season, Worthington has promoted assistant coaches, Zoe Schafer and Mollie Paulick to the roles of Associate Head Coach for hitting and pitching respectively while hiring former Colonel, Sammi Miller as a new assistant coach.
 
With Schafer and Paulick on staff the past two seasons, EKU has compiled an 80-26 record, including a 38-16 record in 2025 that ended with a runner-up finish in the ASUN Championship, and an ASUN Regular Season title in 2024 with a record of 42-10 and conference record of 21-3.
 
Zoe Schafer – Associate Head Coach - Hitting
 
Schafer's promotion comes after joining the Colonels as an assistant in August of 2022, since then the Colonels have tallied three consecutive winning seasons including an ASUN Conference Regular Season Championship in 2024 and a Gold Division Title last season.
 
In 2024, EKU led the league in batting average (.299), runs scored (297), total hits (399), RBIs (273), and slugging percentage (.461).
 
In that year Jeanay Riley became just the fourth player in program history to be named the league's Player of the Year with a .378 batting average and a team-leading 62 hits.
 
Before coming to Richmond, Schafer spent one season as an assistant coach at Tennessee Tech.
 
She assisted in student-athlete development and recruiting efforts while helping guide the Golden Eagles to a 33-22 record and a second-round appearance in the Ohio Valley Conference Tournament during the 2021-22 season marking the program's last winning season.
 
Schafer, a legendary hitter at SIUE finished her playing career as the program's all-time leader in home runs and RBIs while ranking second in doubles. She earned All-OVC honors three times (2018, 2019, 2021), was the 2017 OVC All-Newcomer, and was named to the OVC All-Tournament team in 2018.
 
Mollie Paulick – Associate Head Coach - Pitching
 
Paulick expands her role with the Colonels pitching staff after returning to her alma mater in 2023 after two seasons at Bellarmine, where she served as an assistant coach and interim head coach.
 
Since rejoining EKU, Paulick has guided EKU's pitching to significant improvement. During the 2023 season, the Colonels posted a 5.13 ERA over 342 innings with 126 strikeouts. By 2025, the ERA lowered to 2.91 and more than doubled with 345 strikeouts.
 
EKU pitchers went 38-16 in 2025 led by NFCA First Team All-Region selection Maddi Rutan who totaled 227 strikeouts in 176.0 innings pitched, tied for the 11th-most in the NCAA and the first Colonel pitcher with 200 or more strikeouts since 2016.
 
She recorded an 18-10 record as well as two saves in 33 total appearances, allowing an ERA of 2.27 and an opponent batting average of .192.
 
The sophomore also set new career single-game highs in both innings pitched and strikeouts on the season, with 11.0 IP in a complete game against Central Arkansas on Mar. 14 and 15 strikeouts against Austin Peay on Apr. 18.
 
In 2024, EKU had the third best ERA in the ASUN at 2.53 with the most wins of any staff at 41 including 14 shutout victories.
 
From 2016-21, Paulick marked a 72-28 record with a 2.35 ERA and 655 strikeouts. In 2021, she led EKU to its third conference championship in program history and an NCAA Knoxville Regional appearance.
 
Over her final two seasons, the Centerville, Ohio, native went 23-2 with a 1.75 ERA and 179 strikeouts in 163 innings pitched. She was named EKU's Female Athlete of the Year in 2020 and earned multiple Ohio Valley Conference honors, including First Team All-OVC in 2018.
 
 
Sammi Miller – Assistant Coach
 
Miller returns after spending the past two seasons as an assistant coach at Tennessee Tech.
 
As a player at EKU, Miller was one of the most consistent hitters in EKU softball history, finishing her career with a .388 batting average, 214 hits, 156 runs scored and 61 stolen bases.
 
She was a key part of the Colonels' 2021 Ohio Valley Conference Championship team. That season, she hit .400 with 62 hits, 13 doubles, three triples, five home runs, 24 RBIs, 28 walks and 16 stolen bases. Miller led the team in batting average, doubles, triples, walks and stolen bases.
 
Miller, a transfer from Virginia Tech, made an immediate impact for the Colonels, earning OVC All-Tournament Team, OVC All-Newcomer Team and Second Team All-OVC honors in 2019.
 
In 2021, she was named First Team All-OVC, OVC All-Tournament Team and OVC Co-Female Athlete of the Year while helping the Colonels capture their first OVC Championship since 2004.
 
In 2022, she was selected as the ASUN Preseason Player of the Year.
 
Miller graduated from EKU with a bachelor's degree in exercise science in 2021 and a master's degree in sports administration in 2022.
 
After she finished her playing career, Miller began her coaching career at Manchester University (2022-23), where she helped lead the Spartans to a 23-20 record marking their first 20-win season since 2016.