This post was updated July 21 at 10:21 p.m.

A fraction of high school athletes go on to compete at the Division I level.

Fewer achieve the rank of becoming a Division I coach.

But it’s the most distinguished individuals that can do it all.

After the closure of the 2024 season, UCLA softball’s coaching staff was named the NFCA Division I West Regional Coaching Staff of the Year. This marks the seventh such recognition the team has received since head coach Kelly Inouye-Perez took the program’s reins in 2006. She also won the award as a UCLA assistant coach in 2000.

Inouye-Perez helms UCLA alongside associate head coaches Lisa Fernandez and Kirk Walker, assistant coach Rob Schweyer, player development coach Will Oldham and graduate manager Bubba Nickles.

Four members of the coaching staff are former Bruins – everyone but Schweyer and Oldham – and three spent their entire collegiate softball careers in Westwood.

“The whole culture of the program is very, very rewarding in that the goal is to come to UCLA and have a great experience, go out in the real world and kick butt in the real world, and then come back and give back, and that’s the full circle of the Bruin bubble,” Inouye-Perez said.

Nickles – the rookie of the group – graduated from UCLA in 2021 after winning the Women’s College World Series in 2019 and helping Team USA win silver at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics. Now, she serves her alma mater as a graduate manager and acts as a “big sister” to the team, constructing game strategies and analyzing opponents.

“Bubba is very unique that she’s an infielder and she’s an outfielder, so she helps with all aspects of the program. Bubba just brought big sister, confident vibes, good information, good approaches offensively that the girls really enjoyed,” Inouye-Perez said.

Walker’s history as a member of Bruin coaching staff goes back the furthest – graduating from UCLA in 1988.

“Kirk Walker has been a pillar in this program, as far as he’s thrown BP (batting practice) to Lisa and I as student-athletes, and here he still is throwing batting practice to this generation,” Inouye-Perez said.

The Woodland Hills, California, local started his tenure at UCLA as an undergraduate assistant in 1984, spending 11 seasons with the Bruins before becoming the head coach for Oregon State in 1995. Walker stamped his name in Beaver history, becoming the program’s winningest coach and the fifth most victorious coach in Oregon State history.

After his run in Corvallis, Walker returned to Westwood in 2012 and was promoted to associate head coach in 2022. In addition to his duties on the field, Walker acts a mentor for his athletes, emphasizing the importance of education and building confidence.

“He also oversees the academic side to keep their priorities straight,” Inouye-Perez said. “He helps with cultural pieces as far as how to communicate, how to hold people accountable and how to use your own voice. So, he’s building confidence, both on and off the field as an amazing mentor to all the Bruins.”

Fernandez and Inouye-Perez’s journey in tandem began when they played travel softball together in the 1980s. The pair spent three years on the collegiate stage together, winning two Women’s College World Series championships for UCLA.

After leaving the program as players in 1993, the pair returned to UCLA to serve as coaches. Fernandez simultaneously played for Team USA, becoming a three-time Olympic gold medalist. Meanwhile, Inouye-Perez added three Women’s College World Series rings to her collection, but this time as an assistant coach.

Their contributions to UCLA earned them a spot in the UCLA Athletics Hall of Fame.

“We help build it and grow it, and we’re here to sustain it,” Inouye-Perez said. “We’re here to carry on the tradition of UCLA softball, and we take great pride in that.”

UCLA softball boasts the most national championships of any collegiate program – touting 12 titles with at least one championship in every decade the tournament has been played. The Bruins have also won a conference-leading 13 Pac-12 regular season titles – the most for any softball program in the conference.

But behind all of the trophies and rings UCLA accumulated over the years, its coaching staff is focused on a goal that exceeds national championships.

“What I love about this job is, I love growing strong females,” Inouye-Perez said. “That they become a better version of themselves, and when they graduate, they will be prepared to do anything.”

Collegiate softball is one pioneer in the evolution and expansion of women’s sports. Its live broadcast on ESPN enabled the 2024 Women’s College World Series championship to attract about two million viewers.

Inouye-Perez said her contribution to this growth is held close to her heart. Win or lose, she added it takes guts to be able to represent something bigger than yourself.

“I feel that the coaching staff transcends the sport and that they’ve prepared me – and I’m sure other Bruins would agree – they’ve prepared me for life beyond softball and for opportunities that are even bigger than college softball,” said alumnus Megan Faraimo.

Faraimo is one of five Bruins who have been selected to compete in international tournaments with the U.S. Women’s National Team this summer – and among the Bruin contingent that competed in the Athletes Unlimited Professional Softball league.

The Oceanside, California, local has also volunteered with the AIGA Foundation alongside fellow Bruins in rising junior utility Megan Grant and alumnus Thessa Malau’ulu to host softball clinics and motivationally speak to groups of children in the American Samoa.

The culture UCLA’s coaching staff fostered has equipped Bruin athletes and alumni with the tools to make a meaningful impact on the world.

“At the beginning, it was hard for me to trust them,” Grant said. “(But) all the coaches on the UCLA staff have character, and it’s more than just being about softball, they care about the person.”

At UCLA, softball is more than just a sport – it’s a family.