Bio:
Kristen Zaleski enters her sixth season as the head coach at Temple College. In 2015, Zaleski and her Leopards finished 51-12 overall, tied for the third most wins in school history. The Leopards finished 28-4 in Conference play earning them the title of Conference Champions. The Leopards then finished first at the Conference Tournament Championship awarding them a trip to the NJCAA National Tournament in St. George, Utah where they finished 7th overall. Zaleski recorded her 200th win as a Leopard on February 22 with a 4-3 victory over Indian Hills Community College at home. Temple College had 5 players named First Team All-Conference in 2015, which included sophomore pitcher/infielder Paige Williams who was named Co-Player of the Year and freshman pitcher Lexi Smith who was named Pitcher of the Year. Williams also received NJCAA First Team All-Region (pitcher) honors and Smith received NJCAA First Team All-Region and NJCAA First Team All-American honors. Sophomore Alex Wilson was named First Team All-Conference for infield, NJCAA First Team All-Region, NJCAA Third Team All-American, and received the 2015 NJCAA Division 1 Softball Marucci Elite Hitter Award. Sophomore outfielder Olivia Van Hook and freshman utility player Sara Ralston also received First Team All-Conference and First Team All-Region honors. Temple College also had two players named Second Team All-Conference. Smith also received NJCAA Division 1 Pitcher of the Week honors for games February 16-22 and April 6-12. In 2014, Zaleski and her Leopards finished 46-11, good for a 2nd place finish in Conference and 2nd place finish at the Conference Tournament. Temple College had five players named First Team All-Conference in 2014, which included sophomores Shelbi Swenson who was also named Co-Player of the Year for the conference and Stephanie Flores who was named Pitcher of the Year for the conference, both for back to back seasons. Swenson was also named First Team All-Region and NJCAA Third Team All-American. Flores was also named First Team All-Region and NJCAA Second Team All-American. Freshmen Dakota Holly, Abigail Schade, and Alex Wilson were also named First Team All-Conference. Holly was also named First Team All-Region and NJCAA Third Team All-American. In 2013, Zaleski and her Leopards finished 45-19, good for a 2nd place finish in Conference and a 3rd place finish at the Conference Tournament. Zaleski recorded her 100th win as a Leopard on February 8, with a 4-1 victory over Blinn College in Brenham. Temple College had six players named First Team All-Conference in 2013, which included freshman infielder Shelbi Swenson who was also named Player of the Year for the conference and freshman pitcher Stephanie Flores who was named Pitcher of the Year for the conference. Shelbi Swenson also received First Team All-Region and NJCAA First Team All-American honors. Sophomore outfielder Rachel Laird received Second Team All-Region and NJCAA Third Team All-American honors. Stephanie Flores also received Second Team All-Region honors along with teammate freshman infielder Savannah Stech. Temple College also had two players named Second Team All-Conference. Flores also received NJCAA Division 1 Pitcher of the Week honors for games April 15-21. In 2012, Zaleski and her Leopards finished 45-17 with a Conference Tournament Championship awarding them a trip to the NJCAA National Tournament in St. George, Utah where they finished 12th overall. Temple College had five players named First Team All-Conference in 2012, which included sophomore Emily Leib who was also named the Pitcher of the Year for the conference for back to back seasons. Leib also received Second Team All-Region and NJCAA Third Team All-American honors. Temple College also had five players named Second Team All-Conference. Freshman Jenna Bane received NJCAA Division 1 Player of the Week honors for games March 19-25. In 2011, Zaleski and her Leopards finished 47-14 overall, the fifth most wins in a season in school history. The 2011 squad was two wins shy of tying the longest winning streak in Temple College Softball history (25) with 23 wins in a row. The Leopards were Conference Champions and finished second in the Conference Tournament. Temple College had 6 players named First Team All-Conference, which included Emily Leib as Pitcher of the Year and Jenny Calhoun as Player of the Year for the Conference. Temple College also placed five players on the Midwest All-Region team. First Team All-Region honors went to freshman pitcher Emily Leib and sophomore catcher Lindsey Rossi. Second Team All-Region honors went to sophomore outfielders Jenny Calhoun and Samantha Jeter and freshman infielder Timishia North. Leib also had the honor of being named NJCAA First Team All-American. Temple College also had three players named Second Team All-Conference. At the end of the season Zaleski and her Leopards were ranked third in the nation. Through Zaleski’s five seasons her teams have compiled an overall record of 234-73 while going 132-24 in conference play. Prior to coaching at Temple College, Zaleski volunteered at TC practices and worked several TC camps from 2006-2010. Zaleski served one season from 2005-2006 as the Graduate Assistant Coach at her alma mater, Texas State University for current head coach Ricci Woodard. In 2006, the Bobcats finished 34-22 overall, going 18-5 in conference play to finish second place in the regular season standings. Zaleski also coached several years with the Austin Storm organization. Zaleski started her coaching career while still playing in the NPF, giving softball lessons to youth and organizing and working softball camps and clinics in Texas and Illinois. As a NPF player, Zaleski also had the opportunity to work camps in California, Michigan, Wisconsin, and New York. Zaleski played professional softball for 5 seasons (2004-2008) in the National Pro Fastpitch League (NPF), 3 for Texas Thunder and 2 for Rockford Thunder. Zaleski was named the NPF Most Valuable Player in 2005. In 2006, Zaleski was named to the United States National Training Team but just fell shy of being selected to the final 2008 Olympic Team. Zaleski is a graduate of Texas State University where she played from 2001-2004. In both 2003 and 2004 Zaleski was honored as a NFCA All-American, CoSIDA Academic All-American, and the Southland Conference Player and Hitter of the Year. Zaleski graduated Cum Laude with a Bachelor of Science in Criminal Justice with a focus in Law Enforcement in 2004.