Hannah Sparks joins Auburn softball as an assistant coach

AUBURN, Ala. Hannah Sparks helped Oklahoma to its third straight national championship and is moving to Auburn softball as an assistant coach and head coach. Mickey Dean announced on Monday.

“We are thrilled to welcome Hannah to our staff,” Dean said of the hire. “Hannah will work with the catchers as well as help our infielders. She brings a wealth of knowledge and experience as an Oklahoma player and coach.”

Sparks served as a volunteer assistant coach at his alma mater during the 2023 season, during which the Sooner staff was named the National Fastpitch Coaching Association Division I Staff of the Year. Sparks helped the Sooners to a 61-1 record, the best winning percentage in NCAA Division I softball history and the Big 12 regular season and tournament titles.

Oklahoma led the nation in several categories, including earned run average (.96), batting average (.367) and fielding percentage (.988). The Sooners’ championship streak included an NCAA-record 53-game hitting streak, 35 shutouts, 29 wins by the run rule and a 28-0 record against program records.

A nation-leading five Sooners were named NFCA First Team All-Americans during Sparks’ tenure, while eight student-athletes earned All-Big 12 honors.

Before returning to Oklahoma, Sparks spent three seasons as the hitting and catching coach and recruiting coordinator at Pearl River Community College in Poplarville, Mississippi. During the 2021 season, PRCC hit 43 home runs and held a team batting average of .335 below the Sparks.

Sparks began his coaching career as a graduate assistant at Lee University in Cleveland, Tennessee.

A 2018 graduate of Oklahoma, Sparks won a national championship with the Sooners as a catcher in 2017. The Thomasville, Alabama, native made more than 70 appearances after transferring from Northwest Florida State College, where he was an NFCAA Division I All-American. I level. He helped lead Northwest Florida State to the 2016 Panhandle Conference championship.