Ashley Gruber, the head coach of the Penn State Behrend softball team, was a three-time All-Conference selection and two-time Team MVP from 2008-12. In her final season, she led the team in hits (55), doubles (16), home runs (9), RBIs (50) and batting average (.430) while being named AMCC Co-Player of the Year. Gruber hit a walk-off home run in the AMCC Championship game to help the Lions reach the NCAA Tournament for the first time since 2009.

What separates some athletes from others is their ability to expand their contribution to the team. A team that she now coaches. From player to coach, Gruber has had nothing but success with the Behrend women’s softball team.

Her freshman year started her run of being named All-AMCC, beginning with Second-Team honors in 2009. Behrend finished 33-8 that season with an unprecedented 18-0 mark in the conference, ending with the program’s fourth AMCC Championship.

A right-handed hitter and third-baseman, Gruber played smart, and she played aggressive.

She hit .348 as a junior and then a team-leading .430 as a senior. Gruber also received the Team Scholarship and Leadership Award, the AMCC Sportsmanship Award in her junior year, and was named the AMCC Player of the Year and an All-AMCC choice (First Team) in 2012. She led the team to another AMCC Championship. With bases empty and one out in the bottom of the ninth, Gruber smacked her final collegiate home run in a Behrend uniform. She sent it over left-center fence for a 5-4 victory over Penn State Altoona.

Gruber batted .351 for her career and broke the program’s doubles record. She is second all-time in home runs (19) and assists (323) and is third in RBIs (128).

Gruber resides in Erie, Pa. with her wife, Paulina Gruber.