The University of Mary Marauders Hall of Fame
Under the direction of Brad Walsh, the University of Mary softball team had the greatest run of uninterrupted success of any athletic program in Marauders history. In 14 seasons as head coach, the Marauders capturing 13 straight conference titles, made seven trips to the national tournament and won well over 400 games.
A native of Mandan, ND, and a former baseball student-athlete at Mayville (ND) State University, Walsh took over the Marauders softball team in 1992. The Marauders suffered through a losing season his first year, something that would never occur again under his direction. In 1993, the squad reversed fortunes and finished 27-8, winning the first of 13 straight conference crowns. The season was capped by a trip to the NAIA national championships, the first of seven visits.
After passing 30 wins for the first time in 1998, the Marauders set a school record of 43 wins in 1999 and returned to the NAIA national championships, starting a string of five straight appearances in six seasons. Following eight straight North Dakota College Athletic Conference championships, the Marauders began a run of five straight Dakota Athletic Conference crowns in 2001, finishing 42-8 with a stellar 20-1 mark in league play. Mary won multiple games at the national tournament in 2002 for the first time with three victories in five games, setting up a deeper tournament run he following season. In 2003, Walsh directed the Marauders to five wins and a school-best fourth place finish at the NAIA World Series.
Walsh wrapped up his softball coaching career after another trip to the NAIA world series in 2005 to become the Marauders head baseball coach, a position he held for six seasons during the transition from the NAIA to NCAA Division II. In 14 years coaching softball, Walsh compiled a record of 427-162. In two decades on the diamonds for Mary, he won over 500 games and coached in excess of 100 all-academic and all-conference student-athletes. Eleven times he earned conference coach of the year awards and seven times he was the regional coach of the year.
The business development director for Mann Energy Services, Brad is the son of Bernard “Bud” and Jeanette Walsh. He and his wife Jeni, a former Marauders coach, are the parents of Hailee and Hunter.
