Kelly Brookins named head softball coach

Kelly Brookins was named Chipola College's head softball coach at a press conference on Tuesday, July 20. Former Coach Belinda Hendrix left Chipola after 18 years to take the head coaching job at East Tennessee State University.

Brookins is a 2004 graduate of Liberty County High School where she was a 2-time member of Florida's All-state teams. Brookins played two years at Chipola where she earned an AA and earned 2nd Team All-Conference honors her sophomore year. 

Brookins went on to play at Nova Southeastern University where she earned a B.S. in Sports and Recreation Management in 2008. Brookins returned to Chipola as a coach in 2011 and served as assistant coach for 10 seasons.

During her time as assistant, Chipola teams have won the National Championship two times (2015 and 2019) and have finished runner-up twice (2016 and 2018). The Lady Indians made their sixth consecutive national tournament appearance this year and their ninth appearance overall at nationals.

"I'm excited for the opportunity to take over a program that I've been part of as a player and coach," says Brookins. "I'm going to continue to hold student athletes to a high standard both on and off the field and continue to work hard to uphold the winning tradition."

Chipola finished the 2021 season with a sixth State Championship. Five players were named to the State All-Tournament Team. The Lady Indians also won a share of the 2021 Panhandle Conference title finishing with a 15-5 league mark, along with Pensacola.