BIRMINGHAM, Ala.— The Samford softball program has hired former Ole Miss star pitcher Kaitlin Lee as its new pitching coach, head coach Mandy Burford announced today.

Lee spent the 2019 season as a graduate assistant coach on the Ole Miss staff. She helped the program to a 41-20 record, an NCAA Regional title and Super Regional berth.

"Kaitlin exhibits the qualities in a coach that we are looking for in our program and I believe she will have an immediate impact on our student-athletes," Burford said. "I am excited to watch her take our pitching staff to new levels of success."

Lee played at Ole Miss in 2017 and 2018. In just two seasons, she left school ranking second in program history in career earned run average (2.03), third in career shutouts (13), fifth in career wins (39) and fifth in career opponent batting average (.240).

In 2017, Lee tied a school record with 23 wins, and set school records for single-season complete games (27), shutouts (10), innings pitched (249.2) and starts (37). For her efforts that season, she earned second team All-America honors.

That season, she helped lead the Rebels to the SEC Tournament title, and earned Tournament MVP honors. She also helped lead the squad to an NCAA Regional title and Super Regional appearance.

During her senior season in 2018, Lee won 18 games, giving her two of the top three single-season win totals in program history. She also set a school record by pitching 18.2 innings and tossing 256 pitches in a single game at LSU. The Rebels again made an NCAA Regional appearance in 2018.

Following her senior season, Lee was selected in the fourth round of the 2018 National Pro Fastpitch Draft by the Aussie Spirit.

The Gulfport, Miss., native came to Ole Miss after two seasons at Mississippi Gulf Coast Community College. In her sophomore season at MGCCC, she earned NJCAA Division II All-America honors after posting a record of 22-4 and an ERA of 0.84. As a freshman, she finished with a record of 20-4 and a 1.79 ERA.