| Bridget Orchard | |
| Current Title: | Head coach |
| Current Team: | Villanova |
| Current Conference: | Big East |
| Alma Mater: | Villanova |
| Player Years1: | 1994–1997 |
| Player Team1: | Villanova |
| Player Positions: | Second Baseman |
| Coach Years1: | 1998–2001 |
| Coach Team1: | Cabrini |
| Coach Years2: | 2002–2018 |
| Coach Team2: | Fordham |
| Coach Years3: | 2019–present |
| Coach Team3: | Villanova |
| Championships: | |
| Awards: | |
Bridget Orchard (née Baxter)[1] is an American softball coach who is currently the head coach at Villanova.[2] From 1998 until 2001, she was the head coach at NCAA Division III Cabrini. From 2001 until 2018, she was the head coach at Fordham.[2] [3]
After graduating from Villanova University in 1997, Orchard was hired by Cabrini University to serve as the school's softball coach.[3] Orchard immediately turned the program around, providing the school with its first ever winning season in 1998. The team would continue to improve their record each year in the four seasons under Orchard, ultimately winning four regular season titles and two conference tournament titles. The 2001 team set a record for most wins in a season in program history.[1] [4]
At the end of the 2001 season, Orchard was named head coach at Fordham.[5]
In a similar situation to what she had faced at Cabrini, Fordham had failed to achieve a single winning season prior to her hiring.[6] The 2002 season would prove to be Orchard's only losing season as coach at Fordham, turning the program into a dynasty in the Atlantic 10.[7] Under Orchard's watch, the program won five regular season titles, seven conference tournament championships, and appeared in the NCAA Division I softball tournament eight times.[8] In the 2010 and 2015 tournaments, Fordham advanced to the Regional Finals before being eliminated from the tournament, the best postseason performances in program history.[9]
On June 1, 2018, Orchard resigned from her position of head coach at Fordham.[10] [11]
On the same day of her resignation at Fordham, Orchard was hired at her alma mater, Villanova, as head coach.[12] [13] In 2021, the Wildcats won the Big East Conference softball tournament for the first time in program history, defeating UConn in two straight games.[14] The team advanced to the NCAA Division I softball tournament for the first time in program history, managing to defeat UMBC before being eliminated from the tournament by Ole Miss.[15]
Season cut short due to COVID-19 Pandemic