Founding coach Holas steps down after 16 seasons at the helm
Pasadena native guided Cougars to 3 C-USA titles, 7 NCAA tourneys
Kyla Holas, the only head coach in the 16-year history of the University of Houston softball program, resigned Saturday.
The resignation comes one day after the Cougars finished the season 27-29 with a loss in the American Athletic Conference tournament semifinals. It was the program’s first losing season since its debut in 2001.
Holas, 45, was in the final year of her contract.
In a statement, the university said Holas was stepping down to “pursue other opportunities.”
A search for a replacement will begin immedi- ately, said Hunter Yurachek, UH’s vice president for intercollegiate athletics.
“We’d like to thank Kyla for her 16 years of dedication to the University of Houston and for the great deal of success our softball program has achieved throughout the years,” Yurachek said in a statement. “She has touched the lives of many studentathletes throughout her time at UH, and both they and our program will be indebted to her for that service.”
Under Holas, the Cougars won three Conference USA titles, made seven NCAA Tournaments and two NCAA super region- al appearances. Holas’ best seasons came during back-to-back conference title seasons in 2007-08. The 2008 UH squad won a school-record 54 games and came within a victory of advancing to the Women’s College World Series.
But since reaching the postseason in a schoolrecord four consecutive seasons from 2011-14, the last two seasons have been a struggle for the Cougars, who have gone a combined 55-56 overall and 19-16 in the AAC.
Holas, a native of Pasadena, was a two-time CUSA Coach of the Year, and her 415 victories are the most in the league’s history. She was a threetime All-American at Louisiana-Lafayette and was inducted into the Louisiana Sports Hall of Fame in 2011.