CLEVELAND, Miss. -- The Delta State University softball team welcomed a new member to the coaching staff on Thursday, as head coach Casey Bourgoyne-Charles announced the addition of Kelly Beth Ernest as the Lady Statesmen's new assistant softball coach.

"I am very excited about hiring KB Ernest as our new assistant coach," Bourgoyne-Charles said. "Over the past year, I had the opportunity to spend some time around Coach Ernest in a professional setting, and I was always impressed with her. As a young Coach, she has great experience in many aspects of the game and has learned under some of the best. She's hard working, driven and will be great with player development.She also has a great background with some of the top summer ball organizations, which will be instrumental in recruiting. I am am looking forward to working with her."

Ernest enters her first season as the assistant coach for the Delta State University Lady Statesmen softball program. Ernest joins the #DSUFamily after serving as a volunteer assistant coach at Itawamba Community College in Fulton, Miss., last year.
 
Ernest was part of a coaching staff that helped lead ICC to a 36-9 overall record and a regular season Mississippi Association of Community Colleges Conference (MACCC) championship. 
 
The program was ranked No. 5 in the final poll of the NJCAA Top 25 rankings and fell in the NJCAA Region 23 tournament to cap an impressive campaign. ICC hit .330 as a team, slugged .475, and tallied 301 runs in its 45 games. 
 
Ernest was responsible for many game day administrative duties, maintained statistics, helped recruit, and worked with the team's pitching staff. Ernest was a key component to a staff that coached eight MACCC All-Conference players and the MACCC Pitcher of the Year Emily Robinson. Robinson went 9-3 with nine saves, posted a 1.59 ERA, and struck out 87 hitters in 88 innings. 
 
Under the direction of head coach Andy Kirk, Ernest and the rest of the ICC staff were named the MACCC Coaching Staff of the Year. Ernest also helped coach multiple National Fastpitch Coach's Association (NFCA) All-Region selections, along with two NJCAA All-Americans (Emily Robinson and Madison Jenkins).

Ernest enjoyed a successful collegiate career that began at Harding University. While with the Lady Bison, Ernest ranked first in the Great American Conference and second in NCAA Division II in saves with 10, and she ranked fourth in the GAC in strikeouts with 42. Ernest then transferred to Blue Mountain College, where she was a left-handed slap hitter and left fielder for BMC.
 
The Selmer, Tenn., native has also coached numerous youth softball programs, as she served as the head coach of the Blue Angels 16U and 18U fast pitch softball teams out of Southaven, Miss. from 2019-2021. She also coached the American Freedom 14U and 16U softball teams in Corinth, Miss., as well as the Arkansas Blast 12U team in Searcy, Ark. while at Harding. 

Ernest owns a Bachelor of Science in Business Administration from Blue Mountain College, and a Master of Business Administration from Blue Mountain as well.