Jodie Cox joined the Highlanders Softball program as lead assistant coach in July 2012, and works directly with the pitching staff and assists with the day-to-day operations of the program.
In October of 2015, she was promoted to associate head coach, following a season that saw the Highlanders rank 14th in the nation in ERA (2.13), and post the program's first winning season.
A great deal of that success came from the pitching circle where Cox coached Co-Big West Pitcher of the Year Chelsea Ponce to a 30-10 record with a 1.34 ERA and 188 strikeouts in 261 innings of work.
Ponce also tossed the first no-hitter in the program's Division I history, and was named Conference Pitcher of the Week on five occasions.
Prior to joining the Highlanders, Cox spent five years as the head coach at Occidental College in Los Angeles. Taking over a program that won three games the season before her hiring, Cox and company tied the school record for wins in a season in 2009 and broke that record during an 18-win season in 2011.
Prior to taking over the reins at Occidental, Cox was the top assistant coach at Cal State Northridge, helping the Matadors to an NCAA Regional berth in 2007. She was also the lead assistant at Syracuse when the Orange earned 2005 Big East Coaching Staff of the Year honors.
Cox graduated from Cal State Fullerton with a degree in kinesiology and began her coaching career as a student assistant at her alma mater. She was a four-year starter for the Titans, guiding them to four consecutive Big West Conference titles and NCAA regional appearances.
Cox earned All-Conference accolades in each of her four seasons, was a two-time All-West Region honoree, and earned All-America honors following her senior year when she was 21-7 in the circle with a 1.06 ERA and 224 strikeouts in 190.2 innings. Cox held opponents to a .125 batting average and led the Big West Conference in five different categories en route to Co-Big West Pitcher of the Year honors.
For her career, Cox was 75-22 in the circle with a 1.42 ERA and 699 strikeouts—just three short of tying the school record. She held opponents to a .170 batting average and at the time of her graduation, ranked among the top 10 in 10 different career pitching categories for the Titans. Cox tossed seven no-hitters in her career, including a perfect game against Minnesota in 2001. She also hit .298 at the plate with 21 home runs and 110 RBI in her career.
Cox played in the Women’s Professional Softball League for four years, earning NPF All-Star in 2005 with a .261 batting average, 2.07 ERA, and 12 wins. She was also a member of the 2003 USA Elite National Team which won the Canada Cup that year. Cox was named MVP of the tournament as she went 3-0 with a 0.00 ERA in 19 innings of work.
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