Kirk Walker, who has been the Oregon St. softball coach for the last 18 years, has resigned, and accepted the assistant coach position with UCLA.
Walker is a Bruin alum, and was on the UCLA softball staff for 11 years from 1984-94, during which the Bruins won 6 NCAA National Championships, before he became the head coach at Oregon St.
Walker led Oregon St. to all 10 of the post-season appearances in their history, including the College World Series in 2006, and the NCAA regionals this past spring.
Walker has family in the Los Angeles area, as well as his historic ties to the UCLA program.
Athletic Director Bob De Carolis hopes to name a replacement shortly, and with the growth in interest in softball in recent years, there are numerous candidates available.
With the advent of the Pac-12 Network, softball, which gets almost all of its exposure on ESPN during the College World Series, is one of the sports that is poised for growth with the increased availability the conference network will bring.
Andy_Wooldridge@yahoo.com