Northern Kentucky University Athletics

Northern Kentucky University head softball coach Kathryn Gleason announced the hiring of assistant coach Ashley Obrest to her staff for the 2023 campaign.

The Elmwood, Park, Illinois native works primarily with the catchers and the infield. She also oversees team travel, as well as assisting in all aspects of recruiting. She brings over 12 years of NCAA Division I coaching experience to the NKU staff. 

Her first year in Highland Heights was one for the record books as the Norse won the Horizon League Championship and appeared in the NCAA National Tournament for the first time in program history.

To go with the team honors, NKU also cleaned up when it came time to announce the Horizon League post season awards as Maddie Lacer earned Defensive Player of the Year and All-League First Team honors, Ella LeMonier and Lauryn Hicks joined Lacer as All-League First Team selections, Jena Rhoads was named All-Freshman Team and All-League Second Team and Brille DiMemmo joined her as an All-Freshman Team honoree.

Obrest joined the Norse staff after three seasons as an assistant coach at Boston University. Prior to her time with the Terriers, Obrest served as the head coach at her alma mater, Boston College, along with stints at Colgate University, Concordia University and the Chicago White Sox Training Academy. 

At Boston College, the Eagles recorded a combined 200 wins during Obrest's eight years at the helm in Chestnut Hill with five 27-plus win seasons and four 12-plus win seasons in ACC play. In total, BC collected 21 All-ACC awards and 15 NFCA All-Region honors. In her first year with the program, Obrest guided BC to its first 20-win season in five years and its first defeat of a nationally ranked team (North Carolina) in three years. 

Following a two-year stint as the assistant coach at Colgate, Obrest was promoted to head coach of the Raiders in July 2010. The 2011 season saw Colgate set a school record for most wins by a first-year head coach (27), as she led the Raiders to a regular-season Patriot League title with a 16-3 mark in conference play. 

Prior to joining Colgate, Obrest served as an assistant coach at Concordia University in Chicago. 

To go with her coaching experience, Obrest was a four-year standout at Boston College. The catcher was the first Eagles softball player to garner an ACC Player of the Week accolade. To go with her play on the field, Obrest was also a part of numerous Student-Athletic Advisory Committee (SAAC) initiatives, including the Pen Pal Program, Food for Families and the hospital visitation programs. 
 
Obrest earned her Bachelor of Arts in sociology from BC in 2007 before going on to earn a Master of Science in sports management from SUNY Cortland in 2010.