Illinois hires former All-American Jenna Hall as new head softball coach – The Daily Illini

By Evy York, Summer Editor • Jun 2, 2026

A familiar and historic name is taking over the helm of Illinois softball, as former All-American Jenna Hall was announced as the program’s newest head coach on Tuesday. Hall will now become the third head coach in program history and rejoin the program for the first time since working as a student assistant during the 2007 season. 

“We are thrilled to welcome Fighting Illini Hall of Famer Jenna Hall back to Illinois as the new head coach of our softball program,” said Director of Athletics Josh Whitman. “Not only is Jenna among the great players in our program’s history, but she has established herself as one of the country’s up-and-coming head coaches. With assistant coaching experience in the Big Ten and the ACC, and now success as a head coach in the Mid-American Conference, Jenna is well prepared to lead the program at her alma mater.”

The former Illini infielder still holds program records in career (.357) and single-season (.481) batting average, slugging percentage (.580), on-base percentage (.486), home runs (33), RBI (142) and walks (148). Hall also led Illinois to two NCAA regional appearances during her tenure on the team from 2003-06. 

After bouncing around in assistant coaching roles, Hall received her first head coaching job at Ohio University, where she has spent the last four years turning the program into a consistent top finisher in the Mid-American Conference. Hall finished her tenure at Ohio with a 138-86 overall record, a 73-35 record in MAC play and four seasons of 30-plus wins. 

Before Hall took over as head coach, the Bobcats were on a streak of consecutive losing seasons, but started to slowly see improvement in the conference standings, as they finished second in the MAC in 2022 with a 17-10 conference record. Hall not only helped the program sustain this success, but helped Ohio achieve even more. 

In her first season as the Bobcats’ leader in 2023, Hall led them to 32 wins and their first winning record since 2019. Hall was also named MAC Coach of the Year that season. She won the award for a second time in 2025 after Ohio finished the season with an 18-8 conference record — its best of Hall’s tenure — and appeared in a MAC tournament championship game. This season, Hall and the Bobcats put up a 38-win season, which was the Bobcats’ most wins in a single season since 2018. 

Now, Hall is making the next move of her coaching career by returning to a program and university where her name is cemented in the history books. 

During her senior year, Hall was named a first-team All-American by the National Fastpitch Coaches Association and was a finalist for the USA Softball Player of the Year Award. Years later, in 2019, more accolades followed for Hall as she became the first player from the softball program to be inducted into Illinois Athletics Hall of Fame. 

If one thing is true about Hall, it’s that she is bringing a history of winning — both as a player and coach — to an Illini team that has struggled to make its mark in the Big Ten over the last few years. Although Illinois finished last in the Big Ten this season, plenty of its roster is returning to the program next season as the team continues to find its identity in a deep conference. Having Hall at the helm will give the Illini a fresh start in 2027. 

“I want to thank Josh Whitman, Sara Burton and the University of Illinois for trusting in me to lead this softball program,” Hall said. “Illinois has meant the world to me since I stepped foot on campus as a freshman. To be able to return to the place that started it all is a dream come true. I have always been extremely proud to be an Illini, and I can’t wait to wear the orange and blue once again.”

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