BROWNWOOD, Texas – The Howard Payne University softball program this week announced the addition of Erika Richardson to the Lady Jackets softball staff as an assistant coach.

Erika Richardson comes to Howard Payne after serving as a graduate assistant coach at Hardin-Simmons University in Abilene, Texas.

At Hardin-Simmons, she helped coordinate recruitment, fundraising, and practice planning.

"Coach Erika is an incredible addition to this staff," said head coach Kailey Anderson. "Her knowledge and passion will be used in every aspect this game provides."

Erika also has coaching experience with youth softball in Round Rock, Texas area. There she honed her skills in practice planning, player development, game situational strategy, and lineup management.

"I'm super excited to be starting at such a great university," said Erika Richardson. "This whole process has been such a blessing and I can't wait to contribute to the success of our program on and off the field."

Erika was a student-athlete at D-I Campbell University from 2018-2019 and then at Texas A&M-Texarkana from 2019-2022.

At TAMU-Texarkana, she received First and Second Team All-Red River honors and help lead the Eagles to back-to-back Red River Conference titles (2021 and 2022).

Erika graduated Summa Cum Laude from TAMU-Texarkana with a bachelor's in Business Administration and a concentration in Management in the spring of 2022.