COSTA MESA -- After an extensive national search, Vanguard Athletics is pleased to welcome Nicole Thomas as the new head coach of the VU softball team.  Thomas, who was most recently the head coach at Mater Dei High School, becomes the seventh head coach in VU softball history, as the program enters its 40th year.
 
"We are blessed to welcome Nicole Thomas to the Lions family. Her enthusiasm, vision, and heart for transforming lives resonated throughout the process," stated Athletic Director Jeff Bussell.  "She is a proven teacher of the game, and her emphasis on creating a positive Christ-centered student-athlete experience will help our program continue to grow within the highly competitive PacWest Conference. She is a winner who uses softball as a tool to pursue excellence in all aspects of life while glorifying God and impacting His Kingdom. We are confident that her connections in Southern California will be an asset in community engagement and recruitment. We look forward with great anticipation to the future and all that God has planned for our softball program."
 
Thomas and the Monarchs finished second in the Trinity League in 2025 and MDHS got as high as 26th in the state rankings.  She finished her stint at MDHS with a 43-40-2 record, and her 2024 squad made the semifinals of the CIF Tournament in addition to qualifying for the first round of the state tournament.  With a good final season at MDHS, Thomas is ecstatic to be arriving at VU.
 
"I am incredibly grateful and humbled by the opportunity to lead the Vanguard University softball program," relayed Thomas.  "It's clear that God has opened this door, and I'm excited to be a part of a team and campus community that values faith, character, and excellence. My goal is to help our student-athletes grow as competitors in the competitive PacWest conference, and as strong, Christ-centered leaders."
 
Outside of her high school experience, Thomas brings softball knowledge ranging from travel ball coaching, international coaching, and her time as an NCAA DI and professional athlete.    In the club scene, Thomas joined Maddy Grimm in 2021 to form the So Cal Sting Thoms/Grimm youth and travel ball organization.  The program has teams across various age levels and has seen over 25 athletes sign to play in college, with three recent graduates going to DI programs.  Before she got into coaching in Southern California, Thomas taught softball around the world for parts of four years.  Her had coaching roles with professional and developmental teams across four continents and six countries, including Malta, Italy, Taiwan, New Zealand, Austria, and Puerto Rico. 
 
As a four-year player at the University of North Carolina Greensboro, Thomas ended with a career batting average of .362.  She had 157 hits in four years and had over 40 knocks in each of her final three seasons.  With 29 doubles, 31 home runs, and 147 RBI in her career, she placed fourth in program history in career batting average, walks, and RBI, while placing fifth in home runs upon graduation.  In addition to some high-end marks from the plate, Thomas worked from the circle in 86 games and finished sixth all-time with three saves.  She went 22-17 as a pitcher and posted a career ERA of 5.41 with 109 strikeouts.  The team had a winning record in each of her four seasons and made three runs at the Southern Conference Championship Tournament crown, finishing as the runners-up in 2014.  With three SoCon First Team All-Conference nods, her success in the classroom meshed with her on-field qualities in 2016, as she was named an Academic All-American Second Team selection for CoSIDA (now College Sports Communicators, CSC). 
 
After graduating and before moving into coaching, Thomas signed to play professionally in some of the countries she eventually coached in, factoring in lineups across Italy, Taiwan, New Zealand, Austria, and Puerto Rico over five years. 
 
She inherits a VU team that compiled a 22-30 record in 2025 and finished seventh in the Pacific West Conference with a 17-19 showing on debut.  VU had one all-conference selection, as senior Brianna Williams completed her four-year sweep of postseason laurels.  The Lions graduated 10 seniors, including Williams, but return some strong players who Thomas can use to move the Blue and Gold up the PacWest table in 2026.