Eastridge softball transforms with Coach Collins’ arrival

IRONDEQUOIT, N.Y. (WROC) — Success has been hard to come by for the Eastridge softball team over the past 30 years. In 2023, the varsity team ended its season with just seven wins. Then, in 2024, the team hired Shelly Collins as their newest head coach.

In just one season, the team improved to 12 wins. The following season, in 2025, they racked up 11 wins and made a run to the Class A Sectional Finals, where they lost to Pittsford Sutherland. Now this season, Collins and the Lacers have started their season a perfect 10-0.

“Coach Collins just saw what everyone else didn’t see in us,” explained Emma Johnson, a senior on the softball team. “She elevated what our program already had.”

While the improvement since the addition of Collins is obvious on the scoreboard, her athletes say her impact goes much deeper.

“Coach brings a lot of new standards into the program,” said senior Harper Kuehne. “She taught us how to have respect for ourselves on and off the field, and how to always put in 100% effort.”

“Having these different morals,” explained Marley Siembor. “That we talk about every single day at practice really gets us in the mindset to know that we are who we are, and that we’re really good.”

The instant success with the addition of Collins is not much of a surprise when you look at her resume. In her over 30 seasons as a varsity softball coach, she won seven Section V titles and one New York State title. In addition, with over 530, she is in the top two all-time for Section V softball wins.

All of these personal accomplishments and accolades are extremely impressive, but if you ask her, they don’t matter at all.

“Part of my why is to develop strong, independent, self-advocating females,” explained Collins. “We do that through the game of softball. Seeing all of their hard work have a payoff not just in wins and losses, but in being great people, is what keeps us coming back.”

Collins and her staff of Dave Prong and Denise Dillnen have coached together for 12 seasons, meaning 12 different groups of girls. Even so, they all agree that this year’s Eastridge team is special.

“The fact that teams have played together, I think that’s hit or miss,” said Dave Prong, one of Collins assistant coaches. “It doesn’t necessarily always translate to success down the road. This groups a little different. Once we got everybody on the same page, they just continued to climb the ladder and improve. The fact that they stay together, and they all seem to have a common result, is very helpful for us.”