OKLAHOMA CITY – The MACU softball program will be replacing its legendary pitching coach with another as the Evangels have added former Arkansas Razorbacks and Tulsa Hurricanes star Chenise Delce to their staff as the new assistant coach. Delce will primarily handle the pitching coach duties and oversee the MACU softball program's internal operations.
"I am so blessed to be able to work with these girls here at MACU," Delce stated. "I feel like God placed me here, and I am excited to be a part of this team that will glorify Him through it all."
The Oklahoma City native is replacing Keilani Ricketts-Tumanuvao, who was offered an Assistant Coach position with NCAA Division I Pacific earlier this month.
"I'm replacing a pro with another pro," stated MACU softball head coach Jim Gasso. "I'm very fortunate to have someone with Coach Delce's knowledge and experience. Having someone of her caliber will be awesome for our program as it enters into its next chapter."
Delce brings a wealth of collegiate and professional experience to the position. She served as a pitcher for the New York Rise, a professional team in the Association of Fastpitch Professionals during the 2024 season, after playing with the Women's Professional Fastpitch's Oklahoma City Spark during the 2023 campaign.
Before starting her professional softball career, Delce had an incredible five-year college pitching career as a member of the Arkansas Razorbacks and Tulsa Hurricanes. In her two seasons with the Razorbacks, Delce was named the 2022 Southeastern Conference (SEC) Pitcher of the Year and earned All-SEC First Team honors in both 2022 and 2023. She also claimed NFCA Second Team All-America honors during her 2022 campaign.
Delce also played for the Hurricanes from 2019-21, earning the American Athletic Conference (AAC) Rookie of the Year award in 2019 and First Team All-AAC honors during the 2021 campaign.
Over the course of her five-year collegiate career, the right-handed pitcher amassed a 69-29 record with a 2.09 ERA over 190 appearances, throwing an impressive 625.2 innings. During that time, Delce struck out 660 batters while walking just 181, resulting in a highly efficient 3.6 strikeout-to-walk ratio.
Mid-America Christian is coming off one of its best seasons in program history. Last season, under Gasso's first year at the helm, MACU finished with a 37-17 overall record. The team set a Sooner Athletic Conference program record for wins, going 27-9 in league play, and qualified for the program's first-ever NAIA Tournament.
Not only did MACU qualify for its first NAIA tournament, but the Evangels also notched their first NAIA Tournament victory against a highly-rated No. 15 College of Idaho program, winning 4-0 in Fayette, Missouri on May 14.
