Former Loyola University Chicago standout pitcher Brittany Gardner, who holds school records for wins (67), strikeouts (753) and innings pitched (751.2), enters her second year as an assistant coach at her alma mater. Gardner, who joined the staff in March 2017, is reunited with former Loyola teammate Lauren Moore on head coach Jeff Tylka’s staff.
“We are tremendously lucky to find someone like Brittany to add to our staff,” Tylka said. ”As one of the most accomplished pitchers ever to play at Loyola, Brittany brings the experience of having pitched in the Missouri Valley Conference along with a first-hand knowledge of what it takes to be successful both on the field and in the classroom. She serves as a tremendous role model for our pitchers.”
Gardner’s work with the Loyola pitchers paid immediate dividends in 2017. Sophomore Kiley Jones won 19 games, the most by a Rambler hurler since Gardner herself won 19 games in 2014, and those 19 victories were the most by a Loyola righthander since Lindsey LaChiana won a program-record 20 games in 2004. Loyola led the MVC with a 2.40 team ERA. Gardner also helped Keenan Dolezal nearly triple her win total from her rookie campaign and off the field, the sophomore was named MVC Scholar-Athlete Team Honorable Mention.
Despite being picked last in the MVC Preseason Poll, Loyola earned a berth in the MVC Tournament for the first time since 2014 and knocked off No. 5 seed Evansville before falling to Wichita State. Gardner’s helped one of the youngest teams in the nation win 27 games, the most since 2013. Loyola got off to a blazing 14-0 start, the best in program history and the 14 wins set a school standard for most consecutive victories.
Arguably the greatest pitcher ever to wear the Maroon and Gold, Gardner was a two-time league pitcher of the year honoree and was a two-time National Fastpitch Coaches Association All-Region selection. The lefthander burst onto the scene in 2011, earning Horizon League Newcomer of the Year accolades to become the first Rambler to capture that honor since Ellen Antonacci in 1995. A three-time First Team All-Horizon League pick and a 2014 First Team All-Missouri Valley Conference selection, Gardner was named MVC Pitcher of the Year as a senior. Off the field, she was an accomplished student and was a member of Loyola’s prestigious Maroon & Gold Society in 2013-14.
A former standout pitcher at Sandburg High School, Gardner helped that squad to the Illinois High School Association Class 4A state title as a senior in 2010.
