By Chloe Webster
Lauren Conway never thought she’d end up in the William Peace University dugout again.
When she hung up her cleats after college, coaching wasn’t even on her radar. Conway fell in love with the game again after returning to Peace on the other side of the chalk lines. Although her path to becoming Peace’s head softball coach wasn’t well planned, she has accepted the position with appreciation, enthusiasm, and purpose.
Conway, a Peace alum, was named head coach in may after spending the 2023 and 2024 seasons working as an assistant coach. She succeeds longtime coach Charlie Dobbins, who retired after 25 years of running the program.
“I took it head on, and it was a ton of fun, and I feel like it kind of gave me the leverage to relate with the girls more and understand what they wanted and needed,” said Conway.
Growing Up in Greenville
Raised in Greenville, a college town with a rich sports culture, Conway was introduced to athletics early. From a young age, she was drawn to sports, particularly softball, influenced by her father’s background in baseball. Little did she know that her love for the game would eventually lead her to a coaching career.
Greenville, home to East Carolina University, played a crucial role in her development as an athlete.
“Athletics were huge, especially in the youth aspect,” said Conway, “There were tons of little leagues for baseball and softball, and it created this great community surrounding sports, which was really great growing up.”
Her journey with softball began when she was just in first grade. Initially signed up for dance and gymnastics, Conway was quickly persuaded by her father, a lifelong baseball enthusiast, to pursue softball instead.
“I remember being in first grade when the local rec league handed out little purple sheets of paper to the girls in my class,” she said. “My mom had just signed me up for dance and gymnastics, and I begged my parents to let me switch. My dad said, ‘Take her out of the dance. Take her out of gymnastics. This is what we’re doing.’”
And from that point on, softball became Conway’s sport of choice.
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Transitioning from Player to Coach
Conway first came to Peace in 2018 and graduated with the 2022 class. She was a standout player all five years at Peace and contributed greatly in the catcher’s position. Conway was a USA South Second Team All-East Division catcher in 2021 and 2022. She graduated with a sport and fitness studies degree and a minor in sports management.
Conway had already secured a job in clinical oncology research and had assumed that path was her future. But fate had other plans.
It started when Dobbins, the previous head coach at Peace, joked with her about coming on board as an assistant.
“At first, I thought it was just a joke, but then a couple of weeks later, he called me back and said, ‘I’m serious—come be my assistant,’” recalled Conway.
Conway decided to give it a try. What started as a casual experiment soon turned into a passion.
Transitioning from player to coach posed challenges for Conway, especially when stepping into a leadership role among former teammates.
“I ended up loving it,” Conway says, “but it was definitely a learning curve, going straight from playing to coaching, especially coaching the same girls that I had played with. We had to step away from the friendship aspect for a while, but now that they’ve graduated, we’re still really good friends. It’s just something you have to figure out as you go.”
Despite the challenges, Conway embraced the transition, finding that it gave her a unique ability to relate to her players.
“Being so close in age to the players, I could understand them. I had been in their shoes, so it made it easier to relate and support them,” says Conway
Coaching Philosophy and Team Culture
One of the defining aspects of Conway’s coaching philosophy is her focus on building a strong team culture. During her years as a player at Peace, she noticed a lack of unity and cohesion within the team. As a captain for her sophomore through fifth years, Conway worked hard to address this issue. Now, as the head coach, she continues that focus.
“The program has definitely changed over the years,” Conway explains. “When I was a player, the team culture was a ‘hot mess,’ to be honest. There wasn’t a strong sense of unity.”
However, as the years passed and Conway transitioned into coaching, things began to improve.
“By the time I graduated, the culture had definitely grown and gotten better. But as head coach, I’ve been able to take it even further,” said Conway.
Being introduced to something new after being used to something can be quite scary for someone, especially when that new thing is a coach. It takes a while to understand the way a coach coaches, this can change the entire game for some players.
“This is a big role for her to take on and she has done a great job handling all of the responsibilities that come along with it,” said Cierra Lear, sophomore exercise sports science major. “No coach is ever going to be perfect, and she will continue to learn and grow as a coach the longer she is in this position, but I am extremely proud of what she has done for our team in her first year.”
Players say her youth makes her easier to connect with.
“It is so important to me that my coach is someone I can go to not only about softball, but about anything else, and Coach Lauren has exceeded those expectations for me,” said Lear.
Conway’s focus on recruiting players who fit the team’s culture has been central to her efforts.
“We’re in charge of bringing in players who are not only talented but who we know will fit into the culture we want to create,” Conway says. “In the past, that wasn’t necessarily the focus, but now we have a team where the girls are all best friends, and they genuinely get along all the time. That’s something I’m really proud of.”
First hand experience with Coach Conway
A coach can determine a lot of things for a player, that being good or bad. For the Peace softball team Coach Conway has helped them in many ways grow on and off the field.
“Coach Conway has been the first female softball coach I have played under, and while I was scared at first for that change,” said Taylor Bryd, freshman exercise sport science major, “it has turned out to be better than I could have imagined. She keeps me level headed in the game and never fails to make it fun.”
For many players, their senior year playing a sport is often the most important year to them, especially when it comes to saying goodbye to some of the people who have helped you do so much. Experiencing a change during possibly the last year of your athletic career can be quite intimidating for a player. Coach Conway made that change a little bit easier for some.
“The impact on having a new head coach was definitely a change. Change can be scary but in this case, change was needed and it ended up being a good decision,” said Taryn Shelton, senior double majoring in business administration and marketing. “Coach Lauren really pours her heart into the softball program and she will be very successful in the future.”
Embracing a New Era in Coaching
Conway also acknowledges the role gender plays in coaching, particularly after having worked with Dobbins, the previous head coach who served as a mentor and father figure.
“Charlie is like a second dad to me. I’ve known him for eight or nine years now, and he did great things for this program,” Conway says.
However, Conway believes that having a younger female coach has its distinct advantages.
“I think being a younger coach allows for better relationships with the players,” Conway says. “As a female who’s been in their shoes before, I think it’s crucial to understand the mindset of the players. We’ve been through the same challenges, and that relatability makes a huge difference.”
As the team continues to evolve, Conway is committed to fostering an environment that embraces both her coaching style and the changing dynamics of athletics.
“The mindset is shifting as the generation changes, and I think it’s important to recognize that,” Conway says. “I’m excited about what’s to come, and I’m ready to help guide these young women to success on and off the field.”
Looking Ahead: The Future of William Peace Softball
Conway is excited about the direction in which the Peace softball program is heading. With a strong foundation in team culture, recruitment, and a fresh coaching perspective, she’s confident that the program will continue to thrive.
“We’ve made a lot of changes this year,” Conway says. “I’m really looking forward to what the future holds for our team and our players.”
For Conway, the ultimate goal is to help her players succeed—not just in softball, but in life.
“The relationships we build here, the lessons we learn, they’re all about preparing these women for the future,” Conway says. “That’s what really matters.”