Sass tabbed to lead Rivier softball team

NASHUA, N.H. – Rivier University announced the hire of Noelle Sass as its Head Softball Coach on Thursday.

She comes to campus from NCAA Division II Bentley University where she served as an Assistant Coach for the reigning East Region finalists since September 2021. Setting the program record for team victories twice (24 in 2022, 30 in 2023) in her tenure, the Falcons made their first NCAA postseason berth this past spring.

"I would like to thank Director of Athletics Jonathan Harper and the selection committee for giving me this opportunity to lead their softball program as its next Head Coach," said Sass. "I am excited to begin working with a team full of young talent and veteran leadership in order to build a competitive program, on and off the field."

Under the direction of the Northeast-10 Conference's 2023 Coach of the Year, Terry A. McDonough, Sass and the Falcons led the league in fielding percentage (0.969) while ranking second in win-loss percentage (0.649). Bentley batted .304, ranking third in the conference, and boasted the third-finest earned-run average (2.62) in the NE10.

"We are excited to welcome Noelle to the Rivier family as our first full-time softball coach," said Director of Athletics Jonathan Harper. "She was a standout student-athlete during her academic career and has since excelled in her coaching career. Her expertise in the highly-competitive Northeast-10 will position our student-athletes for success."

Coaching seven All-NE10 selections since her first season in 2022, Sass planned position-specific sessions and designed individualized hitting plans for the Falcons. The native of Randolph, Mass. was also charged with a variety of administrative duties, including the program's marketing and recruiting responsibilities.

Sass is presently a Head Coach with the Mass Drifters organization, working primarily with girls aged 12 through 19. She also gained valuable coaching experience at Fontbonne Academy from 2020-21, leading the softball program during her tenure at the private preparatory high school.

A Summa Cum Laude graduate of Newbury College with a degree in Sport Management in 2019, Sass was named the NECC Player of the Year in 2018 and finished her career with a .451 batting average. Rapping 32 career home runs, Sass captured All-America honors as a junior and was a Second Team All-Region honoree as a freshman.

Academically, Sass was a four-time Academic All-America selection as her team collectively posted a grade-point average of 3.695 in 2017, leading all of NCAA Division III. She was also a two-sport student-athlete at Newbury, competing on the women's soccer team as a goalkeeper.

Sass earned a master's degree in Applied Human Development (Coaching) from Boston University in 2020.