John Brackett enters his 34th season as head softball coach at North Carolina Wesleyan University and fourteenth as Academic Advisor for the Department of Athletics. Prior to accepting his advising position, Brackett served as head women's basketball coach for 20 seasons, and is currently the program's all time's winningest coach. During his time as head women's basketball coach, Brackett won conference coach of the year three times, and led his teams to two conference titles as well as two NCAA Tournament appearances. To go along with his women's basketball accolades, he also holds the career wins mark in softball, having recently eclipsed the 600-win mark in 2023.
In softball, Brackett was named Conference Coach of the Year in 1996 after leading the Battling Bishops to their third straight regular season conference championship. He went on to earn East Region Coach of the Year accolades in 1998 after helping Wesleyan to a program-best 31-13 overall record and the team's first-ever NCAA Tournament appearance.
Brackett's teams made it to the NCAA Regional Final in both 1998 and 1999 and narrowly missed the opportunity to compete in the College World Series. In 2006 and 2007, Brackett led NCWU to back-to-back 20-win seasons and coached the program's first All-American selection in the form of Ashlee Bass. At the 2009 USA South Conference Tournament, his Bishops made their second semifinal appearance in four years. Most recently in 2021, the Lady Bishops won the East Division Tournament Championship before falling in the conference finals and just missing the opportunity to compete in the NCAA Tournament.
Brackett then earned 2019 USA South Coach of The Year for leading his team to a Regular Season East Division Championship with 20 wins and a 12-4 conference record.
Recently, in 2023 Brackett won his 600th game as a Battling Bishop which expands over a legendary women's basketball and softball career. He also led Wesleyan to a remarkable 27 win campaign. In the fall of the same year, Coach Brackett inducted two legendary pitchers in Kristy Coull and Candace Hall. Both ladies set their mark on the softball program by being selected all-conference multiple times and an incredible win percentage.
A native of Mechanicsville, Virginia, Brackett is an alum of North Carolina Wesleyan. He graduated with a degree in Psychology in 1988 after a four-year career with the Bishop men's basketball team. With over 25 years of service to the Department of Athletics, he became the 12th head coach to garner NCWU Hall of Fame induction in 2014 and the first to also call North Carolina Wesleyan his alma mater.
Brackett and his wife, Suzanne, have two children: Michael and Ashlee. The family currently resides in Rocky Mount.
SOFTBALL ACCOMPLISHMENTS UNDER JOHN BRACKETT
Conference Regular Season and/or Tournament Champions
1994, 1995, 1996, 1998, 1999, 2019, 2021
NCAA Tournament Regional Finalist
1998, 1999
Conference Runner-Up
1993, 1997, 2000, 2001, 2021
Regional Ranking
1997, 1998, 1999, 2019
National Ranking
1997, 1998, 1999
* Best Record: 31-13 (1998)
* Numerous players named All-Conference, All-Tournament, and All-Region
* Numerous players named Academic All-Conference
* One player named All-American (Ashlee Bass)
