Former Auburn University standout Taryn Gray has been hired as EMCC’s assistant softball coach by the Lady Lions’ newly named head coach Kyndall White. Gray and White previously were teammates for AU’s Lady Tigers of the Southeastern Conference.

“I’m very excited about being able to work together with Kyndall (White) again.  It’s always nice to be able to team up with a former teammate on a coaching staff,” Gray said.  “I’m definitely ready for this next challenge in my coaching career, and I greatly appreciate East Mississippi Community College for giving me this wonderful opportunity.”    

“Taryn will be a tremendous asset to our softball program here at East Mississippi Community College,” EMCC’s White noted.  “She will be an integral part of every aspect of our softball program as we strive to take the EMCC Lady Lions to the next level of success.”  

Gray previously teamed with White during the 2008 and 2009 softball seasons at Auburn, combining to help lead AU head coach Tina Deese’s Lady Tigers to back-to-back NCAA Regional Tournament appearances.  While White remained at Auburn to complete her collegiate playing days and begin her coaching career, Gray ventured to Niceville, Fla., in 2009 to join former AU assistant softball coach Jack Byerley’s staff at Northwest Florida State College.

Initially serving as a volunteer assistant coach at NWF State during the 2009-10 school year, Gray was elevated to full-time status during the summer of 2010.  During Gray’s three-year association with Northwest Florida State’s tradition-rich softball program, she served as the team’s outfield coach while also assisting in hitting/slapping techniques and coordinating the team’s strength and conditioning efforts.

Dating back to the 2010 softball season, the Lady Raiders of NWF State put together a composite three-year record of 113-42 competing within the demanding Florida College System Activities Association (formerly known as the FCCAA), including a Panhandle Conference co-championship in 2011 and runner-up league finish the year prior.  In 2011 during Gray’s first season in a full-time coaching capacity, Northwest Florida State hit .356 as a team with 79 stolen bases en route to posting a 41-9 overall record, 13-3 conference mark and No. 6 national ranking in the final NJCAA Division I poll.  In addition, nine Lady Raider players earned all-conference accolades, including four first-team selections.

All total during Gray’s three-year affiliation with Northwest Florida State’s highly acclaimed softball program, 24 all-conference honors were earned by Lady Raider standouts.  Also during this span, nine NWF State players have gone on to compete collegiately at the four-year level.

As a left-handed outfielder during her collegiate days at Auburn, Gray started 167 of the 200 games in which she appeared.  During her four-year career (2006-09), she helped lead the Lady Tigers to a collective mark of 130-103 with three NCAA Regional Tournament berths.  Gray hit a career-best .315 as a 36-game starter during her freshman year to help lead AU to an NCAA Regional Tournament championship-game appearance.  As a junior, she started all 60 games in right field and ranked third on the team with her .277 batting average.

Throughout her collegiate career with the Lady Tigers, Gray also served as an instructor during Auburn’s annual summer softball camp.  Responsible for 150 campers, she helped instruct outfield defensive play and hitting drills in addition to organizing camp activities and supervising dorms.

Gray was a two-time all-state performer for head coaches Jennifer Brown and Mark Brooks at Vestavia Hills High School in Alabama.  She capped her prep career as a Super 12 All-State performer in helping pace VHHS to a state runner-up finish in 2005. 

With a bachelor’s degree in health promotion from Auburn, Gray is the daughter of Edward and Kelly Gray.