Leticia Pineda-Boutté (Leh-tee-cee-uh Pih-NAY-dah Boo-TAY), a three-time All-American player and former assistant coach at Creighton University, joined the Purdue softball coaching staff as a first assistant in August of 2004. [quote]We are thrilled to have someone of Leticia[apos]s caliber on board," Bruggeman said. "Not only does she have an outstanding background as a player, but she has also done great things so far in her coaching career. She will definitely make a difference in our program." Pineda-Boutté joins the Boilermaker staff after a highly decorated collegiate career at perennial softball power Arizona, a year in the women's professional softball league and four years in the coaching ranks. Lety, as she is affectionately called, arrives in West Lafayette after helping Creighton to NCAA berths each of the last two seasons, including a record-breaking 2004 season.
"Purdue is a school filled with tradition and that is one of the main things I am looking forward to being a part of," Pineda-Boutté said. "This is an awesome opportunity for me. Hopefully, I can bring some new ideas and a winning attitude to the program. I have been to the postseason many times in my career and hopefully that winning attitude will filter down to our players. Coach Bruggeman and Coach Monroe also have that winning attitude that I believe is vital to the game. I look forward to working with them and doing whatever I can to help this program." At Creighton, Pineda-Boutté worked primarily with the pitchers and catchers and hitters, coaching the Bluejay hurlers to an outstanding 0.99 ERA in 2004, which ranked sixth in the nation, and a .718 winning percentage which ranked 20th in the nation. Junior pitcher Tammy Nielsen earned All-America honors under her tutelage last season after ranking fifth in the NCAA in ERA (0.67), as Creighton went 44-17-1, finishing third in its NCAA Regional bracket. Pineda-Boutté began her coaching career as interim head coach at the University of Colorado-Colorado Springs during the 1999-2000 season. She guided the Mountain Lions to a 16-14 mark in the Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference that year and to the team[apos]s first postseason appearance in four years. She then worked as a consultant for the United States Air Force Academy[apos]s club softball team in 2001-02 before moving to Omaha to work with the Bluejays in 2002. All this followed a standout career at Arizona and a season playing with the Tampa Bay Firestix of the WPSL in 1999. Pineda-Boutté stands as one of the most prolific players in the history of Arizona softball. She is the only Division I athlete to be named first team All-America at three different positions - catcher (1996), third base (1997) and first base (1998). She helped guide her teams to the College World Series each of her four years bringing home the National Championship in 1996 and 1997, while winning Pac-10 Conference titles in 1995, 1996 and 1997. The three-time all-region and All-America honoree connected for 52 home runs in her career, the 10th highest tally in NCAA history, while her 240 career RBI rank sixth most all-time in the NCAA. She finished her career with a .375 batting average and a .687 slugging percentage, which ranks among the NCAA top 20. Her 96 RBI tally in 1996 has been topped by just four players in Division I history, while her 20 home run tally in 1998 ranks among the NCAA top 20. In addition to her athletic recognition, she has been honored from outside organizations, earning the Hughes Missile Systems Company's Sportswoman of the Year award in 1997 and the Courage and Leadership Award from the National Hispanic Women[apos]s Corporation in 1998. In honor of her accomplishments, Pineda-Boutté will be inducted into the University of Arizona Hall of Fame in October. The former Leticia Pineda graduated from Arizona with a bachelor of arts in humanities in 1998. She and husband Shawn Boutté have been married for three years.