Elizabeth Hightower

Biography

Hightower starts her Trojan coaching career after being hired on June 24, 2025, by head coach Eric Newell. A two-time NCAA Women’s College World Series participant at Florida and current professional softball player with the Florida Vibe, Elizabeth Hightower, is hired as the new pitching coach for Troy softball, head coach Eric Newell announced Tuesday afternoon. Over the last two years, Hightower doubled her professional playing career as the pitching development coordinator at Florida Atlantic, where she collaborated with head pitching coach Nicole Newman on bullpen planning, weekend game preparation and pitch calling strategies. With her help in recruiting, FAU helped secure the No. 1-ranked transfer class in 2023. The Owls combined for an 86-28, 44-10 AAC record in her two seasons, earning a bid to the 2024 and 2025 NCAA Tournament at the Gainesville Regional. FAU also won the regular season title in 2024 in its inaugural season in the American Athletic Conference. At FAU, she worked with the pitchers, which included Ainsley Lambert, who led the AAC in saves (8), hits allowed (63) and runs allowed (31) in 2024. Hightower also worked with Trinity Schlotterbeck. Shlotterbeck earned All-AAC First Team, NFCA DI All-Region First Team, Softball America All-American and NFCA DI All-American with a team-high 10 homers at the plate and a 16-7 record through 144 innings pitched on the mound. She also coached All-American, AAC Pitcher of the Year, All-AAC First Team and the No. 79-r