Ed Powell will begin his sixth season at the helm of the Bowie State University softball program in 2025.
Powell and the Bulldogs are coming off back-to-back Central Intercollegiate Athletic Association (CIAA) Championships (2023, 2024).Â
This past season, Powell guided the Bulldogs to 20 wins and an 11-5 mark in the CIAA in 2024, including four-straight wins on its way to the program's second-straight conference title. Four Bulldogs earned All-CIAA honors: Ellianna Henneberg, Akirra Pullen, Jayla Evans and Presleigh Braxton. BSU ranked into the top five within the CIAA in multiple statistical categories: RBIs (first - 325), runs scored (first - 394), hits (first - 460), doubles (first - 67), home runs (second - 23), on-base percentage (fourth - .438), assists (first - 376), putouts (first - 1,077) and triples (third - 31).
Powell propelled Hill to one of the top players in the league as she led the CIAA in hits (58) and doubles (14) on her way to the conference tournament MVP award.Â
In 2023, Powell guided the Bulldogs to a 35-16 record, including a 14-2 mark in the CIAA, Northern Division Champions and victories over ranked opponents such as Mansfield, New Haven and a sweep over Bloomsburg - the first in program history. The 35 wins also set a program record for most wins in a season for the Bulldogs. The historical season also featured seven Bulldogs named to the All-CIAA Team: Lindsey George, Brittany Brewer, Akirra Pullen, Kayla Evans, Trinity Mizelle, Jayla Hill and Aseyah Alexander. George earned CIAA Player of the Year recognition and joined Hill on the D2CCA All-Atlantic Region Team. Additionally, both George and Hill were selected to participate in the 2023 HBCU All-Star game.
The 2022 is where things begin to move upward for the Bulldogs softball program under Powell's tutelage as BSU turned in a 24-20-1 season - his first winning season of his career in just his third season. That season also featured a runner-up finish for the Bulldogs in the conference championship, a CIAA Northern Division title and a 20-game winning season for the first time since 2017. Evelyn Beuhlman was named the 2022 CIAA Player of the Year while Alyssa Cloutier was named the CIAA Rookie of the Year. Additionally, Powell had a total of six players named All-Conference: Buehlman, Cloutier, Brittany Brewer, Saniya Jones, Shanya Gordon and Kayla Evans.
Both Buehlman and Jones tabbed D2CCA All-Atlantic Region honors while Cloutier capped her freshman season as the 2022 NCAA Statistical Champion for runs scored per game (1.39).
Powell began his collegiate coaching career at Bowie State but his first two seasons were halted due to the COVID-19 pandemic where the Bulldogs combined for a 1-26 record.
A native of Hampton, Va., Powell and his wife Lynn have three children and one grandson.
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