MANKATO, Minn. - Minnesota State head softball coach Lori Meyer became the all-time winningest coach in NCAA Division II history with 1,341 wins and counting. Meyer, who is in her 39th season as head coach, passed Gary Bryce who amassed 1,340 career wins at Wayne State University (1982-21).

During her career, Meyer has claimed eight conference championships, 30 winning seasons, 17 trips to the NCAA Tournament, three trips to the NCAA Championships and an NCAA Championship in 2017. Meyer has also been named to the NFCA Hall of Fame.

Maverick softball players have combined to receive 131 all-conference honors and 19 student-athletes have also earned All-American honors during Meyer's tenure.

In 2014, Meyer recorded her 1,000th career victory on April 13 when the Mavericks defeated Minot State 8-5.  

An eight-time league coach of the year and three-time Midwest Regional Coach of the Year, Meyer and her staff were named the NFCA Central Region Staff of the Year in 2011. A noted clinician, the Storm Lake, Iowa, native instructed the Fifth Annual European Baseball/Softball Clinic in Italy in 1989. She has also served on several NCAA Division II Softball Committees, including the Midwest Region Advisory Committee, the Midwest Region All-American Committee and the NCAA Women’s Softball Rules Committee. She has also served a stint as the Division II representative to the National Fastpitch Coaches Association. Last season, Meyer wrapped up a four-year stint on the NCAA Division II Softball Committee.

Academic success has always been an important component under Meyer as well. During her time at MSU, she’s seen six teams finish with a grade point average in the top-five of Division II, including her 1996 squad, which had the best GPA in Division II with a 3.31. Additionally, 136 Mavericks have earned NFCA All-Academic honors to go on top of the aforementioned 166 that have earned academic all-conference.

A 1982 graduate of Upper Iowa, Meyer lettered in volleyball, basketball and softball in college, and in the fall of 2001, was inducted into the UIU Athletics Hall of Fame. She began her coaching career as a volleyball and softball graduate assistant at MSU, earning her master’s degree in physical education from MSU in 1985. In addition to her current duties as a softball coach, Meyer has also taught in the Human Performance Department and serves as Minnesota State’s Senior Women’s Administrator.

Win No. 1 - March 22, 1985 vs. Colorado State in Lubbock, Tex. (Texas Tech Tournament) | W, 3-1
Win No. 100 – May 2, 1987 vs. Nebraska-Omaha in Sioux Falls, S.D. | NCC Tournament | W, 6-1
Win No. 200 – April 13, 1991 vs. Nebraska-Omaha in Cedar Falls, Iowa | W, 2-1
Win No. 300 – April 16, 1994 vs. North Dakota in Fargo, N.D. | W, 2-1
Win No. 400 – March 24, 1997 vs. Central Missouri in Ocoee, Fla. | W, 3-2 (8 innings)
Win No. 500 – May 5, 2000 vs. Northern Colorado in Omaha, Neb. | W, 8-6 | NCC Tournament
Win No. 600 – April 18, 2004 vs. Nebraska-Omaha in Mankato, Minn. | W, 1-0
Win No. 700 – April 28, 2007 vs. Concordia-St. Paul in North Mankato, Minn. | W, 8-0 (5 innings)
Win No. 800 – March 25, 2010 vs. Waldorf in Mankato, Minn. | W, 10-1 (5 innings)
Win No. 900 – March 24, 2012 at Minnesota Duluth in Duluth, Minn. | W, 6-0
Win No. 1,000 – April 13, 2014 vs. Minot State in Mankato, Minn. | W 8-5
Win No. 1,100 – February 18, 2017 vs. Arkansas Tech in Bentonville, Ark. | W, 8-0 (6 innings)
Win No. 1,200 – March 3, 2019 vs. Edinboro in Clermont, Fla. | W, 11-5
Win No. 1,300 – March 10, 2022 vs. Stonehill College in Clermont, Fla. | W, 9-1 (5 innings)
Win No. 1,341 - February 19, 2023 vs. Emporia State in Emporia, Kansas | W, 5-0