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Jordann Wakabayashi steps down as Corona del Mar’s softball coach, heads over to Savanna

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Jordann Wakabayashi has resigned as coach of the Corona del Mar High softball team, Sea Kings athletic director Don Grable said on Tuesday.

Wakabayashi will continue coaching softball at Savanna, where she will be a co-head coach with Mike Willey. Location played a role in the decision, as Wakabayashi will be going back to school to pursue a single-subject teaching credential in biology at Hope International University in Fullerton. The Rebels went 16-9 overall and 5-5 in the Orange League in 2019.

She spent three years in charge of CdM. The Sea Kings went 32-45-1 overall and 7-22 in league games under Wakabayashi, and CdM twice achieved a record of .500 or better in her three seasons at the helm.

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In her first season in 2017, Wakabayashi guided the Sea Kings to a 14-13 overall record and a 4-6 record in Pacific Coast League play. It marked CdM’s first winning season since 2006, and the Sea Kings also ended an eight-year drought for league victories. Wakabayashi was named the Daily Pilot Softball Coach of the Year in her debut season.

Wakabayashi expressed gratitude to CdM for giving her a start in coaching. The former Chapman University outfielder spent two years as an assistant coach for the Sea Kings before taking over the program. Asked about the lessons she wanted to impart to her players, Wakabayashi said she hoped that they understood that softball is, in fact, a game, and that having fun is what matters most.

“They didn’t know what a winning season was,” Wakabayashi said of when she took over as head coach of the Sea Kings. “So my focus then became, ‘OK, let’s start to have some fun with this game, and then maybe that will kind of change around the attitude a little bit.’

“If they learn how to love the game as much as I love the game, then I would call that a winning season, regardless of the record. It’s not an individual sport. They need every single person on that roster, regardless of how much each person plays. Every single person has to be a part of it.”

CdM moved from the Pacific Coast League to the Wave League this past season. The Sea Kings (13-13, 3-6 in league) finished third in the league.

Grable said interested candidates for the position of CdM softball coach should email him at dgrable.nmusd.us with a letter of intent, a resume and up to three letters of recommendation. The deadline to apply is Aug. 30.

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