GRANT YOUNG -COACHING BIO
Grant Young has been named the new coach of the East Central College Falcons softball team. Young will be replacing Brad Wallach, who has been the head coach for the past 15 seasons.
Young has served over the past two years as the head softball coach at Washington High School in Missouri. He will also remain in that role at Washington. This past season, the Blue Jays finished 37-1-1 and captured the Missouri Class 4 state title, never losing to a single Missouri school. Washington finished third in the nation according to the final NFCA poll and was the top program in the State of Missouri for MaxPreps.com. The team was led by two-time Missouri Gatorade Player of the Year and NFCA All-American nominee Taylor Brown, who will be playing at Texas A&M University. Washington players also were recognized for their excellence by having four NFCA All-Region, six All-State, and 11 All-District selections. Overall, being a head softball coach for three years, including one year at Neosho High School in Missouri, Young’s teams have comprised an impressive 89-15-1 record.
Over the past eight years with the Blue Jay program, as varsity assistant and head coach, Young’s teams have amassed six Gateway Athletic Conference titles, five district titles, four Final Four finishes and two state championships (2021 and 2023). Young was recognized as 2023 MHSFCA Class 4 Coach of the Year and the NFCA Region 1 Zone Coaching Staff of the Year.
Young also has served as a varsity basketball coach in the State of Missouri for the past 23 years. Over that time, he has coached boys’ and girls’ teams, achieving 385 career wins, including seven MSHSAA district titles, two Final Four appearances, and a state championship in 2011 at Purdy, MO. He was recognized as the Girls Basketball MBCA/Sportswriters 2011 Class 2 Coach of the Year.
Young is a 1996 graduate of Union High School. He graduated from Missouri State University with a B.S. in Cell and Molecular Biology (2000) and William Woods University with a M.S. in Athletic Administration (2007).