Joe Witten is in his seventh season as IU Southeast's head softball coach. He led the Grenadiers to back-to-back KIAC regular season and tournament championships in his first two seasons and claimed the 2019 River States Conference Tournament Championship. He has been named the KIAC Coach of the Year in 2013, 2014 and 2015.
Witten spent 10 seasons as the head softball coach at Floyd Central High School leading the Highlanders to unprecedented success.
Floyd Central won five Hoosier Hills Conference championships, a regional title and made one appearance in the Indiana state final during Witten’s tenure. He also was named District 5 Coach of the Year four times.
Four of Witten’s players went on to play NCAA Division I sports at Ohio State, Indiana University-Purdue University Indianapolis, Furman and University of Tennessee-Martin. Nineteen players went to play collegiate softball overall, and six players were named to academic all-state teams.
He finished his high school coaching career with a 222-82-4 record for a .721 winning percentage.
Witten played baseball at Eastern Kentucky University from 1995-1998. He was named to the Freshman All-America team in 1995. He remains the school record holder for single-season and career saves. He is the Ohio Valley Conference career saves leader with 32 saves. After graduating, Witten played in the Cape Cod League, the top-college summer league, with the Harwich Mariners in 1996 and 1997. He signed his first professional contract with the Frontier Leaguer’s Springfield Capitals in 1998.
Joe lives in New Albany with his wife Kendra and has two sons, Brady and Briar, and a daughter Janelle.
