Ankeny assistant softball coach Sarah Saladino has been hired to take over the Hawkettes’ program.
She replaces head coach Dave Bingham, who recently announced his resignation after guiding Ankeny to a 293-188 record and four trips to the state tournament over the last 12 seasons.
“There’s a lot of great things that coach Bingham has put in place,” said Saladino, who has been an assistant at Ankeny since 2019. “With the connection to the community and the culture, it’s going to be a great opportunity to just continue what he has put in place and the other coaches before him.”
Saladino played two years at Muscatine Community College before finishing her career at Northwest Missouri State and Northern Iowa. She then started her coaching career at Davenport West, where she spent five years assisting with the sophomore program.
Saladino then served four years as the head coach at Waterloo West. After spending a year at Iowa City West, Saladino joined Bingham’s staff and eventually helped the Hawkettes to back-to-back state tournament appearances in 2023-24, including a fourth-place finish in Class 5A last season.
When Bingham departed to spend more time with his family, Saladino weighed whether to pursue the position.
“It’s always one of those things you think about,” she said. “You wonder, ‘Is this the next step in my career?’, and I knew I wanted to be a head coach again some day. So yeah, it was definitely an easy decision to make.”
Several starters will be back from a team that posted a 22-22 record last season, including junior outfielder Avery Nelson.
“I was super excited when I heard that Sal got the job,” said Nelson, who committed to Creighton earlier this month. “It will be an easier transition since she was our assistant for six years before taking on the new position. I think she will continue our success we’ve had in the past, and there’s a lot for us to achieve this next season.”
Saladino is excited to get to work.
“It’s a great opportunity, and I’m looking forward to continuing the legacy that coach Bingham has established and just moving forward with the program,” she said.