Troy University Athletics
Hall of Fame
- Induction:
- 2023
Confidant. Humble. Leader. Three terms that anybody would want to have associated with their name, and those three words rolled off the tongue of Hall of Fame head coach Melanie Davis when talking about Barbara Sherwood.
“Barb always had a lot of confidence as a player and as a coach, but she was extremely humble and had respect for those around her,” Davis said. “When she found out about the Hall of Fame, her first response was to think of those who went in before her and how special it was to be placed among the others who represent Troy Softball.”
Sherwood helped lead Troy to 176 wins during her four-year playing career, including a school record 52 wins in her freshman season of 1995. As a sophomore, Sherwood and the Trojans shocked the softball world by knocking off DePaul in back-to-back games to win the 1996 Mid-Continent Conference Tournament.
“She earned the right to be our catcher as a sophomore, and back then, catchers called their own games behind the plate,” Davis said. “She was a great leader and worked so well with the pitchers; she almost like a coach already that young in her career.
“Barb called two amazing games against DePaul and was a major reason we shut down their high-powered offense,” David said. “We were the last team to keep DePaul out of the NCAA Tournament for a long time.”
Troy would go on to beat Southeast Missouri State twice in the NCAA Play-in Series and earn a berth in the NCAA Midwest Regional Tallahassee, Fla., where it battled Arizona and South Florida.
“After we won the conference tournament and were loading the vans for a long drive back from the mid-west to Troy, and as we were trying to make sure everyone was on the vans, Barb was missing,” Davis said. “When we found her, she was sitting in the dugout just taking it all in, almost like a coach. I asked her what she was doing, and she said, ‘I don’t want it to end.’ She saw how precious championships were, and that meant a lot to her. When you have the intangible qualities that she did – passion, loyalty and insight into what being a champion means – it’s easy to see why she had success.”
In addition to being a star on the diamond for the Trojans, Sherwood also played volleyball for two seasons, where Davis was also the head coach.
“She had such a passion for competitive sports and the team concept,” Davis said. “She had a tremendous passion for the game and for her teammates. Barb was extremely loyal to her teammates, to her school and her coaches.”
Her passion and leadership were evident to all those around her as Sherwood was voted team captain as a sophomore, Troy’s conference championship season, and she went on to become a successful assistant coach and head coach at the collegiate and professional levels.
After her graduation from Troy, Sherwood joined Davis’ staff as a graduate assistant coach before moving into the No. 1 assistant spot. She parleyed her success at Troy into assistant jobs at Wisconsin, Florida State and Virginia Tech before being named the head coach at Portland State. Additionally, Sherwood coached at the professional level for the Akron Racers in the National Pro Fastpitch league, where she was named Coach of the Year in 1999.
“Because she was so good as a player from a leadership standpoint, she just naturally transitioned into a coach following her playing career,” Davis said. “Because of her leadership, recruiting and team building came easily to her, and you don’t realize how important those intangibles are as a coach until you don’t have them. She had a team-first personality, and it shows you the caliber of coach she was when you look at the schools she was at.
“It’s a truly an honor for Barb for her selection into the Hall of Fame when you look at the other softball representatives,” Davis said. “She was such an integral part of our success in the early days of Division I softball.”
