2021 natalya smarra headshot

Natalya Smarra

  • Title
    Assistant Softball Coach
  • Year at California (PA)
    7th
  • Alma Mater
    California (PA) - 2016
  • Phone
    724.938.4479
  • E-Mail
    smarra@pennwest.edu

A former four-year starting third baseman for the Vulcans, Natalya Smarra enters her fifth season as an assistant coach at Cal U in 2021.

Smarra started at third base from 2013-16 and was a three-time All-PSAC West selection. She helped Cal U win back-to-back PSAC Tournament Championships in 2014 and 2015. Smarra finished her career tied for seventh in school history with 24 homers and ranked eighth with 281 total bases. She posted a .331 average (176-for-531) over her career while starting over 180 games.

A Sto-Rox product, Smarra rejoined the program in 2017 as a part-time assistant coach at semester break before being hired as a full-time assistant coach following the season. The Vulcans qualified for the PSAC Tournament in each of her initial two years on the coaching staff in the final days of the regular season. Additionally, Cal U has featured a pair of NFCA All-Americans over the last four years in shortstop Emily Price and utility/pitcher Taylor Robblee.
 
The Vulcans were the 2018 recipients of the PSAC Team GPA Award for the first time since the inception of the award and were later featured among the NFCA Top 10 All-Academic Teams for the third time in six years. Price was also chosen a CoSIDA Academic All-American and a PSAC Spring Top 10 selection as a junior in 2017.

Smarra hit at a career-high .342 clip as a junior in 2015 and helped the Vulcans post a 43-13 overall record. Cal U claimed the NCAA Atlantic Regional Championship that season and advanced to the NCAA National Championships for the first time since 1999. The Vulcans earned a pair of victories at the national site of Oklahoma City to cap the program's winningest season in 15 years.

As a senior, Smarra ranked among the league leaders in multiple offensive categories. She led the team and tied for fifth in the PSAC with a career-high 44 RBI, while also registering a .580 slugging percentage behind eight homers. The Vulcans advanced to the PSAC Championship for the fourth-straight year with Smarra hitting over a .350 clip in the tournament.

Smarra earned a bachelor's degree in sport management with a minor in marketing from Cal U in 2016.