UW River Falls Softball Camps

ETHAN GIESE

Head Coach

Ethan Giese was announced as the UW-River Falls head softball coach in August of 2024.

Giese comes to UWRF after spending the 2024 season as an assistant coach at the University of Dayton, where he helped lead the Flyers to the program's first ever Atlantic 10 Championship and NCAA Division I Tournament appearance. As the staff's pitching coach, Giese led the Flyer's pitching staff to an overall ERA of 2.47 while leading the Atlantic 10 during league play with a 1.93 ERA. He and his colleagues were selected as the Atlantic 10 Coaching Staff of the Year.

Before Dayton, Giese served as an assistant coach at UW-La Crosse for four seasons from 2020-23. During his time at UWL, the Eagles compiled a 71-41 overall record, won the WIAC regular season title in 2022 and the tournament crown in 2023, reaching the NCAA Tournament. While leading the pitching staff, he coached six student-athletes to All-WIAC honors along with the two-time WIAC Pitcher of the Year (2022-23), several NFCA All-Region recipients, and an NFCA All-American in 2022. For two consecutive seasons (2022-23), Giese and the UWL coaches were recognized as the WIAC Coaching Staff of the Year.

A 2014 graduate of UW-La Crosse, Giese also has men's fastpitch softball playing experience as a pitcher and utility player. Since 2010, he's played all over the Midwest from Wisconsin, Minnesota, and Illinois.

MIKE PERRY

Assistant Coach

Mike Perry joined the UWRF Softball coaching staff in the fall of 2024.

With 18 years of girls' fastpitch coaching experience, Coach Perry is currently the Mission fastpitch 16U national team coach and 12U developmental coach. For the past three years, he has also served as an assistant softball coach at Forest Lake High School in Forest Lake, Minn., helping lead the Rangers to a Minnesota AAAA State Championship in 2022, along with a runner-up and a fourth place finish.

Previously, Perry has coaching experience at the 16U Premier level as a recruiting coordinator for the Birmingham Thunderbolts Fast pitch Organization in Alabama. Perry's daughter, Justus, played for the Birmingham Thunderbolts and went on to play Division I at Auburn University and professionally in the Women's Professional Fastpitch softball league.

CARLIE CHRISTENSEN

Assistant Coach

Carlie Christensen has been an assistant coach with the UW-River Falls softball team since the fall of 2020.

A River Falls High School graduate, Christensen was a four-year member of the UW-Eau Claire softball team while playing in over 100 career games as a catcher and first basemen from 2014-18. She served as a team captain her senior season and helped lead to the Blugolds to WIAC Championships in 2015 and 2016. In addition, she played one season on the UWEC women's hockey team in 2017-18.

Christensen graduated from UW-Eau Claire in 2018 with a Business Administration degree along with a Coaching minor, and currently serves as an Enrollment Specialist in the UWRF Admissions office. She also coaches club softball for the VSA Guardians 16U team.