Kate Malveaux (mal-VO) enters her second season as co-head coach of Auburn softball alongside her husband, Chris. The pair took over the helm of the program on June 5, 2024. Kate primarily works with the Auburn catchers and defensive as well as base runner.

In the first year of the Malveaux era, Auburn softball earned 35 victories and earned its 11th consecutive NCAA Regional selection. Chris and Kate Malveaux has coached one First Team All-SEC honoree and three National Fastpitch Coaches Association All-Region selections in their short time on the Plains.

The Tigers opened the Malveaux era with a 20-1 start, their best since 2022. The span saw Auburn post a 6-0 record at the elite Shriners Children’s Clearwater Invitational becoming the first team to do so since Florida State in 2019.  Auburn finished the season with a 35-24 record, which included winning four of its final three SEC series. The Tigers earned their first series win in Kentucky since 2016 while also upsetting No. 18 Georgia and No. 13 South Carolina for series victories. 

With its appearance at the 2025 Tallahassee Regional, Auburn extended its streak of consecutive NCAA postseason appearances to 11.  The Tigers delivered (5) Florida State an 8-3 loss on Sunday to force the “if necessary” contest but was one win shy of advancing to Super Regionals in the first year of the Malveaux era.

Playing the fifth toughest schedule in the country, Auburn earned 18 victories against teams in the top 50 of the RPI.

The 2025 season was highlighted by a breakout offensive season from freshman AnnaLea Adams. Adams became the first Auburn freshman to ever win All-SEC First Team honors. The first baseman/designated player was also top-25 finalist for NFCA National Freshman of the Year. She joined Nelia Peralta and SJ Geurin as three Tigers selected to 2025 NFCA All-Gulf Region teams. Auburn’s three selections in 2025 were the most since 2017.

Malveaux led the Tigers to a .966 fielding percentage in her first year on the Plains. The Tigers finished sixth in the SEC and 28th nationally with 27 double plays turned in 2025. Malveaux helped guide Peralta to career defensive numbers as she closed her Auburn career sixth in assists (330) and ninth in double plays turned (34) while catcher Aubrie Lisenby finished second in Auburn history with a .994 fielding percentage.

On the base paths, Auburn stole 50 bases in 2025 and ranked ninth in the SEC with a 1.00 stolen bases per game average. A pair of Tigers ranked in the top 15 in the SEC in total steals. Icess Tresvik led that way with 16 to rank 12th in the SEC while Abbey Smith followed close behind with 14 to finish 15th. The duo both finished in the top five in Auburn history in career stolen bases.

Chris and Kate Malveaux came to Auburn after serving as assistant coaches at the University of Tennessee where they helped the Lady Volunteer program to back-to-back Southeastern Conference regular season titles in 2023 and 2024 and a Women's College World Series appearance in 2023. 

Additionally, the two helped Tennessee to 136 wins over the last three seasons, which tied for the 10th most wins nationally and second most by an SEC team. This past season, Tennessee not only won the SEC regular season title, but posted a 44-12 overall record and made an NCAA Super Regional appearance.

Kate Malveaux was on staff at Tennessee for three seasons after joining the program in June of 2021. She served as a volunteer assistant during the 2022 and 2023 campaigns before being elevated to a full-time assistant coach position ahead of the 2024 season. She primarily worked with the Lady Vols' catchers and baserunners. 

In her first full season as an assistant coach, Malveaux continued her work with base running and the Lady Vols catchers. Tennessee's catchers committed just two errors over the course of the 2024 season and threw out five base runners.

A first-year Lady Vol, Sophia Nugent earned All-SEC honors with her efforts behind the dish and at the plate. Nugent totaled 42 hits, including eight doubles and 11 home runs with 38 RBI. Starting 52 games, Nugent held a .933 fielding percentage and threw out four base runners. 

For the third straight season, Tennessee finished in the top five in the SEC in stolen bases per game, as the Lady Vols averaged 0.96 per game. Tennessee finished fifth in the league with 54 total stolen bases. 

Over her two seasons as a volunteer assistant, the Lady Vols won 92 games and in 2023 won the SEC regular-season and tournament titles – sweeping both crowns in the same season for the first time in program history.

In 2023, Tennessee secured its first 50-win season and reached the national semifinals at the Women's College World Series for the first time since 2013. The trip to the WCWS was its first since 2015 and its eighth all-time. Primarily focused on Tennessee's catchers, Malveaux helped Giulia Koutsoyanopulos transition from the outfield to playing behind the plate in 2023. Before coming to Knoxville, Koutsoyanopulos had never been a catcher but moved into the role and started 59 games for UT.

Also working with the baserunners, the Lady Vols stole 50 bases in each of the past three seasons. Since Malveaux's arrival, Tennessee has ranked among the top five in the SEC in stolen bases per game. UT was second in 2022 with an average of 1.49, fourth in 2023 at 1.43 and fifth in 2024 at 0.96.

Malveaux—formerly Kate Singler—was a member of the Missouri softball staff for the 2020 and 2021 seasons as its director of operations.

A standout softball player at Bradley, Malveaux served as a volunteer assistant coach for the Braves in 2012. As a student-athlete, she was a Second Team All-Missouri Valley Conference selection and a First Team MVC Scholar-Athlete. She also earned First Team Capital One Academic All-District V honors as a senior.

In back-to-back years as a junior and senior, she led Bradley in RBIs, becoming just the fifth player in program history to do so.