BELOIT, Wis. - The Beloit College Athletic Department continues to bolster its athletic staff with the hiring of former Division I pitcher Jennah Speth Fowlkes as Assistant Softball Coach and Sports Information Coordinator.Â
Fowlkes joins the Buccaneers after a record-setting career at Delavan-Darien High School, standout seasons at two NCAA Division I programs, a stint as a professional player, and several years of coaching in Wisconsin.
"Jennah is a tremendous addition to our softball program," said head softball coach Kim Zarling. "Her experiences as a collegiate student-athlete, and previous coaching gives her a great understanding of what it takes to develop and support student-athletes. She will bring a great deal of energy and knowledge to our program. I'm excited to have her join our staff and help us build something special here at Beloit College."
"I am excited for the opportunity to join the staff and to support Coach Zarling's vision and help build a winning, resilient culture here at Beloit College," said Fowlkes.
Fowlkes most recently coached at the high school and college levels. She has served as an assistant softball coach for pitching at Carroll University since October 2025, and she was named varsity head softball coach at Edgerton High School in March 2026. She joined the Edgerton staff in 2021 as JV head coach, then moved up to varsity assistant coach in 2022 and varsity co-head coach in 2024. In that role she also managed the program's social media presence.
Since January 2021, Fowlkes has also worked as a private hitting and pitching instructor through Speth Softball in Darien, designing individualized training programs for athletes of all skill levels. Following her playing career, she served as a volunteer assistant coach at IUPUI in the fall of 2021.
Away from the diamond, Fowlkes taught health and physical education in the Edgerton School District from 2022 to 2025. She holds a Master of Science in kinesiology from Indiana University Indianapolis (formerly IUPUI) and a Bachelor of Science in kinesiology, with an emphasis in movement science, from the University of Illinois at Chicago (UIC). Her certifications include personal training and group fitness instruction.
Fowlkes first made her name at Delavan-Darien High School, where she was a double threat in the circle and at the plate. In 2016, she struck out 22 batters in a game, an all-division state tournament record, while leading the Comets to the championship game.
She also helped Delavan-Darien to back-to-back regional championships in 2013 and 2014, including the program's first-ever regional title, as the Comets went 43-14 over those two seasons.
Her honors included First Team All-Conference, First Team All-District, honorable mention All-District and All-State, Second Team All-State, and Southern Lakes Co-Athlete of the Year.
At UIC, Fowlkes was named to the All-Horizon League Second Team and the All-Freshman Team. After three early-season appearances, she played in 45 games and made 35 starts, primarily in the outfield. She recorded the team's second-best batting average at .327 and hit .319 in conference play. Of her 41 hits, 22 came against Horizon League opponents.
She also owned the team's best slugging percentage at .538, thanks to 15 extra-base hits: seven doubles, two triples and a team-high six home runs. She ranked in the top 10 in the Horizon League in slugging percentage, home runs and RBI.
As a junior, Fowlkes moved into the circle, making 15 appearances and 10 starts while also recording 30 at-bats. She went 6-2 with a 4.17 ERA, allowing 40 hits and 30 earned runs over 50.1 innings. She threw three complete games, three solo shutouts and one shared shutout, and struck out 30 batters. Opposing hitters managed a team-low .214 average against her, and just .171 against Horizon League competition. In conference play, she went 4-0 with a 1.63 ERA.
She then transferred to IUPUI, where she appeared in and started all 44 games. On March 20, she threw the only perfect game in IUPUI Division I history (since 1999), against Cleveland State, striking out a season-high 10. She was named Horizon League Pitcher of the Week on March 23.
Fowlkes led IUPUI with a 2.91 ERA, 137 innings pitched and 119 strikeouts, finishing 7-14 with 17 complete games. At the plate, she led the roster with six home runs, 18 RBI and 26 walks, the most in the Horizon League. She also tied for the team lead with eight doubles and totaled 33 hits and 19 runs.
After college, Fowlkes played professionally for Cidra in Puerto Rico from May 2022 to August 2024.
In her new role, Fowlkes will assist with the Beloit softball program and serve as sports information coordinator for the department.
