“I initially thought I would come in here, work for four years, build up the program, win an Ivy title, and then move on to somewhere else,” Allard says. “But I love the students and I realized it’s a blessing to work with such bright, motivated people.”

For someone who wants to be known as a good “teaching coach,” it seems like Harvard was the perfect fit for Allard after all. Bringing in a new generation of talented recruits from out West, Allard has been able to refine their abilities and create a dominant program in the process.

Tiffany Whitton, the team’s captain and one of its all-time best athletes, was one such player. She praises Allard’s keen ability to get the most out of the people she brings into the program.

“Her biggest strength is that she pushes her players to achieve their greatest potential,” Whitton says. “She really believes in her players’ abilities and tries to get her players to believe in those abilities also.”

But beyond the successes of her teams on the field, perhaps the most telling aspect of Allard’s tenure has been her focus on academics and mentoring off the field.

“She demands a lot of her team on the field and in class,” Wentzell says. “It is clear that her kids respond.”

A graduate in Psychology from Michigan, Allard has always been interested in how the things that she’s learned about human behavior can be applied to her job as a softball coach. To that end, she enrolled in the Graduate School of Education and received a Master’s degree in 1999. She is now finishing work on her second Master’s degree through the Extension School and hopes to apply what she’s learned in the classroom in her day job.

“I really want to use those classes to supplement my coaching in terms of learning some things to help my players,” Allard says. “The classes have definitely given me ideas to implement in practice with certain players.”

Allard also hints that her scholarly side may have a motivational impact on the study habits of her players.

“It’s nice when you take classes and your team sees you studying and doing work,” she quips.

Allard has also been a freshman proctor for the last eight years, extending her desire to serve as a mentor to non-athletes at Harvard.

And it is these extra bonuses that Harvard offers—what Allard calls a better “quality of experience”—that explain why a planned four-year stop has turned into a much longer stay. Allard seems happy with her decision and the continual challenge of building up a powerhouse program seems to remain an animating desire for her.

“There’s an underdog mentality that people pass to you coming into a game,” Allard says. “Then you get in there, give them a run for their money or upset them, or do other great things.”

“It’s the opportunity to create a lot of pride in the program,” Allard sums up.

Judging on the sustained success of the program under Allard’s tutelage, her intended goal of building pride in Harvard softball seems to have worked out for the best.