Nikki Nelson, a former softball player at the University of St. Thomas in St. Paul, Minn., has been a science teacher at the St. Bernard School for eight years and always wanted to be a part of the Saints softball program.

Coaching her two daughters for the Mystic Little League and with their travel teams took up most of her time, though, until last year, when her oldest daughter Sophie was a freshman member of the St. Bernard team and Nelson the assistant coach under head coach Brittany Connors.

Nelson was named recently as the head softball coach at St. Bernard, with Connors taking the open position at Ledyard High School.

"It's a small community, a small school, with varsity only. We only get about 15 girls out for the team each year, but thankfully we get a good core," Nelson said. "A lot of things Brittany did I'd like to keep. She had a good rapport with the girls, being so young ... she would be a good asset to any school and team."

St. Bernard was 15-9 overall last season with a berth in the Class S state tournament quarterfinals, 8-2 in the Eastern Connecticut Conference Small Division. The Saints return four seniors, including All-ECC honorable mention selections Amanda Carpentier and Olivia Novak.

Nelson is the Saints' third head coach in four years, formerly serving as the head coach for the St. Elizabeth High School team in Wilmington, Del. Nelson will be assisted by Kim Jaskiewicz, a 1987 St. Bernard graduate and a former all-state outfielder.

Nelson, whose husband Jade works for Pfizer, Inc., said she missed the time she spent away from softball and was happy when her daughters, Sophie and Emily, who is an eighth-grader at St. Bernard, began to play.

"It's great to see them love a sport that I love," said Nelson, a former catcher/outfielder. "I wanted them to play softball. They're both pitchers, though; I wouldn't have chosen for them to play pitcher in a million years."

Nelson can't quite envision softball season beginning with all the snow still outside. The Saints are scheduled to open April 9 at Norwich Tech. But she did meet with her team.

"I told them I was coaching and this is where we're going," Nelson said. "They were excited to get started."

v.fulkerson@theday.com

Twitter: @vickieattheday