FSW’s first softball coach excited to “set the standard”

FORT MYERS, Fla.- Robert Iammuri is so excited, he can barely sit still.

“There’s a lot of excitement,” said Iammuri, “and I think everybody senses it.”
After 40 years of coaching, 12 state titles, and a place in the Florida High School Hall of Fame, he’s still giddy when he talks about his new job as Florida SouthWestern’s first-ever softball coach.

“You set the standard,” said Iammuri. “You’re not coming in to follow someone else. You set the standard for the future.”

If anyone can start a program from the ground up — it’s Iammuri.

He comes to FSW after 26 years as the head coach of Naples High School. He lead the Lady Eagles to the most state championships in Florida high school history.

“I think that helps me a lot,” said Iammuri. “I’m used to teaching, coaching and developing.”

Iammuri prides himself on developing talent.

At Naples, he coached current Team USA softball player Jackie Traina before she went on to win SEC Pitcher of the Year, along with a National Championship with Iammuri’s daughter, Ryan Iammuri, as a member of the University of Alabama softball team.

Iammuri is still Traina’s pitching coach. He hopes to mold his program similar to the Crimson Tide’s extremely successful blueprint.

“We’re gonna come out of the gate swinging,” said Iammuri.

FSW’s inaugural softball signing class included 13 players from across the country, and even three from New Zealand.