Mike Veen took the helm of Cyclones softball
starting in fall 2010. He brings with him years of coaching experience,
including managing Oak Lawn ICE Fastpitch Softball teams since 2001. Veen
also has coached Oak Lawn Girls Softball teams from 1994 to 2000.
Veen grew up playing baseball in Evergreen Park and later played a few years
of softball in Mount Greenwood. In 2011, Veen coached the Cyclones to a 21-15 record and
a second place finish in the Illinois Skyway Collegiate
Conference. He looks forward to a successful season. "I'm excited,
especially with all the talent we have this year. It's going to be a challenge, but it'll be fun. I
can't wait for the season to start. I'm competitive, and I like to win," he
said.
Veen will be joined again by assistant coach Natalie Wigginton, a former
Cyclones athlete.
Veen lives in Oak Lawn with his wife of
30 years. They have three daughters,
all of whom he has coached in softball.
Natalie Wigginton returned to the Cyclones in 2010, but
this time as an assistant coach. She was a Cyclone volleyball and softball
player from 2005 to 2007, earning All-Conference first team honors for both.
She also was named an NJCAA All-American for volleyball. Wigginton continued
her education at the University of Illinois at Chicago, where she played
Division I softball. She graduated with a bachelor’s degree in elementary
education in 2010 and will graduate as a physical therapy assistant in
August 2013 before pursuing a doctorate in physical therapy. In addition to
school, Wigginton is a hitting instructor for girls ages 5 to 18 at Line
Drive Baseball Academy and works for the Chicago White Sox in the club-level
suites.
