The last 18 months have been a time of change for interim assistant coach Alyssa Ransom-Tjaden.

She’s gone from fiance to wife, from renter to homeowner and from player to coach. The changes have happened with only one small glitch: Her former teammates have a hard time remembering to call her ‘Coach.’ To them, she’s still ‘Al.’

“I give them a lot of leeway on the way they can address me, or the technicalities of what they should call me,” Tjaden said. “Most of the time they refer to me as ‘Coach’ – I get teased a lot about that. Sometimes they trip up and call me ‘Al,’ but they correct themselves quickly. It’s kind of funny for both of us – something I’m still getting used to.”

Senior Amie Ford, who played with Tjaden for three years, always believed that she would be a coach someday, but she didn’t realize it would happen so soon.

“I respected her as a player, and now she has our respect as our coach,” she said. “The hard part for me is not calling her ‘Al’ anymore – it’s ‘Coach Tjaden.’ I can tell she knows a lot about the game. She’s always been around it, and she’s always taking notes. Even when she was my teammate I thought she would make a great coach. Her approach to the game, the way she prepared and learned – I’m glad she’s still around.”

Since coach Stacy Gemeinhardt-Cesler was ordered to bed rest as she waits to give birth to twins, Tjaden has taken on a larger role, taking on more coaching responsibilities and becoming more of a leader to the younger players on the team. Ford believes that Tjaden’s arrival as a coach has had a great impact on the youngest team in the Big 12 conference.

“Sometimes players – especially the newer, younger players – have a hard time talking to the coaches because they don’t feel comfortable yet,” Ford said. “Since she was our teammate before she was a coach, it’s been easier to talk to her because we know her so well.”

Co-head coach Gary Hines said Tjaden has handled the transition with poise and control – traits she once displayed as one of the best pitchers ever to take the mound at Iowa State.

“She’s really made an attempt to learn all facets of the game, and that’s why we feel comfortable letting her work with the outfield right now,” he said. “Even though she was a pitcher, she wants to learn everything about coaching, and it shows. She’s been put in a unique role, and it’s a difficult when you’ve played with people and they were their friends, then you have to go and be their coach.”

Although Tjaden’s career record of 45-72 doesn’t seem to stand out, she was one of the few bright spots during a period of transition for ISU softball. After the team finished 13-31 between her freshman and sophomore seasons, Tjaden led the Cyclones to 23 wins as a junior and 24 as a senior.

Her career highlights include a two-hit victory over heavily-favored Texas, which was televised on ESPN. She is the only Cyclone pitcher to defeat every Big 12 team and finished her career with records for saves (6), games pitched (148), games started (115) and complete games (78). She finished second in wins (45) and strikeouts (486).

Tjaden understands that she is in the beginning phase of what she hopes is a long career in softball. She hopes to follow in the footsteps of Hines, who has over 30 years of coaching and playing experience.

“We’re trying to get through this transition period, because I’m still learning my role,” Tjaden said.

“Last year, I was good friends with most of these girls. Now I’m supposed to be their coach. Careerwise, what could be better than being an assistant coach on a Division I team, where I’m able to learn from some of the best coaches around? They’re a great example, and this has been a great opportunity for me.”