Post University Athletics

Isabella Russo joined the Post University Softball staff in January 2026 as the team's Pitching Coach.

Currently serving as the Director of Campus Life at Post University, Russo has an extensive softball background spanning over a decade, going back to her four-year career as an infielder at nearby University of Saint Joseph's in West Hartford. During her four-year career, Russo appeared in 140 games, hitting .294 with two home runs, 63 RBIs, and 118 total hits, while appearing on the mound twice during her sophomore season, and finishing her career with a .964 fielding percentage across nearly 600 total chances. She was also a four-time NFCA All-Academic Team member, part of the 2019 All-GNAC Team, and helped her team to the GNAC Championship crown in 2019. 

Russo started her career in high school at Southington High School where her team won three consecutive CIAC Class LL Softball State Championships from 2013-15 and she was responsible for a two-run home run during her senior year in the semifinals before being the catalyst to the game-winning rally in the championship game against Cheshire to help her team come out on top when she scored the winning run.

During her illustrious career, Russo was an Assistant Coach for the Southington Lightning Travel Softball 16U/18U Teams for three years, helping the team to a .345 batting average in the fall of 2017 and a .302 batting average in the summer of 2018, while the two teams went a combined 25-16-4, picked up three tournament wins in 2019, and won the Fall Panthron Championship in 2018, all while having several Division III commits and four local Division I commits from her teams. 

Following her time at the University of Saint Joseph's, Russo went on to become the Assistant Coach for Division III Johnson & Wales University in Providence, Rhode Island, where she took over first base coaching duties during games and was in charge of statistical analysis, game planning and preparation, as well as team travel coordination. That opportunity would lead her to her first Head Coach gig at Salem State University, where she led the Vikings for three seasons starting in 2021. 

Russo picked up her first collegiate win as a head coach against Lasell University on March 31st, 2021, in a 7-3 home win, and finished her time with Salem State having accumulated 34 wins at the helm. While serving as the head coach, Russo was a Coach and Recruiting Coordinator for RES Angels Travel Softball 18U in Salem, Massachusetts, where she helped lead instructional sessions, develop marketing materials, and guide families on their recruitment journey throughout the college ranks. 

Russo is a 2019 graduate of the University of Saint Joseph with a Bachelor of Arts in History, as well as a 2021 graduate of Suffolk University with a Master's in Administration of Higher Education.