In 2025-2026, Val Silvestrini enters her 17th season as the head softball coach at Florida Tech. During her tenure with the softball program, Silvestrini has compiled a 438-332 record. As of April 3, 2021, she holds the distinction of being the program's leader in wins as she surpassed the late Hall of Famer Dr. Nancy Bottge's mark of 316. The Argentine is also the team's only coach to win a Sunshine State Conference Championship and NCAA South Region titles.
In 2023, the Panthers finished with a 28-22 overall record and finished fifth in the SSC with a 16-14 record. Cheyenne Nelson earned first-team All-SSC honors, while Jolie Miracle was selected for the Second and All-Defensive teams. Cheyenne Nelson is the only Panther to have been named All-SSC First Team three times, while Jolie Miracle is the first Panther catcher to make the All-SSC team in consecutive years since 2005-06. Five Panthers were named to the CSC Academic All-District Team, and Cheyenne Nelson collected her third NFCA All-South Region Team honors.
Val Silvestrini's strategic leadership was evident during the 2022 campaign, where she guided the Panthers to a successful 30+ win season, amassing a mark of 32-20 with a 15-15 SSC record. The team's performance was recognized with six Panthers earning SSC honors, two being named to the Cosida Academic All-District team, and one being selected to the D2CCA and NFCA All-South Region teams. These achievements underline Val Silvestrini's ability to lead the team to success.
The 2019 season was a historic one for Florida Tech. Under Silvestrini's coaching, the team clinched the program's first Sunshine State Conference title, achieved the highest national ranking at No. 4, made their second trip to the NCAA South Super Regional, and tied the Panthers' win record with 42, with 23 coming in SSC play. With her coaching, Melanie Murphy became the second player in program history and the first since Elisa Bartolo in 1995 and 1996 to earn All-America honors, marking a significant milestone for the program.
During the 2015 season, she guided the Panthers to the best season in program history. Florida Tech not only advanced to postseason play for the first time in school history but also claimed the NCAA DII South Region Championship to advance to the NCAA Super Regionals. That year, Florida Tech finished the season with a 38-20 overall record and went 14-10 in Sunshine State Conference play. The Panthers finished the season ranked for the first time ever, sliding in at No. 19 in the NFCA poll.
Sivlestrini led the Panthers to 20 wins every season while compiling 118 total wins for the first five seasons. She also coached Brianna Barth, earning three consecutive All-South Region Second Team honors from 2010-2012 and 10 total All-SSC selections.
Silvistrini came to the institution from the University of North Florida, where she was the assistant coach for the Ospreys for the last two years. While there, she assisted in all facets of the program and helped lead UNF to consecutive winning seasons, which saw the team ranked sixth out of the 11 schools in the Atlantic Sun Conference standings each of the last two years.
Prior to her stint at UNF, Silvestrini served as an assistant coach at Charleston Southern University and at Armstrong Atlantic State University in Savannah, Georgia, where she earned her Master of Science degree in sports medicine. She completed her bachelor’s degree in physical education teaching and coaching from ISEF N° 1 “Dr. Enrique Romero Brest” in Buenos Aires, Argentina.
In addition to her coaching experience, Silvestrini has received her National Strength and Conditioning certification from the National Strength and Conditioning Association (NSCA). During her tenure at AASU, she coached five Peach Belt All-Conference players, four conference Players of the Week and one NFCA National Player of the Week. In 2006, the team finished 23rd in the NFCA Division II National Rankings.
At UNF during the 2008 season, the Lady Ospreys broke the single-season record for home runs with 50 and set a new school record for wins as a Division I program with 39. Silvestrini has guided North Florida to a 66-48 record (.727 winning percentage) in the last two years. Additionally, Val has had six of her student-athletes honored as All-Atlantic Sun players and four named Players of the Week. As a coach, she was responsible for the planning and implementation of softball practices, recruiting, and team travel. In addition, she served as the supervisor of academic development for student-athletes and Interim Head Coach at UNF for three months in the summer of 2008.
During her athletic career, Silvestrini played for the Argentinean National Team from 1998-2007 and served as captain from 2005 until she retired. She participated in several international tournaments, including the Pan-American and South American Championships. During her stints with the Division I teams in Argentina and Spain, she was named Player of the Year, Best Hitter, and Best Defensive Player on numerous occasions.
While playing for Armstrong Atlantic as a senior, she hit .410 for the season and was tabbed an All-Conference, All-Region, and All-Tournament Outfielder. Silvestrini is currently in the top three in three different offensive categories for single-season records at AASU, including second in hits (73), third in batting average (.410), and second in runs scored (49).
