2025 Iowa Athletics Hall of Fame Spotlight: Lisa Birocci Banse

BY JOHN BOHNENKAMP

IOWA CITY, Iowa -- Lisa Birocci Banse (06BA) grew up in Iowa knowing exactly what it meant to wear a Hawkeye softball jersey.

So, when coach Gayle Blevins recruited the Des Moines native in high school, it was an easy sell.

“Everything else kind of fell off to the wayside,” Banse says. “She was going to do her due diligence as a recruiter, but she could have just winked at me, she could have sneezed in my direction, and I would have been a Hawkeye.”

It was the right fit for Banse, who became a two-time All-American by the National Fastpitch Coaches Association and the 2003 Big Ten Pitcher of the Year after winning 29 games with 15 shutouts. Banse was part of four teams that reached the NCAA Tournament and a member of the 2003 team that won the Big Ten regular-season and tournament titles.

Banse says it was an education to play for Blevins.

“Anybody that knows Gayle knows just how stinking smart she is,” Banse says. “I think she would have single-handedly won us games by herself in spite of us. We might have been screwing up, but she was never, ever behind the eight ball, and that helped us be successful. She was always five steps ahead of us and probably 12 steps ahead of the other team. It was brilliant.”

Banse won 90 career games, posting a 1.20 earned run average over 175 appearances with 946 strikeouts in 842 innings. She had 40 shutouts and 81 complete games, and she threw two no-hitters.

Banse went on to play professionally in Italy, Guatemala, and Taiwan. She was a member of the Italian national team, and she also served as a pitching coach for Team Italy and Team Spain.

“Playing ball internationally is a lot about character development, and you’re really going to find out who you are as a person when you’re playing, and when you are wildly uncomfortable on and off of the field with communication,” Banse says. “I’ve had to work, essentially, in different languages. And so it really taught me a lot about who I am as a person.”

Lisa Birocci Banse (Softball)
Two-time National Fastpitch Coaches Association All-American, earning third-team honors in 2003 and 2005… three-time NFCA first-team all-region selection (2003, 2004, 2005)… 2003 Big Ten Pitcher of the Year after winning 29 games with 15 shutouts… two-time All-Big Ten selection, earning first-team honors in 2003 and second-team honors in 2004… two-time Big Ten All-Tournament team selection, earning MVP honors in 2003… named to the NCAA Regional All-Tournament team in 2005… team Most Valuable Player in 2005… four-time Big Ten Pitcher of the Week selection… won 90 career games, posting a 1.20 ERA over 175 appearances with 946 strikeouts in 842 innings with 40 shutouts and 81 complete games… also hit 17 career home runs… still ranks in the top-seven all-time in appearances, innings, complete games, ERA, wins and strikeouts… tossed two career no-hitters (April 20, 2003 vs. Indiana; March 4, 2005 vs. Georgia Southern)… led team to four NCAA Regional appearances… won the Big Ten regular season and tournament title in 2003… team placed in top three of Big Ten standings all four seasons… two-time Academic All-Big Ten (2004-05)… played professional softball in Italy, Guatemala and Taiwan… was a member of the Italian National Team (2005-2006, 2009, 2019-21)… played in the 2019 Olympic Qualifer in addition to winning three European Championships (2005, 2019, 2021) for Team Italy… also served as the pitching coach for Team Italy (2017-18) at the World Championships in Tokyo, Japan, and was pitching coach for Team Spain (2022-23)