iStockphoto
Gardner-Webb won't renew softball coach Bailey Wigness's contract.
Gardner-Webb University will not renew the contract of softball coach Bailey Wigness. That decision comes following an investigation into inappropriate behavior.
It is alleged that she pursued multiple romantic relationships with both student-athletes and coaches in the program. There are also claims that date back to previous schools.
In all, the concerns span 11 years. Wigness is accused of engaging in relationships with at least four players at three universities.
Bailey Wigness is no longer the softball coach at Garnder-Webb.
Gardner-Webb is not retaining softball coach Bailey Wigness after an investigation into alleged relationships with student-athletes and coaches.
Documents obtained by Softball On SI show concerns were raised about alleged relationships involving athletes at multiple schools.…
— Maren Angus-Coombs (@Maren_Angus) June 23, 2026
Mare Angus-Coombs of Sports Illustrated broke the story this week. She detailed the situations at both Gardner-Webb and former schools.
Wigness was at the North Carolina school for six years. According to a current player, “one or two” complaints surfaced during the regular season.
Annicka McLaughlin, a senior on the 2026 GWU softball team, confirmed the investigation with Softball On SI and said administrators met with the team before the first game of the conference tournament…
McLaughlin shared that “one or two” players filed a complaint during the season which launched the investigation but her personal experience playing for Wigness was great.
The player said that playing time may have had an impact on those allegations. She insists that the accusations are false.
Despite the support, Wigness’s contract was not renewed. It officially expires in June. She did not coach at the conference tournament. She will not be the head coach moving forward.
Past claims paint a negative picture.
Angus-Coombs also reached out to players from previous schools, which include Boise State and South Carolina-Beaufort.
Four of the sources are former student-athletes who believe they were victims of Wigness based on a pattern of behavior that included targeting athletes, isolating them, pursuing a romantic relationship and then cutting players who found out.
One of those players was kicked off the team for what she believes were reasons unrelated to softball. She claims that the coach was sleeping with her girlfriend and that she was let go upon discovery. When the girlfriend tried to end things, according to the story, Wigness threatened suicide.
There is also an accusation of a coach being fired for not engaging in a relationship with Wigness.
Multiple players claim that Bailey Wigness invited student-athletes to her home to dog sit. “That became the well-known way of enticing them over,” one unidentified accuser said.
The behavior allegedly continued at Garnder-Webb. One former player claimed that Wigness developed a “weirdly close relationship” with a teammate. Another says she was removed from roster and harassed after reporting those concerns to administration.
“I drove two-and-a-half hours for her to sit across from me, look me dead in the face and tell me that they decided not to continue my scholarship.”
No reason was provided when (she) asked Wigness why she was losing her scholarship and because she had been documenting her experiences all season, she left her exit meeting and went directly to the compliance office…
Administration did comply with removing her from the team, ultimately ending (her) softball career for her at Gardner-Webb.
“Wigness was allegedly under investigation almost every year at GWU,” said one of the accusers. “It took a new athletic director and a new president less than a year to launch another investigation and place her on leave.”
The accusations remain just that at this point. The suspicion, however, has been enough for Garnder-Webb to part ways.