Kinesiology alum credits TWU experience for trailblazing career

Photo credit: Alabama Athletics Photography - Kent Gidley

May 21, 2026 - DENTON - When Michelle Martin Diltz interviewed for a strength coach position at the University of Alabama, she was asked if her personality was more Batman or Robin.

The Texas Woman's alumna chose Batman. She wanted to be in charge.

Although she doesn't don a cape, Diltz has embodied the crime-fighter's confident persona during her 20-year career at Alabama. She rose from being among the first women in a growing field to a trailblazer for those who followed. Now, as the senior associate director of performance for Olympic sports, she is responsible for improving athletic performance across multiple programs.

She has played a valuable role in the softball team's success. The Crimson Tide earned the No. 1 national seed in the 2026 NCAA Tournament. During Diltz's tenure, the softball team has won a national championship, six SEC titles and made nine Women's College World Series appearances.

While the technology in her tool belt has constantly evolved, her philosophy has not.

"My goal is to help enhance or produce the best athlete overall that they can be," Diltz said. "Then from being the best athlete - force, speed, power, strength; all the different components of athleticism. So that when they get to the softball field, they're fully capable of doing what they need to do with their mechanics and the sport-specific needs of softball."

Diltz didn't always have a fearless exterior. She was intimidated during her early days in Tuscaloosa. It was her first job after graduate school and she was the only woman on the strength staff. She credits her Alabama bosses for helping her develop a presence in the strength room.

She also credits Texas Woman's.

"I went from a high school kid that didn't like to talk - I was scared of everything," Diltz began. "And then I graduated [from] TWU very confident and very ready to take on the world."

Growing up in Abilene, Diltz was a good athlete who dreamed of playing college sports. She was also interested in a kinesiology/pre-physical therapy degree. At TWU, she found that sweet spot where she could pursue both interests.

"I set foot on that campus and it was home," Diltz recalled. "I knew that's where I wanted to be. I was going to school there, period."

Then-Head Coach Dianne Baker, a TWU softball legend and one of the winningest coaches in NCAA Division II history, invited Diltz to try out as a walk-on. She made the team and started in the outfield as a freshman.

"Coach Baker was an amazing mentor of mine," Diltz said. "She created an opportunity for me to really grow and develop and face adversity - but then still thrive."

Diltz became a leader on and off the field: as softball team captain and vice president of the kinesiology club.

"They put me in those positions where I would have to face my fears," Diltz said.

One of the places where Diltz thrived was at practice. Most players dread summer workouts. Not Diltz. She didn't realize teams had conditioning coaches until friends playing Division I softball mentioned them.

"And that's really where it solidified that it was even a potential career opportunity," Diltz said. "Because when I got into the field, there were very few female strength coaches in the U.S. for collegiate sports."

Photo credit: Alabama Athletics Photography - Kent Gidley

Diltz believes she entered the field at the ideal time because collegiate strength staffs were starting to expand. She was one of the five strength coaches at Alabama in 2005. The staff has grown to 16.

She offered this additional context: Early in her career, she was one of roughly 10 women at a breakfast during a Collegiate Strength Conditioning Coaches Association convention. At the most recent conference, there were more than 200.

"I am very proud of what I've been able to accomplish, especially being at those conferences or looking out across the nation and having my former interns - male or female - at all the different levels," Diltz said. "My daughter is currently in high school, and her high school strength coach is actually one of my former interns."

Besides softball, Diltz also works with the women's golf, cheer and dance team programs. She has helped develop athletes on those teams for her entire career.

She still marvels at the opportunity to work with great coaches and see the awe on recruits' faces when they first see the weight room.

"This is a great opportunity and I'm so lucky to be here."

She's also thankful for the experience she gained at TWU.

"It set me on the path to being able to have a dream career. And the coaches and my professors that poured into me, really, still to this day mean the world to me."

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