Mar 31, 2015 2 min read

The Pennsylvania Rebellion of the National Pro Fastpitch League hired Kere Johanson, the current head coach of the Australian National Team, as the franchise’s hitting coach this season. Johanson will reunite with former Australian assistant and current Rebellion pitching coach Karen Marr and work with manager Craig Montvidas.

The hiring was announced one day before the NPF Draft, which begins 6:30 p.m. at the CMA Theater in Nashville.

Johanson, a New Zealand native, began his playing career in the 1970s. He represented the New Zealand Black Sox in four World Championships (1988, 1992, 1996 and 2000), and won two gold and two silver medals. In 2002, Johanson joined Stirling Central and was with the team when they competed at Australia’s national club championships.

He was named head coach of the Western Australian representative team in 2002. In 2004, Johanson was inducted into the Softball New Zealand Hall of Fame. He has served as an assistant coach on several winning teams in Australia, including, the 2003 Bronze Medalists Aussie Pride and the 2004 Australian Olympic Silver Medalists. Johanson helped guide the Aussie Steelers to a gold medal in 2009 and a third-place finish in 2011.

In 2012, Johanson coached the Aussie Spirit to a bronze medal at the 2012 and 2014 World Championships. Most recently, Johanson’s team competed in the 2015 Japan Toyota Series Down Under against the premier softball athletes in the world, including Chicago Bandits ace Monica Abbott and USSSA Pride infielder Natasha Watley.

The Rebellion opens its 2015 season against the Chicago Bandits at Consol Energy Park Friday, May 29.