Hall of Fame
Barb Gaines was a star infielder on the Missouri State softball team from 1990-93. The St. Louis native became the first softball player in the combined history of the Gateway and Missouri Valley conferences to win all-league honors four years in a row.
Gaines closed her career with five MSU single-season records and eight career marks. She still holds the school career records for hits (252), hitting (.403) and total chances (1,287), and she is in the Top 5 all-time at MoState in at bats (2nd, 626), runs (4th, 113), stolen bases (3rd, 58), and putouts (3rd, 1,013).
In her freshman season of 1990, Gaines batted a team-high .354 and led the club in runs, hits, walks and at bats. Gaines led the 1991 squad with a .388 batting average, paced the team in at bats, runs, hits, stolen bases, and fielding average, and was selected to the all-Midwest Region second team.
During her junior year, she set team single season records for hits (75), at bats (180), runs (39) and batting average (.419), finishing 19th nationally in hitting. She became the first MSU softball All-America as a senior in 1993 when she was named to the National Fastpitch Coaches Association All-America third team.
Gaines was the league-leader in both batting average and total hits as both a junior and senior, and she tied for the league lead in runs scored in 1992.
She enjoyed a brilliant senior year, ranking among the national top 10 in hitting most of the year on her way to a school record .442 mark. She also led the Valley in hits (69). Her batting mark that season still ranks 8th-best all-time in MVC history. Her career batting average (.403)
Following her senior season, she was named to the Academic all-MVC first team. She was voted Missouri Valley co-MVP after hitting .507 in 18 league games. She was named to the MSU All-Decade team in 1991-92 in conjunction with the 10th anniversary of the Gateway Conference. Gaines received the MSU Outstanding Female Athlete Award in 1992 and 1993, becoming the first person to earn that honor in back-to-back years.
Gaines was inducted into the Missouri State Athletics Hall of Fame in 2000 and became the first player to have her jersey retired by the Missouri State softball program.