Former Skyhawk Alli Hissam returns to UT Martin as assistant coach

University of Tennessee at Martin softball head coach Chelsea Farmer announced a new addition to her staff. Alli Hissam, a familiar face to the Skyhawk softball program, was introduced as an assistant coach who will work with hitters and infielders.

“We are super excited,” Farmer told Southeastern Softball Wire.

Hissam played two seasons at UT Martin, then as Alli Robinson, and finished her time in Martin as a .300 hitter for the Skyhawks. She started in 91 of 92 games played and hit 8 home runs with 52 RBIs, 13 doubles and 2 triples with 38 runs scored across two seasons.

For the 2025 season, Robinson earned All-OVC second-team honors and led the Skyhawks with a .304 batting average, 41 hits, 34 RBIs, 8 doubles and 71 total bases. Robinson also had six home runs, a .526 slugging percentage and was named the Skyhawks’ team MVP.

Before coming to Martin, Hissam was a standout at West Virginia Wesleyan, where she racked up All-Conference, All-Region and All-American honors.

“We are creating a culture here that players can thrive in and that alumni can be proud of,” Farmer said in a release.

Farmer elaborated on the decision in an interview with Southeastern Softball Wire.

“Alli’s hiring is a true testament to the type of culture we have here at UTM,” Farmer said. “We are creating an environment people want to be a part of, and that means everything to us. Bringing Alli back home is a move that benefits everyone: the players, the coaches, the alumni, the university and the community. Everyone wins!”

“Alli will take on a huge role helping assist Daniel (Farmer) with our hitters along with taking more control of our infielders so that Daniel can spend more time developing our outfielders,” Farmer said. “She will be a difference-maker for us because she’s already bought in to our program, and she’s an extremely hard worker. She will put in the work to make sure our players are successful, and that’s how good coaching staffs create championship teams.”

Hissam most recently spent the 2026 season as an assistant coach at Tennessee Tech, where she also worked with hitters. For Farmer, the hire is an important piece to the culture she has talked about building at Martin.