Before every at-bat, all of the hitters for the Aztecs do the same thing; they consult assistant coach Madilyn “Bubba” Nickles-Camarena. Sitting next to her is the person who drafted her in the professional Athletes Unlimited Softball League (AUSL) and the person who hired her from UCLA, head coach Stacey Nuveman-Deniz.

Nuveman-Deniz coached Nickles-Camarena after drafting her in the fourth round of the 2025 AUSL draft. That dynamic allowed the two to get closer before Nickles-Camarena came to SDSU.

“I feel like we really connected a lot with just experiencing the pro league together and going (through) all of those experiences,” Nickles-Camarena said. “It was really cool seeing how she operated as a leader. I always looked up to her in a lot of ways but being able to be coached by her was just such a great experience.”

After leading UCLA as a player to a National Championship victory in 2019, Nickles-Camarena became their assistant coach in 2025. With last season in the rearview mirror, Nickles-Camarena decided to take the vacant assistant head coaching job at SDSU, left behind by former assistant coach Kendall Fearn, to lead with her former coach.

“She made the decision to change her career path and go into a different direction,” Nuveman-Deniz said. “The irony was not lost on me, because I knew what that felt like, to be somewhere and be open to other opportunities and other ideas and to learn from different people.”

Both Nickles-Camarena’s and Nuveman-Deniz’s careers have paralleled each other. Both dominated at UCLA as players before becoming assistant coaches at their alma mater. In 2008, coming off the heels of two gold medal wins in the 2000 and 2004 Olympics, Nuveman-Deniz made the difficult decision to accept a coaching position with the Aztecs from her hotel room in Beijing after winning a silver medal. In 2025, Nickles-Camarena, who won a silver medal at the 2020 Olympics, made the same one.

“Ultimately, I decided to be here and I think by far it was the best thing for me just because Stacey is an A-plus human being, an amazing leader, and she is such a big reason as to why I’m even here,” Nickles-Camarena said.

Nuveman-Deniz had high praise for her former player.

“She’s played the game at the highest level, coached at the highest level at an elite program, and it was kind of a no-brainer,” Nuveman-Deniz said.

A gold medalist at the World Games in 2022, Nickles-Camarena brings a wealth of experience and knowledge to the Aztecs, primarily working with hitters.

“She’s very positive, walks a really nice line of being positive and high energy, but then also has high expectations and (sets) a high standard of what she wants to see the hitters do, how they prepare,” Nuveman-Deniz said. “She’s very personable, but also has a little bit of a strictness about her, which I think is a cool kind of a balance that players respond to.”

Nickles-Camarena’s approach is simple: be yourself at the plate.

“It really is about them being the best versions of themselves,” Nickles-Camarena said. “I never want them to fit into a mold that I’m trying to design; I always want them to feel free and know that their ability got them here for a reason. I always talk about playing like a kid and (having) a childlike spirit.”

In addition to coaching, Nickles-Camarena is also a player in the AUSL. Nickles-Camarena believes that this dynamic allows her to be a better coach.

“It definitely gives me a fresh perspective on what the trials and tribulations of being a student-athlete in this day and age,” Nickles-Camarena said. “(I’m) able to relate to them in knowing that there’s pressures with growing up and trying to navigate school and sport. I (have) that perspective of knowing exactly how they feel and how it is hard. I think that’s been the biggest blessing with being able to be in this environment and being at my age.”

Nickles-Camarena has had to adjust to SDSU after coming from UCLA, a challenge she has met head-on.

“I’m learning every day. I am really trying to be present and see where the game leads me, I’m just really enjoying the role that I’m in and growing in it,” Nickles-Camarena said.

Nuveman-Deniz has nothing but confidence in her new assistant coach.

“The future for her is absolutely bright in the coaching profession,” Nuveman-Deniz said. “She’s got all the intangibles: she can recruit, she can identify talent, she can develop talent, and she can communicate. I’m just happy to have her here and working with us and making us better every day.”

Ultimately, Nickles-Camarena hopes to inspire the players she coaches, who wear the same cleats she did not long ago.

“I just hope that they walk away not wanting to be anyone but themselves,” Nickles-Camarena said. “I hope that my interactions and the way that I am with them all the time inspires them to want to give back to the next generations.”