PJC hires Shelby Shelton as head softball coach

Published or Revised July 22, 2020

Shelby Shelton, the 2018 National Fastpitch Coaches Association (NFCA) National Junior College Assistant Coach of the Year, has been named the head softball coach at Paris Junior College for the 2020-2021 season after spending the past year as an assistant at Louisiana Tech University. Prior to that, Shelton served as assistant coach at Howard College in Big Spring, Texas. During her four seasons with the Hawks, she helped guide the program to 174 wins, four straight conference titles, four consecutive regional championships, as well as four trips to the National Junior College Athletic Association (NJCAA) tournament. In 2018 and 2019, the Howard coaching staff earned NFCA D1 West Region Coaching Staff of the Year honors. During her four-year stint at Howard, 19 players received scholarships to play at universities, five of them D1. She has coached numerous All-Americans, including the 2019 NFCA Junior College Player of the Year Amanda Gonzalez. Shelton also played a role in helping the softball team lead the athletic department in team GPA in 2016, 2017, and 2019. “I want to thank Dr. Anglin, Coach Foy, and the rest of the interview committee for this great opportunity and for sharing the same vision for the future of our program,” said Shelton. "I’ve been lucky to be involved in very successful programs with tremendous mentors, such as Mike Reed, Kelly Raines, and Maria Winn, who have helped prepare me for this next step. I look forward to building a championship culture here at Paris that is centered around being positive role models in the community, achieving success in the classroom, and being competitive on the softball field. Shelton started her collegiate playing career at Howard College (2011-13) where she was a member of the 2012 NJCAA Region V West Champions that finished ninth in the national tournament. The 2013 team won the Western Junior College Athletic Conference championship and compiled 53 victories. “We are excited to have Shelby as our new softball coach," said PJC Athletic Director Bill Foy. "She will bring great passion and energy to the program. We were impressed with her vision and how she wants her players to excel in all areas at PJC.” Shelton spent her final two years at the University of Texas - Tyler (2013-15). During that time, she helped lead the program to a pair of American Southwest Conference titles, one regional championship and one super regional championship. She led the program to the national tournament in Salem, Virginia, as a senior – a team that made school history by finishing as the national runner up with a 50-5 mark. She was a four-time All-Conference selection and made numerous All-Region and All-Tournament teams on the field. She was an NFCA All-American Scholar Athlete and a member of her league’s All-Academic team. Shelton graduated from UT-Tyler with a bachelor degree in kinesiology and has a master’s degree in health, kinesiology and sports studies with athletic administration concentration from Texas A&M University-Commerce. She is originally from Hughes Springs, Texas, where her parents still reside, and she has two brothers that played collegiate baseball at the JUCO and D1 level.