Softball Coaching Staff

Published or Revised November 14, 2024

Head Coach Shelby Shelton

Shelby Shelton is entering her fifth season as the head softball coach at Paris Junior College. Under Shelton’s guidance in 2024, the program had 44 wins to set the program's single season win record. After the season, all 12 graduating sophomores moved on to play at universities. Shelton has made academic success a priority, with the team finishing in the top 10 in the country for highest team GPA every year.

In 2023, the program achieved a record-high10 all-conference honors, including Player of the Year and Pitcher of the Year, as the Dragons finished second in the conference. The program reached new heights in 2022 by advancing to the National Tournament and finishing sixth in the country. The team was also recognized with the Sportsmanship Award at the national tournament. Shelton led the team to the program's single season win record at the time of 39, while also receiving the program’s first ever NJCAA national ranking. In the classroom, the team finished second in the country with a program-high 3.79 team GPA. Reflecting the team's success, Shelton received Mid-South B Coach of the Year honors.

Prior to coming to PJC, Shelton spent a year as an assistant at Louisiana Tech University, where she worked primarily with the infielders. She previously served as assistant coach at Howard College in Big Spring, Texas where she was named the 2018 National Fastpitch Coaches Association (NFCA) National Junior College Assistant Coach of the Year. 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 Shelton's 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. She also played a role in helping the softball team lead the athletic department in team GPA in 2016, 2017, and 2019.

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.

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's 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 who played collegiate baseball at the JUCO and D1 level.

Assistant Coach Taylor Swisher

Taylor Swisher is in his second year as assistant softball coach at Paris Junior College, coming to PJC after two years at Vernon College. Coach Swisher works primarily with the hitters, outfielders, and runs our strength and conditioning program. In his first season with Paris, he helped elevate the program to new heights on the field, in the weight room, and in the classroom.

After his first season at Vernon, Swisher helped improve the offense by increasing the key main team statistics: batting average, on base percentage, slugging percentage, home runs, runs batted in, triples, hits, and walks. Academically, he had eleven players earn a 4.0 GPA, and both years the team had finished with a GPA higher than a 3.2. While at Vernon, six of his players were named to the All-Conference team.

Swisher's first coaching job was assistant softball coach at Clarendon College. There he worked with hitters and infielders, leading Clarendon to a third place finish in the Western Junior College Athletic Conference (WJCAC) in 2021. Under his leadership, Clarendon had the best defense in NJCAA D1 Region 5 with the top fielding percentage each year, and ranked eighth and twelfth in all of NJCAA D1, respectively. He also coached three players to the All-Conference team. Swisher’s other responsibilities included recruiting, running the strength and conditioning program, overseeing the academic development of the softball team, and doing all of the field maintenance.

Swisher graduated from Stephen F. Austin State University (SFA) in 2018 with a degree in Kinesiology with a minor in Nutrition. While at SFA, Swisher worked for the softball team for two years as a team manager. In that role, he was in charge of all field maintenance and team equipment, organizing team video and analysis, and assisted coaches with practice. SFA reached the conference tournament each year he was on staff, finishing third in the conference tournament in 2016.

Jack Butler

Jack Butler (Mr. Jack) returns to PJC for his 21st year assisting with the Lady Dragons. He is a staple of our program. He works diligently on field maintenance and keeps all of our team stats. He is a graduate of the University of Kentucky, where he played softball. While in the military, he coached baseball with the 1st Infantry Division of the United States Army.