East Texas Baptist University Athletics

Coach Shirley Accomplishments

• ETBU Alumnus (2005)
• 2008 - present
• All-Time ETBU Wins Leaders (596)
• 2010, 2024 National Champions
• 2010, 2024 NFCA National Coach of the Year
• 2014, 2024 NCAA Super Regional Championship
• 23 NFCA All-Americans
• 14 NCAA Tournament Appearances
• 10 CSC Academic All-Americans
• 7 ASC Championships
• 4 NCAA Regional Championships
• 3 ASC Female Athlete of the Year
• 3 NCAA Division III National Championship Tournament Appearances (2010, 2014, 2024)
• 2 West Region "Coaching Staff of the Year"
• 2 Top 9 Finalist for NCAA Woman of the Year
• 2 Super Regional Championships
• 1 ASC Woman of the Year
• 1 ASC East Divisional Championship
• 1 NFCA Golden Glove Winner
• 1 NFCA Softball National Player of the Year
• 1 Honda/Collegiate Woman Sports Award D3 Player of the Year
• NFCA Top 25 Program
• #1 Final Ranking - 2024, 2020 (CoVID-19 Season/15-0), 2010

Janae Shirley enters her 18th season at East Texas Baptist University and has led the program to national heights winning two NCAA Division III National Championships (2024, 2010) and claiming the three #1 final rankings. She has guided ETBU to 14 NCAA Division III Tournaments and three national championship tournaments, winning seven American Southwest Conference championships, and two Super Regional Championships (2024, 2014). In December 2016, she took her team on an international mission trips to Costa Rica in the inaugural Tiger Athletic Mission Experience and to Australia in December 2022. ETBU served and witnessed to the people at both places and played the Costa Rican national team, twice.

2024 Season

• NCAA National Champions (2nd for the program)
• ASC Tournament Champions (11th for hte program)
• NCAA Super Regional and Regional Champions
• Won program best 48 games
• Set new program record with a 23-game winning streak (Apr. 6 - June 2)
• Went 29-1 at home going 15-0 in the regular season
• NFCA National Coaching Staff of the Year
• ASC Coaching Staff of the Year
• Tristen Maddox was the ASC Female Athlete of the Year, ASC Player of the Year, and NFCA National Player of the Year
• Tristen Maddox was voted the Honda/CWSA D3 National Player of the Year
• Tristen Maddox (1st), Hannah Benavides (3rd), Haylie Stum (3rd), and Courtney White (3rd) were NFCA All-Americans
• Mary Frances Ellis, Hannah Benavides, and Delanie Loya were CSC Academic All-Americans
• Mary Frances Ellis was the ASC Softball Distinguished Scholar-Athlete
• Hannah Benavides was the ASC Pitcher and Newcomer of the Year
• Haylie Stum was the ASC Freshman of the Year
• 25 players were named ASC All-Academic
• 17 players were named NFCA Scholar-Athletes
• 11 players were named All-ASC with 9 on the ASC First Team
• 6 players were named NFCA All-Region

2023 Season

• ASC Tournament Champions (11th for the program)
• NCAA Division III Regional Tournament Host
• Finish 27-0 at home in regular season
• Pitchers had a 29-inning scoreless streak from March 27-April 11
• Ashley Croft was named the ASC Woman of the Year and ASC Pitcher of the Year
• Ashley Croft was the ASC's NCAA Woman of the Year nominee
• Ashley Croft was named then NCAA DIII Commissioner's Association Region 10 Female Athlete of the Year
• Tristen Maddox was the ASC Female Athlete of the Year and ASC Player of the Year
• Ashley Croft and Mary Frances Ellis were CSC Academic All-Americans
• Tristen Maddox (1st), Courtney White (1st), and Ashley Croft (3rd) were NFCA All-Americans
• 10 Players named NFCA Scholar Student-Athletes
• 15 Players were named ASC All-Academic
• 10 Players earned All-ASC Awards, 6 are All-ASC first-team
• 7 Players were named NFCA All-Region
• Finished the season #16 in the final NFCA National Poll

2022 Season

• NCAA Division III Regional Tournament Host (Marshall, Texas Regional)
• Finished the season at 33-12 and went 24-6 in the ASC
• Preseason #4 team in the nation
• Courtney White was the ASC Newcomer of the Year
• White, Tristen Maddox, and Delanie Loya earned NFCA All-American honors
• 6 players were named All-Region
• Marin Musicant were CSC Academic All-District selections
• 11 players earn All-ASC awards; 7 All-ASC first-team
• Finished the season #7 in final NFCA National Poll

2021 Season

• ASC Tournament Champions (10th for the program)
• NCAA Division III Regional Tournament Host (Marshall, Texas Regional)
• Finished the season at 33-7 and went 22-5 in the ASC
• Started the season with a 12-game winning streak producing 27 straight wins dating back to the 2020 season
• Preseason #1 team in the nation
• Won program's 10th ASC Tournament Championship
• Hannah Garcia was the ASC Player of the Year
• Tauryn Cummings was the ASC Freshman of the Year
• Garcia and Cummings earned NFCA All-American honors
• 6 players were named All-Region
• Garcia, Presyle Cox, and Dani Solis were CSC Academic All-District selections
• 11 players earn All-ASC awards; 5 All-ASC first-team
• Finished the season #10 in final NFCA National Poll

2020 Season

• Top ranked program in NCAA Division III in final NFCA ranking
• Season shortened ending in early March due to COVID-19
• Won the NFCA Leadoff Classic in Arizona going 4-0
• Preslye Cox named to the Leadoff Classic All-Tournament team
• Dani Solis earned two ASC Hitter of the Week awards and was the NFCA National Hitter of the Week
• Finished 15-0 and 6-0 in ASC

2019 Season

• ASC Tournament Champions (9th for the program)
• NCAA Division III Regional Tournament Host
• ASC Coaching Staff of the Year
• Finished the season at 39-6 and went 26-1 in the ASC
• Started the season with a 20-game winning streak for a new program record
• Ranked as high as #2 in the nation
• Won program's 9th ASC Tournament Championship
• Hosted the NCAA Division III Marshall, Texas, Regional
• Beatriz Lara was named the ASC Freshman and Pitcher of the Year and Tournament MVP
• Beatriz Lara earned NFCA and FPN All-American honors
• 4 players were named All-Region
• Mackenzie Anderson was a CoSIDA Academic All-District selection
• 8 players earn All-ASC awards; 3 All-ASC first-team

2018 Season

• Selected to compete in their sixth straight NCAA Regional Tournament
• Finished the season at 33-13
• Shutout LETU in the regular season three-game series
• Defeated #8 ranked Trine University 3-2 in the NFCA Leadoff Classic
• Defeated Concordia 6-1 in the ASC Tournament elimination game
• Had 8 players named to the All-ASC Team
• Morgan Arst, Jordan Anderson, Mackenzie Anderson and Linzie Lewis were all named to the All-ASC First Team

2017 Season

• NCAA Division III Marshall Regional Champions
• NCAA Division III Super Regional participant
• Finished ranked 9th in final NFCA National Poll
• Started season off 14-0
• Won 30 or more games for 5th straight year with 38 wins
• Defeated Whitworth to win the regional championship in Marshall
• Jayme Perez and Linzie Lewis were named NFCA All-Americans
• Lindsey Vasquez broke the ETBU single season and career record for steals
• Perez earns CoSIDA Academic All-American award
• 5 players named NFCA All-West Region
• 7 players given All-ASC awards
• Went 38-11 overall and 25-5 in the ASC
• Ranked for 65 straight weeks in NFCA National Poll

2016 Season

• ASC Tournament Champions (8th overall for program)
• NCAA Tournament Participant
• Finished ranked 6th in final NFCA National Poll
• Upset #1 Texas Tyler, twice, 6-1, and, 2-0, to win the ASC championship
• Ranked 51 straight weeks
• Kelly Jo McLendon named the ASC Tournament MVP
• Jayme Perez and Lacey Lindsey were named NFCA All-Americans
• 6 players named NFCA All-West Region
• 8 players given All-ASC awards
• Went 35-10 and 24-5 in the ASC

NCAA Tournaments (2009, 2010, 2011, 2013, 2014, 2015, 2016, 2017, 2018, 2019, 2021, 2022, 2023, 2024)

ETBU has made 14 NCAA Tournaments under Shirley and played in the last 11 tournaments winning the 2010 and 2024 NCAA Division III national championships, 2024 and 2014 Marshall Super Regional Championship, 2024 and 2017 Marshall Regional Championships, 2014 Tyler Regional Championship, and the 2010 Regional Championship in Louisiana. She has won 41 games in the NCAA Tournament and been to the three NCAA National Championship Tournaments (2024, 2014, 2010).

2024 National Champions

It was a championship for the ages as ETBU made history winning the national championship on their home field. They became the first program in modern day history to claim a NCAA Division III National Championship on their home field. The post-season run to the championship started with three wins in the Regional Tournament starting with a 10-0 (5) win over Simmons University. That followed with two wins over #9 Texas Lutheran, 12-0, on Friday and a 5-3 championship win on Saturday. Hosting the the Super Regional, ETBU swept Williams College, 8-0 (5), and 10-9. Avery Holland threw a no-hitter in game one and ETBU scored nine runs in the sixth inning of game two for the one-run Super Regional Championship win. Staying in Marshall, Texas, for the National Championship Tournament, ETBU opened with a 7-0 win over #13 Rowan. On Friday night, in front of 1,000 fans, ETBU held off #10 Belhaven, 3-2, staying in the winner's bracket. After weather day, ETBU defeated Rowan, 5-2, advancing to the Championship Series facing off against Belhaven University. Headed into the Tuesday night game, ETBU had won 23-straight games, but the streak ended as the Blazers held off an ETBU rally, 4-3. On the final day, ETBU won both games, 8-2, and 9-5, to claim the national championship. ETBU took a 3-0 lead after four innings and then a Madalyn Melton home run in the fifth made ti 8-1. Melton went on to also earn the win in the game. The final game opened up with four runs in the bottom of the first inning propelled by back-to-back home runs from Haylie Stum and Tauryn Cummings. After three innings, ETBU had a 7-5 lead but two more runs came in the sixth for the 9-5 win. Holland won her 16th game of the year for the relief win as ETBU celebrated a national championship on their home field. Tristen Maddox was named the Tournament MVP as Cummings, Izabella Morales, and Holland were on the All-Tournament Team. 

2017 Marshall Regional Championship

ETBU hosted the NCAA Division III Marshall Regional and went 3-1 in the tournament claiming the program's third regional championship under Shirley. ETBU defeated #17 Whitworth, 6-3 to start the tournament and then the next day upset #6 Texas Dallas, 5-3, to face Whitworth agian. Whitworth took the second meeting, 3-1, to force a final championship game on Sunday as ETBU claimed the championship, 7-5. ETBU scored seven runs in the first three innings with home runs by Lacey Lindsey and Kaitlyn Hollingshead propelling them to the championship win.

2014 Super Regional Championship

Making a post season run in 2014, Shirley guided ETBU to the Tyler Regional and Marshall Super Regional Championships finishing fifth at the World Series.  They were ranked in the NFCA Top 25 poll all year and were voted fourth in the final poll.  Winning 45 games, that mark set a new program record for most wins in a season along with a 20-game winning streak.

The team’s most exciting games came in the NCAA Tournament as they swept through the Tyler Regional defeating Texas Lutheran twice and #3 Texas Tyler advancing to the Super Regional. Coming back to Taylor Field for the Super Regional, ETBU won two of the three games to take the series on walk-off home runs by freshmen All-Americans Jayme Perez and Lacey Lindsey.

2010 National Champions

Shirley’s finest season came in 2010 with an unbelievable run through the NCAA Tournament to win ETBU’s first-ever NCAA Division III national championship.  Playing out of the loser’s bracket of the regional tournament, ETBU went on an eight-game winning streak to take the national championship.  ETBU won four straight in the regional tournament, defeating host Louisiana College two games straight, and then tore through the championship tournament going 4-0.  In the 5-4 win over Linfield for the national championship, they came from behind to pull off what became a Cinderella season with a walk-off single in the bottom of the seventh inning.

ASC Tournament Championships (2011, 2013, 2016, 2019, 2021, 2023, 2024)
2024
Sweeping through the ASC Tournament for the program's 12th Championship, it took ETBU just three games to win it all on their home field going 3-0. The Tigers opened the tournament with an 8-2 win over LeTourneau and then won the semi-final game, 10-2, in five innings over Concordia Texas. In the championship game, Avery Holland threw a five-hit shutout, for an 8-0 championship win over Concordia Texas. Delanie Loya was 3-for-3 with two RBI and Tauryn Cummings has two hits and two RBI. Maddox was named the Most Outstanding Player as Cummings, Mallory Pyle, Loya, and Holland were ASC All-Tournament. 

2023
Winning the program's 11th ASC Tournament Championship and sixth under Coach Shirley, ETBU went 3-0 in three days to capture the championship on the road at Mary Hardin-Baylor (Belton, Texas). In walk-off fashion, ETBU won the championship, 3-2, in the bottom of the eighth inning when Tauryn Cummings had a bases clearing double for the victory. The game had been tied at zero until the top of the eighth when UMHB scored two runs. Ashley Croft earned the win to move to 19-1 on the year and was named the ASC Tournament Most Outstanding Player as Cummings, Corley Carpenter, Hannah Kelley, and Courtney White were named to the ASC All-Tournament team. ETBU opened the tournament with a 6-3 win over LeTourneau and then shutout McMurry, 4-0, to advance to the championship game.

2021

Making a statement as the top team in the ASC Tournament and playing on the road in Jackson, Miss., ETBU swept through the bracket going 4-0 as the #2 seed. ETBU tied for the ASC East Division championship but lost the tiebreaker. Scoring 27 runs, ETBU won the ASC Championship game, 13-4, over the University of Mary Hardin-Baylor. ETBU opened the tournament with an 8-inning victory over Sul Ross State, 4-3, on a late Thursday night game in the first round. They then shut out UMHB, 2-0, and defeated Hardin-Simmons University, 8-4, advancing to the championship game. 

2019

Sweeping through the ASC Tournament bracket as the host, ETBU went 3-0 with two wins over the University of Mary Hardin-Baylor, 2-1. ETBU started the tournament with a no-hit win over Hardin-Simmons, 5-0, and then won their semi-final game, 2-1, over UMHB. UMHB battled back to the championship only to have ETBU claim the win, 2-1, when Dani Solis hit a two-run home run in the sixth inning.

2016

In 2016, Shirley coached ETBU to their eighth ASC Tournament championship and third in her tenure. ETBU went 3-0 in the tournament defeating #1 Texas Tyler twice, 6-1, and 2-0. McLendon pitched the best games of her career allowing just one run against Texas Tyler and six overall in three games and nine strikeouts.

2013

Winning the program’s seventh ASC Championship in 2013, ETBU swept through the bracket going 4-0 with two wins over then #1 Texas Tyler.  The final victory of the tournament to take the championship was Shirley's 200th career win.  Shelby Parker threw a perfect game for the first win over Howard Payne, 8-0, and then came from behind for a 3-1 win over #20 Texas Lutheran.  ETBU then defeated #1 Texas-Tyler, 10-9, and 6-2, for the championship.

2011

ETBU won the ASC East Division Championship in 2011 and then went 4-1 in the ASC Tournament playing through the loser’s bracket for the championship.  After falling to Texas Tyler, ETBU defeated Mississippi College, 6-1, and then won two straight games over Texas Tyler, 8-0, and 4-3.

ETBU History

A part of the ETBU program since 2003, Shirley started out in the program as a player and then became an assistant coach. She was a member of the 2003, 2004 and 2005 teams winning two ASC Championships and playing in two NCAA regional tournaments. She then became an assistant coach for two years in 2006 and 2007 before taking over the program in 2008. 

Along with winning, her program has set high academic standards and made team discipleship a priority. The 2016-17 team will travel on their first international sports mission trip to Costa Rica in December 2016. She has had seven players voted College Sports Communicators Academic All-Americans, seven ASC Softball Distinguished Scholar-Athletes, and numerous ASC All-Academic team members.  Both Lya Swaner and Ashton Brey have earned the ASC’s nomination for NCAA Female Athlete of the Year in 2012 and 2013 while Swaner was a Top 9 Finalist.

Shirley has made ETBU softball a Christ-centered program with national prominence. She is married to ETBU alumnus, Guy, who played one season of baseball at ETBU.  They have been married since the summer 2007 and have two boys, Carter (15), and Major (10).

By the Years

(E) - ASC East Division  l  ! NCAA World Series l ^ ASC Tournament Champions l $ Super Regional Champions l % Regional Champions
* - Season Ended Early - COVID-19 | (1) - finished as #1 team in final NFCA National Poll 

Under Coach Shirley
All-Americans

• Hannah Benavides (2024)
• Ashley Croft (2023)
• Courtney White (2022, 2023, 2024)
• Tristen Maddox (2022, 2023, 2024)
• Delaine Loya (2022)
• Hannah Garcia (2021)
• Tauryn Cummins (2021)
• Beatriz Lara (2019)
• Lacey Lindsey (2014, 2015, 2016)
• Jayme Perez (2014, 2015, 2016, 2017)
• Linzie Lewis (2017)
• Lacy Liles (2013)
• Ayrika Henderson (2010)

Academic All-Americans

• Hannah Benavides (2024)
• Mary Frances Ellis (2023, 2024)
• Ashley Croft (2023)
• Hannah Garcia (2021)
• Morgan Arst (2018)
• Jayme Perez (2017)
• Lacy Liles (2014)
• Lya Swaner (2013)
• Ashton Brey (2011, 2012)

ASC Tournament MVPs

• Tristen Maddox (2024)
• Ashley Croft (2023)
• Marin Musicant (2021)
• Beatriz Lara (2019)
• Kelly Jo McLendon (2016)
• Lya Swaner (2013)
• Lauren McCurry (2011)

ASC Female Athlete of the Year

• Tristen Maddox (2023, 2024)
• Ayrika Henderson (2010)

ASC Distinguished Scholar-Athlete

• Mary Frances Ellis (2024)
• Ashley Croft (2023)
• Hannah Garcia (2021)
• Lacy Liles (2014)
• Lya Swaner (2013)
• Ashton Brey (2011, 2012)
• Adrienne Meier (2010)

ASC Nominee for NCAA Woman of the Year

• Ashley Croft (2023)
• Morgan Arst (2020)
• Jayme Perez (2017)
• Lya Swaner (2013)
• Ashton Brey (2012)

NCAA Post Graduate Scholarship

• Jayme Perez (2017)

Top 9 Finalist for NCAA Woman of the Year

• Jayme Perez (2017)
• Lya Swaner (2013)