Softball
Winkler, Shane
Shane Winkler
- Title:
- Head Coach
- Email:
- winklerm21@ecu.edu
- Phone:
- (252) 737-1428
Shane Winkler enters his fifth season as the head softball coach at East Carolina University after being tabbed as the Pirates' head coach in May 2021 following a successful three-year stint as head coach at George Washington University.
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Winkler is the program's first male head coach and its fifth coach overall. He has amassed 468 career victories during his 17Â seasons as a head coach.
The Pirates put on a record-setting performance offensively in 2025 with a program-record 76 home runs, a mark that led the American Athletic Conference. ECU was among the top teams in league in other offensive categories including third in hits (455), fifth in RBI (282), fourth in slugging percentage (.501) and fourth in batting average (.298). The Pirates compiled an overall record of 31-26, marking the first time the program has had back-to-back winning seasons since the 2010 and 2011 campaigns. The team went 14-13 in league play, marking the first winning AAC record for the program since joining the conference prior to 2015, the most AAC wins since joining the league and the first winning conference record since 2014. The Pirates also made a deep run in the AAC Softball Championship, advancing to only their second AAC Semifinal appearance. All-AAC Second Team member Emma Jackson set the single-season program record for home runs hit by an individual with 21 and tied an AAC single-game home runs record with three against Charlotte. In addition to Jackson's all-conference designation, Morgan Johnson became the just the second Pirate to earn All-AAC First Team honors while Annie Kate Dalton earned second team honors and Kendall Frost was named to the All-AAC Rookie Team. Johnson also became only the third Pirate to earn first team honors in any conference since 2011 when Toni Paisley was selected All-Conference USA First Team. Frost and Taylor Apple both tossed over 100 strikeouts in the circle, marking the first time since 2011 that two Pirate pitchers each threw 100 or more strikeouts in the same season. Apple also became the first Pirate pitcher since Lydia Ritchie to toss 100 or more strikeouts in back-to-back seasons. Anna Sawyer, Morgan Johnson, Annie Kate Dalton, Logan Sutton and Jordan Hatch were all named to CSC Academic All-District Team for their success in the classroom as well as on the field.
East Carolina continued to improve and ascend in Winkler's third year at the helm as the Pirates finished the 2024 campaign with a 38-19 overall record including a 13-14 mark in American Athletic Conference play. The 38 wins marked the most for the program since 2011 when the Pirates won 41 games en route to a Conference USA title and its last NCAA Regional appearance. It was also the first winning season for Pirate Softball since 2020 and the most AAC wins in a season since joining the league prior to the 2015 season. The offense was a big part of the Pirates' success as the team finished among the top teams in the country in batting average (38th), doubles per game (37th) and on-base percentage (45th). ECU also doubled its home run production from a season ago, led by the bats of Emma Jackson and Morgan Johnson. Jackson finished the season with the second-most doubles in the country with 24 and set an American Athletic Conference record for doubles hit in a single season. Jackson, Johnson and Taylor Woodring all earned All-AAC Second Team honors and Jackson and Johnson were also named to the NFCA All-Mideast Region First and Second Team respectively. Taylor Apple was named to the All-AAC Rookie Team, marking the third time in as many seasons under Winkler that a Pirate freshman has received All-Rookie honors. Apple also became the first Pirate freshman pitcher to throw 100 or more strikeouts in a season since Toni Paisley in 2007. ECU also received recognition for excelling in the classroom as Addy Bullis, Logan Sutton and Jordan Hatch were named to the CSC Academic All-District Team.
The Pirates showed improvement in Winkler's second season as the team won its most games since 2014 with a 27-28 overall record. For the second straight season, ECU had a player make an all-conference team and all-rookie team as Taylor Edwards was named to the 2023 All-American Athletic Conference Second Team and utility Mackenzie Kila earned AAC All-Rookie Team honors. Edwards was also tabbed to the National Fastpitch Coaches Association (NFCA) All-Mideast Region Third Team, becoming the first Pirate to be named to an NFCA All-Region Team since 2014.
In his first season at the helm, the Pirates compiled an overall record of 20-36 and outfielder Taudrea Sinnie was named to the 2022 All-American Athletic Conference Second Team while pitcher Jordan Hatch received AAC All-Rookie Team accolades.Â
During his three years at GW, Winkler compiled a 91-43 record and captured the school’s first two Atlantic 10 championships, sharing the title in 2019 before claiming the first outright championship this past season. The Colonials won both the regular season and tournament titles in 2021 to advance to the NCAA Championship for the first time and made their second overall postseason appearance.
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GW participated in the National Invitational Softball Championship (NISC) Liberty Regional after claiming a share of the 2019 league title.
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Winkler became the first Atlantic 10 Coach-of-the-Year in program history this past year after leading the Colonials to a 23-1 conference record in addition to a sweep of championship banners. GW was 38-8 in A-10 play during his tenure.
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Under his tutelage, 12 student-athletes earned all-conference accolades highlighted by Jenna Cone, who earned A-10 Player-of-the-Year honors in 2019 and 2021, and Sierra Lange, who made history as the first Colonial to be named the conference’s Pitcher-of-the-Year in 2021.
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In addition, 11 players received all-region accolades, including a school-record seven this past year.
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Winkler’s teams set program records for runs per game (7.0), home runs (64), ERA (1.97) and fielding percentage (.977) in 2021, leading the A-10 in eight offensive and five pitching categories.
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During his initial campaign at GW in 2019, the Colonials won a team-record 44 games and ranked third in the country with a .341 batting average, piling up 582 hits over 64 games, 89 more than the previous mark. GW ended the season among the national leaders in doubles per game (1.68, eighth), triples per game (0.31, 21st), on-base percentage (.405, 15th), scoring (6.02, 20th) and slugging percentage (.502, 22nd).
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Before taking over the program at GW, Winkler spent a decade (2009-18) leading the softball program at Charleston Southern University. He totaled a program-record 261 wins with the Buccaneers and guided them to their first NCAA Tournament berth in 2014. Winkler made his mark at Charleston Southern with three 30-win seasons and two Big South Championship final appearances highlighted by their breakthrough victory in 2014.
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CSU ranked in the top 10 nationally in home runs in 2017 and was one of just two teams in the country, along with national champion Florida State, to rank in the top 30 in both home runs and steals in 2018.
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Winkler’s Buccaneers produced 35 All-Big South Conference honorees and 10 all-academic selections. The program also produced its first Big South Scholar Athlete-of-the-Year and had a recipient of the Christenberry Award for top academic student-athletes in the conference each of his final two seasons.
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Prior to his tenure at Charleston Southern, Winkler served three seasons (2006-08) as an assistant coach at Marshall where he was responsible for the outfielders and the offense. The Thundering Herd broke the program home run record twice on his watch and consistently ranked among the top offenses in Conference USA led by a four-time All-American catcher. During his three seasons, the Thundering Herd had a combined record of 91-78.
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Winkler's first collegiate job came as co-head coach at Danville Area Community College (Ill.) for the 2005 season in which the Jaguars produced their first winning campaign in 12 years. He got his start coaching softball while in college working with a summer program in his hometown of Kentland, Ind.
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Winkler has also been active with National Pro Fastpitch, where he served a summer season as the head coach of the Chicago Bandits in 2014. He tutored numerous Olympians and NCAA champions, including former All-America pitcher Jennie Finch, during his time on the pro circuit, which also encompassed stints as an assistant coach with the Bandits (2009) and the Akron Racers (2007).
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On the baseball field, Winkler was an outfielder who played collegiately at Illinois Central College, Purdue and Butler. He earned his associate's degree in general education from Illinois Central in 2002 before earning a bachelor’s degree in communication studies from Butler in 2004.
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Winkler moved on to play professionally with the Florence Freedom (2004) and Washington Wild Things (2006) of the Frontier League, and the Amarillo Dillas (2006) of the United Baseball League.
Shane Winkler Season-By Season
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Winkler is the program's first male head coach and its fifth coach overall. He has amassed 468 career victories during his 17Â seasons as a head coach.
The Pirates put on a record-setting performance offensively in 2025 with a program-record 76 home runs, a mark that led the American Athletic Conference. ECU was among the top teams in league in other offensive categories including third in hits (455), fifth in RBI (282), fourth in slugging percentage (.501) and fourth in batting average (.298). The Pirates compiled an overall record of 31-26, marking the first time the program has had back-to-back winning seasons since the 2010 and 2011 campaigns. The team went 14-13 in league play, marking the first winning AAC record for the program since joining the conference prior to 2015, the most AAC wins since joining the league and the first winning conference record since 2014. The Pirates also made a deep run in the AAC Softball Championship, advancing to only their second AAC Semifinal appearance. All-AAC Second Team member Emma Jackson set the single-season program record for home runs hit by an individual with 21 and tied an AAC single-game home runs record with three against Charlotte. In addition to Jackson's all-conference designation, Morgan Johnson became the just the second Pirate to earn All-AAC First Team honors while Annie Kate Dalton earned second team honors and Kendall Frost was named to the All-AAC Rookie Team. Johnson also became only the third Pirate to earn first team honors in any conference since 2011 when Toni Paisley was selected All-Conference USA First Team. Frost and Taylor Apple both tossed over 100 strikeouts in the circle, marking the first time since 2011 that two Pirate pitchers each threw 100 or more strikeouts in the same season. Apple also became the first Pirate pitcher since Lydia Ritchie to toss 100 or more strikeouts in back-to-back seasons. Anna Sawyer, Morgan Johnson, Annie Kate Dalton, Logan Sutton and Jordan Hatch were all named to CSC Academic All-District Team for their success in the classroom as well as on the field.
East Carolina continued to improve and ascend in Winkler's third year at the helm as the Pirates finished the 2024 campaign with a 38-19 overall record including a 13-14 mark in American Athletic Conference play. The 38 wins marked the most for the program since 2011 when the Pirates won 41 games en route to a Conference USA title and its last NCAA Regional appearance. It was also the first winning season for Pirate Softball since 2020 and the most AAC wins in a season since joining the league prior to the 2015 season. The offense was a big part of the Pirates' success as the team finished among the top teams in the country in batting average (38th), doubles per game (37th) and on-base percentage (45th). ECU also doubled its home run production from a season ago, led by the bats of Emma Jackson and Morgan Johnson. Jackson finished the season with the second-most doubles in the country with 24 and set an American Athletic Conference record for doubles hit in a single season. Jackson, Johnson and Taylor Woodring all earned All-AAC Second Team honors and Jackson and Johnson were also named to the NFCA All-Mideast Region First and Second Team respectively. Taylor Apple was named to the All-AAC Rookie Team, marking the third time in as many seasons under Winkler that a Pirate freshman has received All-Rookie honors. Apple also became the first Pirate freshman pitcher to throw 100 or more strikeouts in a season since Toni Paisley in 2007. ECU also received recognition for excelling in the classroom as Addy Bullis, Logan Sutton and Jordan Hatch were named to the CSC Academic All-District Team.
The Pirates showed improvement in Winkler's second season as the team won its most games since 2014 with a 27-28 overall record. For the second straight season, ECU had a player make an all-conference team and all-rookie team as Taylor Edwards was named to the 2023 All-American Athletic Conference Second Team and utility Mackenzie Kila earned AAC All-Rookie Team honors. Edwards was also tabbed to the National Fastpitch Coaches Association (NFCA) All-Mideast Region Third Team, becoming the first Pirate to be named to an NFCA All-Region Team since 2014.
In his first season at the helm, the Pirates compiled an overall record of 20-36 and outfielder Taudrea Sinnie was named to the 2022 All-American Athletic Conference Second Team while pitcher Jordan Hatch received AAC All-Rookie Team accolades.Â
During his three years at GW, Winkler compiled a 91-43 record and captured the school’s first two Atlantic 10 championships, sharing the title in 2019 before claiming the first outright championship this past season. The Colonials won both the regular season and tournament titles in 2021 to advance to the NCAA Championship for the first time and made their second overall postseason appearance.
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GW participated in the National Invitational Softball Championship (NISC) Liberty Regional after claiming a share of the 2019 league title.
Â
Winkler became the first Atlantic 10 Coach-of-the-Year in program history this past year after leading the Colonials to a 23-1 conference record in addition to a sweep of championship banners. GW was 38-8 in A-10 play during his tenure.
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Under his tutelage, 12 student-athletes earned all-conference accolades highlighted by Jenna Cone, who earned A-10 Player-of-the-Year honors in 2019 and 2021, and Sierra Lange, who made history as the first Colonial to be named the conference’s Pitcher-of-the-Year in 2021.
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In addition, 11 players received all-region accolades, including a school-record seven this past year.
Â
Winkler’s teams set program records for runs per game (7.0), home runs (64), ERA (1.97) and fielding percentage (.977) in 2021, leading the A-10 in eight offensive and five pitching categories.
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During his initial campaign at GW in 2019, the Colonials won a team-record 44 games and ranked third in the country with a .341 batting average, piling up 582 hits over 64 games, 89 more than the previous mark. GW ended the season among the national leaders in doubles per game (1.68, eighth), triples per game (0.31, 21st), on-base percentage (.405, 15th), scoring (6.02, 20th) and slugging percentage (.502, 22nd).
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Before taking over the program at GW, Winkler spent a decade (2009-18) leading the softball program at Charleston Southern University. He totaled a program-record 261 wins with the Buccaneers and guided them to their first NCAA Tournament berth in 2014. Winkler made his mark at Charleston Southern with three 30-win seasons and two Big South Championship final appearances highlighted by their breakthrough victory in 2014.
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CSU ranked in the top 10 nationally in home runs in 2017 and was one of just two teams in the country, along with national champion Florida State, to rank in the top 30 in both home runs and steals in 2018.
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Winkler’s Buccaneers produced 35 All-Big South Conference honorees and 10 all-academic selections. The program also produced its first Big South Scholar Athlete-of-the-Year and had a recipient of the Christenberry Award for top academic student-athletes in the conference each of his final two seasons.
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Prior to his tenure at Charleston Southern, Winkler served three seasons (2006-08) as an assistant coach at Marshall where he was responsible for the outfielders and the offense. The Thundering Herd broke the program home run record twice on his watch and consistently ranked among the top offenses in Conference USA led by a four-time All-American catcher. During his three seasons, the Thundering Herd had a combined record of 91-78.
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Winkler's first collegiate job came as co-head coach at Danville Area Community College (Ill.) for the 2005 season in which the Jaguars produced their first winning campaign in 12 years. He got his start coaching softball while in college working with a summer program in his hometown of Kentland, Ind.
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Winkler has also been active with National Pro Fastpitch, where he served a summer season as the head coach of the Chicago Bandits in 2014. He tutored numerous Olympians and NCAA champions, including former All-America pitcher Jennie Finch, during his time on the pro circuit, which also encompassed stints as an assistant coach with the Bandits (2009) and the Akron Racers (2007).
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On the baseball field, Winkler was an outfielder who played collegiately at Illinois Central College, Purdue and Butler. He earned his associate's degree in general education from Illinois Central in 2002 before earning a bachelor’s degree in communication studies from Butler in 2004.
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Winkler moved on to play professionally with the Florence Freedom (2004) and Washington Wild Things (2006) of the Frontier League, and the Amarillo Dillas (2006) of the United Baseball League.
Shane Winkler Season-By Season
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| Â Season | Â Overall Record | Â Conference Record | Â Postseason |
| Â 2009 (Charleston Southern) | Â 26-33 | 7-11 (Big South) | |
| Â 2010 (Charleston Southern) | 30-28-1 | 8-10 (Big South) | |
| Â 2011 (Charleston Southern) | 25-33 | 10-8 (Big South) | |
| Â 2012 (Charleston Southern) | 33-26 | 12-9 (Big South) | |
| Â 2013 (Charleston Southern) | 15-40 | 7-17 (Big South) | |
| Â 2014 (Charleston Southern) | 27-33-1 | 9-13 (Big South) | NCAA Knoxville Regional |
| Â 2015 (Charleston Southern) | 31-28 | 11-12 (Big South) | |
| Â 2016 (Charleston Southern) | Â 22-34 | 10-14 (Big South) | |
| Â 2017 (Charleston Southern) | 26-36 | 10-12 (Big South) | |
| Â 2018 (Charleston Southern) | 26-30 | 7-14 (Big South) | |
| Â 2019 (George Washington) | 44-18 | 15-7 (Atlantic 10) | NISC Liberty Regional |
| Â 2020 (George Washington) | 10-14 (COVID) | N/A (COVID) | |
| Â 2021 (George Washington) | 37-11 | 23-1 (Atlantic 10) | NCAA Baton Rouge Regional |
| 2022 (East Carolina) | 20-36 | 2-16 (American) | |
| 2023 (East Carolina) | 27-28 | 3-15 (American) | |
| 2024 (East Carolina) | 38-19 | 13-14 (American) | |
| 2025 (East Carolina) | 31-26 | 14-13 (American) | |
| 17 Seasons | 468-473-2 | 161-186 | Three Postseason Appearances |
ECU Softball vs Campbell
Tuesday, April 15
ECU Softball vs Memphis
Saturday, April 05
ECU Softball vs Boston College
Sunday, February 23
ECU Softball vs Canisius
Saturday, February 22
