Zac Shaw - Softball Coach - Mississippi State

Photo by: Team USA/USOPC

Zac Shaw

Title:
Assistant Softball Coach
Email:
zshaw@athletics.msstate.edu

Zac Shaw joined the Mississippi State softball staff in September 2022 as a volunteer assistant coach. He was promoted to a full-time roll in July 2023 with the NCAA’s addition of a fourth paid assistant in softball.

Shaw is also a member of Team USA’s men’s fastpitch team and was named the captain of the national team for the 2024 WBSC Men’s Softball World Cup Group Stage held in Oklahoma City. He previously helped the Americans win their first WBSC Men’s Softball World Cup medal in more than 20 years, taking home bronze from the 2022 event in New Zealand with the Red, White and Blue. Earlier that year, he played at the Pan American Games where the U.S. finished fourth.

Shaw is a career .356 hitter for Team USA in international competition. Most recently, he posted a 1.434 OPS that ranked third on Team USA and seventh in the tournament at the WBSC World Cup Group Stage in 2024. He reached base in all but one game in that tournament with a triple, a homer and a .462 average. Defensively, he’s made just one error in 70 chances internationally (.986 fielding percentage).

Shaw assists with the Bulldog’s hitting and infield work. Prior to joining MSU as a volunteer in 2022, he served as an assistant coach for Kansas City, where he spent three years as the Roos’ hitting and infield coach as well as recruiting coordinator under head coach Kerry Shaw, his father. In his final year at Kansas City, the Roos turned in a .957 fielding percentage as a team.

The Roos defeated then-No. 6 Oklahoma State on the road in Stillwater in 2021, marking their first win over a ranked team in program history. After jumping out to an early 6-0 lead, Kansas City held on for a 6-5 victory over the eventual Women’s College World Series participant.

In his second season, Shaw led the Roos to second in the Summit League in most major batting categories, including a .274 overall batting average. Kansas City’s 250 total runs, 60 doubles, 38 home runs and .346 on-base percentage were all second in the conference in 2021. He guided Kloe Hilbrenner as she led in the Summit League with 68 total hits, and Ally Vonfeldt was second in the league with 13 total home runs.

Shaw’s first campaign in Kansas City was cut short due to the COVID-19 pandemic, but in 19 games, his hitters collected 11 home runs and 30 total extra-base hits.

Prior to his time in Kansas City, Shaw served as a graduate assistant manager at Missouri. While he was in Columbia, the Tigers reached the NCAA Tournament three times.

Shaw played baseball collegiately for three years at Emporia State after spending two seasons at Longview Community College in Missouri. While at Emporia State, he turned in a .389 batting average as a junior and was a three-year member of the Student-Athlete Advisory Council.

A native of Odessa, Missouri, Shaw also organizes and administers MSU softball’s camp offerings. He earned his master's degree in positive coaching from Missouri in 2019 and completed his bachelor’s degree in business at Emporia State in 2017.