West Texas A&M University Athletics

Shawn Neale recently concluded his ninth season as an Assistant Baseball Coach at West Texas A&M as he was named the program's Recruiting Coordinator in the Summer of 2021.

Neale was elevated to Associate Head Coach following the 2025 season. He is heavily involved in recruiting efforts along with hitter and catcher development while also implementing skill camps and youth tournaments throughout the year.

The 2025 Buffaloes finished 31-21 overall with a 29-19 mark in Lone Star Conference play as they hit .337 on the season with 115 doubles, 24 triples and 64 homeruns to drive in 412 RBI with a slugging percentage of .551. WT ranked 13th nationally in batting average along with 6th in triples, 11th in slugging percentage, 15th in on-base percentage, 21st in scoring, 27th in doubles, 41st in homeruns, and 47th in hits. Senior Kory Schmidt was tabbed a Third Team All-American by D2CCA with Schmidt, Dylan Fesperman and Kyle Micklus earning All-Region accolades.

2024 saw the Buffaloes return to the NCAA Postseason for the ninth time in program history as they finished 37-19 overall with a 34-14 mark in the Lone Star Conference. The Buffs were ranked as high as third in the nation during the campaign, advancing to the South Central Regional Finals in Grand Junction, Colorado. Nine Buffs claimed all-conference honors with Kyle Micklus being named the LSC Newcomer of the Year, senior first baseman Dylan Fesperman picked up All-American honors by the NCBWA and D2CCA.

The 2023 Buffaloes finished the campaign 30-22 overall with a 28-20 mark in Lone Star Conference action to advance to the program's ninth LSC Tournament. Senior third baseman Adam Becker was tabbed the NCBWA and D2CCA South Central Region Player of the Year while picking up All-American honors.

2022 saw the Buffaloes register one of the best offensive performances in program history as they hit .333 as a team with 137 doubles, 13 triples and a school-record 75 homeruns to drive in 465 RBI with a slugging percentage of .532. Third baseman Adam Becker became the Lone Star Conference Player of the Year with 22 doubles and 22 long balls to drive in 92 RBI, claiming All-American honors along with teammate Ryan Johnson. The Buffs advanced to their eighth straight NCAA Division II Postseason, finishing with an overall mark of 39-19. 

The 2021 campaign saw the Buffaloes claim their third Lone Star Conference Championship with a 28-4 mark in league action as they advanced to a seventh straight NCAA Tournament, making an appearance in the program's first ever Regional Finals with an overall record of 34-9. 12 different Buffs picked-up All-LSC honors while Keone Givens, Mathieu Gauthier, Todd Danzeisen, Kennedy Badgett, Carter Brown and Cade Engle were named All-Region, Givens and Gauthier were also tabbed Honorable Mention NCBWA All-Americans for their efforts on the diamond.

2020 saw the Buffaloes start the season ranked 15th nationally as they held a 17-6 overall mark on March 12th when the remainder of the campaign was canceled due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

The Buffs finished their 2019 campaign with an overall record of 41-12 to set a new program record for victories in a single season, WT claimed their third LSC Tournament Title in the last four years while making an appearance in the NCAA Division II Baseball Postseason for the sixth straight season. WT finished the year with the sixth highest batting average (.327) in all of Division II Baseball while also ranking fifth in the country in on-base percentage (.426). Joe Corbett was named the Division II National Pitcher of the Year by the D2CCA and NCBWA as the Edmond product became the fourth highest draft pick in LSC history when he was taken in the 10th Round (295th Overall) by the Texas Rangers. Corbett was tabbed an All-American along with fellow senior Kyle Kaufman.

2018 saw the Buffs cap-off arguably the best season in program history with hosting duties for the NCAA South Central Regional Tournament at Wilder Park in Canyon. The Buffs reached the 40-win plateau for the first time in program history, finishing the season with a mark of 40-14 as they claimed their second Lone Star Conference Title with a league record of 20-4. WT was named the Lone Star Conference Coaching Staff of the Year while senior first baseman Luis Amaro became the third Buff in history to pick-up LSC Player of the Year accolades. At the plate, the Buffs finished the season hitting .318 as a team with 127 doubles, 23 triples and 47 homeruns to drive in 388 RBI for a slugging percentage of .498.

In 2017, he helped guide the Buffs to their fourth-straight NCAA South Central Regional appearance and second-straight Lone Star Conference Tournament Title with a 36-18 record overall. Neale helped with the offense as the Buffs finished tenth nationally in doubles (124) and seventh in doubles per game at 2.30 both leading the LSC. The Buffs also led the LSC in fielding percentage at a .970 percentage to rank 19th nationally. 

Neale came to WT from Northern Oklahoma College-Tonkawa where he has served as an assistant coach and recruiting coordinator for three seasons. In 2016, the Mavericks set a school-record for wins going 43-19 and were ranked as high as seventh nationally in the NJCAA poll. Neale helped guide NOC-T to a NJCAA Region 2 Runner-Up finish, while having two draftees in Ariel Burgos-Garcia and Walker Whitworth, along with two NJCAA All-Americans in Burgos-Garcia and Josh Evans.

In 2015, the team finished 37-24 which was 18 victories more than the previous season and the Mavericks were ranked as high as 12th in the national poll, while remaining in the Top 25 for six consecutive weeks. Neale and the Mavericks finished third in the Regional Tournament. 

Prior to NOC-T, Neale spent three seasons at Northwestern Oklahoma State where he served in a similar role. Neale worked as an assistant coach working with the catchers and hitters. He oversaw strength and conditioning with the position players. Under Neale’s watch, catcher Juan Natal was named to the 2013 All-Great American Conference First Team as he threw out 42 percent of would-be base stealers. 

Neale played collegiately at Bacone College, and in his first season there, he helped lead the Warriors to a 35-21 record and a Red River Athletic Conference North Division Title, the first in program history. As a sophomore, Neale was part of the 41-14 squad which reached as high as 18th in the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA) poll. 

A native of Collingwood, Ontario, Neale earned his Bachelor’s Degree from Bacone in Health and Physical Education in 2011.