Hall of Fame
Kelly Swanson Saenz played four seasons (1997-2000) for coach Jane Worthington’s softball team. Her best season came in 1998 when she hit .416 with 17 doubles, 12 home runs and 46 RBIs. That season, she was ranked 20th in the nation in home runs, was chosen first team All-Ohio Valley Conference and picked as the OVC Player of the Year. Saenz’s career totals were 197 hits, 18 home runs, 99 RBIs and a .321 batting average.
Following her graduation, she remained in athletics, specifically coaching softball. Saenz started the softball program at Frank Phillips College in Borger, Texas and stayed there for two seasons before being named head coach in 2004 at San Jacinto College where she still served at the time of her induction. Her SJC teams had compiled more than 600 victories in this 19-year period.
Saenz was inducted into the Manitoba Hall of Fame in 2014 and the Canadian Softball Hall of Fame in 2015. She has led San Jacinto to five NJCAA national tournaments with her team’s top finish of third coming in 2021. Saenz has coached 81 all-conference players, 72 all-region players, 13 NFCA All-Americans, three NJCAA All-Americans among other Players of the Year and Pitchers of the Year. She has also coached numerous players who were named to regional and national all-academic teams.
In 2012 Saenz was named athletics director for the SJC South Campus where she was able to improve the soccer and softball programs, along with increasing scholarships across all sports.
Saenz has also volunteered in her community with many projects and camps for kids and youth, including aiding in the Hurricane Laura relief donations for Louisiana in 2020.
