Staff Directory
- Title:
- Director of Softball Operations & Player Development
- Email:
Jim Schurr joined the staff as the Director of Operations & Player Development in September 2025. A 31-year coaching veteran of softball, baseball and football, Schurr will manage the day-to-day operations of the program.
Schurr joins the Panthers’ staff after spending the last two seasons as an assistant softball coach with Carnegie Mellon. The Tartans reached double-digit wins in each season while competing strongly in the University Athletic Association (UAA) which boasts three teams in the national rankings. The 2025 squad faced four nationally ranked teams, defeating Case Western Reserve University in game one of the three-game series that closed the season. Freshman Gianna Adams was named UAA Rookie of the Year while four others joined her on the All-UAA Second Team.
Schurr has additional coaching experience, having served as a volunteer assistant coach for the softball team at Ball State University in 2021. While with the Cardinals, Schurr worked with the infielders and assisted with hitting. The Cardinals set a program record with 31 Mid-American Conference (MAC) wins, including the longest single-season MAC winning streak in program history at 16 games. The team, which finished the year with a 37-18 overall record, broke the program's single-season doubles record with 101 and finished the campaign with single-season program records for batting average (.329) and on-base percentage (.415). The defense also proved to be a strength, as the team ended the season ranked sixth nationally with an average of 0.55 double plays per game. The Cardinals turned 29 double plays, the third-most in a single season for the program.
In 2016, Schurr was appointed State Coordinator of Illinois and the Great Lakes Region for USA Baseball National Team Identification Series (NTIS) and in 2017, he transitioned to a managing partner of Classic Baseball/Softball and helped form the Academic Achievement Games (AAG). The AAG is a premier college softball showcase for high academic student-athletes.
Schurr is an Illinois native who played college baseball at Western Kentucky and at Harper Junior College, where he was a first-team all-region selection and received honorable mention All-American recognition. Schurr played in the Midwest Region All-Star game, serving as team captain, and earned MVP honors.
Schurr moved to Pittsburgh in 2023 with his wife, Lacy, who serves as the Pitt associate head softball coach. Schurr has two sons, Austin (A.J.) and Nicholas.
