Josh Taylor enters his fourth year at the helm of the Nevada softball program, following three successful seasons with the Wolf Pack. In just his first three years, Taylor, a former baseball player and a member of the Nevada Hall of Fame, has taken Nevada to three straight postseason tournaments.
In 2019, the Wolf Pack posted a 29 win season under Taylor, his second best overall win number since taking the head coaching job; just behind his 30 wins in 2017. The year also saw Nevada host the NISC (National Invitational Softball Championship) at Christina M. Hixson park where the Pack made it to the regional championship.
The defense under Taylor in 2019 shattered two school records with the highest fielding percentage, .968 and the fewest errors made in a single season, just 49. It also ranked third in the Mountain West for best fielding percentage. On the offensive side, Taylor had a freshman in Dallas Millwood who led the conference and was in the top 20 in NCAA for RBIs with 52. Millwood and Sadaria McAlister were both named to the Mountain West All-Conference team with Millwood earning second team and McAlister garnering first team accolades.
During the 2018 season, Nevada clinched five Mountain West All-Conference honors in Kenzi Goins, Lauren Gutierrez, Erika Hansen, Aaliyah Gibson, and Sierra Mello. Taylor marked a .500 record or better his first two seasons and the Pack went 27-27 in 2018. Along with its 27-27 overall season record, the Wolf Pack posted a 12-12 mark in league play, the second-most victories Nevada has had in conference play since joining the Mountain West.
Under his direction, Nevada saw four of its players receive Mountain West All-Conference honors in 2017, including two first-team selections. In 2017, Taylor also helped the Pack reach the 30-win plateau in back-to-back seasons, which is the first time such a task has been accomplished since the 2008 and 2009 seasons.
With a 13-11 record in conference play, Taylor guided Nevada to record the program’s most wins in MW play since joining the league in 2012. Two of those wins came at Fresno State, who was the preseason favorite to win the conference in 2017.
In his first year as a Division I head coach, Taylor earned his first victory over a top 25 team as he led Nevada to a seventh inning, comeback win over No. 17 Utah. Taylor also earned two more wins over Power-5 schools in 2017, defeating Iowa State and Kansas in the process.
Prior to moving back to Reno, Taylor serve a brief, two-month stint in charge of the softball program at the College of Southern Nevada before being named the head coach at Nevada in August 2016. He joined a Wolf Pack softball program that he was very familiar with as Taylor has been part of the Wolf Pack coaching staff since the 2012 season.
Before accepting the position at the College of Southern Nevada, Taylor served as the assistant softball coach at Nevada for four seasons, where the team saw three winning seasons and over 100 wins. During his time under previous head coach Matt Meuchel, Taylor was responsible for all aspects of team and individual defense while also overseeing camps and clinics, recruiting visits and recruiting databases.
In 2016, Taylor helped lead the team to one of its most successful seasons since joining the Mountain West. The 32 wins Nevada collected marked a 19-win improvement from the 2015 campaign and earned Nevada a third place tie in the 2016 MW standings, which is the team’s highest finish as a member of the conference.
His first season leading the defense was the Wolf Pack’s best, setting a school record with a .965 fielding percentage that also ranked second in the Mountain West. Nevada also committed just 52 errors as a team that season, the second-lowest total in the conference.
Prior to joining the Wolf Pack, Taylor served as the head coach at Feather River College in Quincy, Calif. Taylor, who was an assistant coach and recruiting coordinator for the Feather River baseball team in his first stint from 2004-07, led the Golden Eagle softball program to three-consecutive Super Regional appearances from 2010 to 2012. His overall record in his four years at Feather River was 113-59.
The 2012 season was highlighted by Taylor’s third-consecutive 30-win season and his 10th playoff victory in the regional playoff. In 2011, Feather River reached its second-straight Super Regional in a season that also saw Taylor receive the Gatorade Coach of the Year award.
In 2010, Taylor was named Golden Valley Conference Coach of the Year after leading the Golden Eagles to their first GVC title since 2006. The Taylor-led offense topped the GVC in team batting average, runs, RBI, doubles and triples.
While at Feather River, Taylor oversaw all major aspects of the program including travel and budget, academic progress of student-athletes, recruiting efforts, facility and maintenance upkeep and weight training. Taylor also developed and implemented fundraising efforts for the program. Feather River also put Taylor to the task of serving as the fitness center director and an advisor for the Associated Students of Feather River College.
Taylor previously served as associate head coach for the Marysville Gold Sox, a collegiate summer league team, from 2008-11. On top of running all aspects of hitting and fielding instruction, Taylor coached multiple players who went on to earn Division I scholarships and two big leaguers in Cody Anderson and Max Stassi. Prior to joining the Gold Sox, Taylor spent a season as associate head coach and recruiting coordinator at San Joaquin College in Stockton, Calif. from 2007-08.
A former Wolf Pack baseball player, Taylor had an impressive senior season in 1994 where he appeared in 41 games, starting in 25, hit .284 with a home run and 12 RBIs. That year, the Pack compiled a season record of 41-15 while going 16-5 in the Big West Conference en route to capturing its first Division I conference championship and appearing in the program’s first NCAA Regional.
Nevada was ranked as high as No. 6 in the nation that season and finished the season ranked No. 17. Taylor was inducted into the Nevada Athletics Hall of Fame in 2015 as part of the 1994 baseball squad.
Taylor and his wife, Michelle, have one daughter, Madyson, who graduated from Nevada.
