Female athlete of the year in Charlotte? She found a path off the track to Oklahoma

Alexis Shelton was following in her parents’ footsteps.

Her mother, Angel, was a 400-meter dash specialist at Clemson who ran in the U.S. Olympic trials.

Her dad, Brandon, ran track at Southern Illinois University.

It was no surprise that Alexis took naturally to track and field.

By the time she reached middle school, she had earned All-America honors in the 100-meter hurdles, the 200-meter hurdles, the triple jump and the pentathlon.

“She’s just one of those really gifted athletes,” longtime Ardrey Kell High volleyball coach Zoe Bells said.

But Alexis Shelton discovered volleyball in middle school, and the rest is history.

She earned all-conference, all-region and all-state honors as a sophomore, junior and senior at Ardrey Kell and was the key player on a high school team that compiled a 68-12 record in her final three years at the school.

Shelton, a 6-foot-2 outside hitter, is The Charlotte Observer’s Female Athlete of the Year award winner.

Bell, who has coached volleyball on a local and national level for more than a three decades and guided numerous teams to high school state championships, puts Shelton in a rare category.

“I’ve coached since 1989, and she’s in the top five of all the players I’ve coached,” Bell said.

“I’ve coached some great players, so I’m not going to rate them,” Bell added. “But she’s in that group right at the top.”

Shelton finished with 1,092 kills, including 571 in her senior season. She converted nearly 50 percent of her kill attempts.

Shelton actually was recruited to volleyball by a middle school coach.

“The first year was kind of rough,” said Shelton, who graduated from Ardrey Kell in December and is now at the University of Oklahoma on a volleyball scholarship. “But it got better from there.”

Bell said Shelton’s rapid development in the sport, despite a relatively late start, is remarkable.

“I think it’s a testament to her work ethic,” Bell said . “She was able to come into the sport and compete for a relatively short period of time, yet become so skilled.”

Shelton’s father, Brandon, called her a world-class pentathlete, and that all-around talent is evident on the volleyball court, too, said Oklahoma head coach Lindsey Gray-Walton.

“In the position of the outside (hitter), you have a lot on you,” Gray-Walton said. “You have to pass, you have to play defense, you have to block, you have to attack, you have to serve.

“Alexis has an ability to do each of the skills really well — like a five-tool player in baseball.”

Gray-Walton also said Shelton has answered every challenge she’s faced. She talks about a player who “has blossomed” into a standout in recent years.

The Sooners’ coach noted that Shelton was put on a Team USA team for 18-year-olds when she was only 17.

“She’s playing up and competing among the best, and holding her own,” Gray-Walton said.

Shelton said she enjoyed track and field but found volleyball more fun because of the sport’s team aspect.

“I enjoy being with the team,” she said last November, during Ardrey Kell’s run to the 4A state finals, where the Knights lost to Green Level. “Working together toward a common goal, and doing it with people you enjoy … that’s what makes this fun.”

This story was originally published June 23, 2022 at 6:00 AM.