Vanessa Kellems was hired in July 2024 as the 17th head softball coach in MSU Moorhead history. She begins her second season at the helm in the fall of 2025.
In her first season, Kellems only upheld the standard of success within MSUM softball. The Dragons went 20-37 overall with Kellems earning her first victory over Minot State on January 31. MSUM would win 11 NSIC games in 2025 and the season would come full circle as the Dragons again qualified for the NSIC Tournament. For the third consecutive season, MSUM collected a postseason win, defeating the aforementioned Beavers on April 30.
Seniors Avery Steffen and Eliya Johnson were named All-NSIC First Team performers while Steffen became the second player in program history to garner NFCA All-Region distinction. Steffen reset MSUM single-season records in hits, runs scored and stolen bases in 2025. Additionally, senior Annika Norman became the program's all-time hits leader in 2025.
Kellems comes to Moorhead following a stint at the University of Saint Katherine in San Marcos, Calif. She served as the head assistant for the Firebird program, primarily working as the hitting coach. She also developed a film analysis program for hitters and fielders.
Prior to her work at Saint Katherine, Kellems was the head softball coach at Westcliff University in Irvine, Calif., from 2021 until 2023. In her tenure, Kellems led the Warriors to 50 wins over her first two seasons at the helm.
She helped guide Westcliff to a 32-20 record in 2023 which included a 19-9 mark in league play. The Warriors hit for a .311 average that season while scoring 260 runs. In total, Kellems helped 13 Warriors to All-Cal Pac honors including one Cal Pac Player of the Year in 2023.
Kellems began her head coaching career at Grossmont College in El Cajon, Calif., in 2019 until leaving for Westcliff in 2021. In her first season as head coach, Kellems navigated the COVID-19 pandemic and pushed the Griffins to a 12-6 mark in a condensed season. Kellems served as assistant coach at Grossmont in 2015-16 and was a volunteer assistant for the program in 2018 until she moved into the head coaching role.
As a player, Kellems was a stalwart for South Dakota State from 2012 until completing her degree in 2015. Kellems played in 108 games for the Jackrabbits in her career, primarily playing on the infield. She wrapped her collegiate career with an impressive .941 fielding percentage with only five errors committed in her 108 games.
The La Mesa, Calif., native earned her bachelor’s degree in health education from South Dakota State in 2015. She went on to complete her Masters in exercise science at Northern Colorado in 2018. Kellems earned her second Masters degree in inspired teaching & learning through leadership from National University. She is currently in the process of earning her Doctorate in leadership from Westcliff University.
