INDIANAPOLIS

Julie (VonDielingen) Shelton has received numerous awards and honors during her career in athletics, but she says the one she received Saturday night stands at the top of her list.

“It’s an amazing honor and something I am just so thankful for receiving, and really just can’t believe that I’m really experiencing it,” she said moments after being inducted into the Indiana Basketball Hall of Fame during a banquet in Indianapolis.

“So many prestigious people have gone before me, so many inductees, Terri (Moren) a couple years ago from Seymour that I played with. It’s just a special event.”

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Shelton said basketball has been a big part of her life for as long as she can remember.

“I love basketball, and basketball has been a part of my life from elementary all the way through today,” she said. “Every single year of my life I’ve been playing or coaching for all 46 years and now my children are involved in basketball and I would say it will continue to be a part of my life.”

Shelton graduated from Seymour High School in 1989 and she helped the girls’ basketball team reach the state finals in 1987.

She also helped her volleyball team reach the state finals twice, and advanced the state track and field meet in the shot put.

Basketball hall-of-famer Donna Sullivan was Shelton’s volleyball and basketball coach, while Stu Silver was head girls track coach and Chris Rose coached her in the shot put.

“I enjoyed all sports,” Shelton said. “My parents got me into sports at a young age and I participated in tennis, softball and basketball.

I was in a lot of different sports and just the Seymour community and Immanuel, I had a lot of wonderful coaches at Immanuel, and Coach Sullivan for four years in volleyball and basketball. You couldn’t ask for a better coach, and then Coach Rose and Coach Silver were great in track. I was just blessed with a wonderful community full of great teammates and coaches.”

Shelton held the career scoring records at Immanuel, Seymour High and Butler when she completed her playing days at those places.

She recalled her early days during her induction speech.

“Growing up in Indiana I spent countless hours playing basketball in neighborhood driveways, pretending to hit the winning shot and dreaming about a life of basketball. Driveways turned into gymnasiums.

“Pretending became reality, and many of my dreams have come true. So it is, with gratitude and appreciation that I want to thank the Hall of Fame committee for this wonderful honor. I’m so thankful to have my parents (Carl and Cathy VonDielingen) here with me this evening and get to celebrate this honor with me for all the time, love and support that they have given me throughout my playing and now my coaching career.”

She also expressed her gratitude to the Seymour community, and to her teammates and coaches at Seymour for their support.

“They inspired me on and off the court — especially coach Donna Sullivan,” Shelton said. “She has taught me so many things about life and basketball. ‘Sull,’ I look back on all those days we had together as the glory days.”

Following graduation from Butler University in 1993, Shelton began coaching and teaching at Mt. Vernon High School (Fortville).

She was head coach there for 16 years and led her team to state runner-up honors in 2012, and to the state championship the following season.

She has been an assistant women’s basketball coach at Butler the past three seasons.

“There are a lot of similarities, but the recruiting aspect, and just getting to coach only and coach all day, and a lot of the individual work, and film work that we get to do,” she listed as the difference between high school and college.

“It’s a more in depth type of coaching. We (coaching staff) really don’t split into positions, but I do do a lot of the individual workouts with many of the post players.”

Shelton, who was named to the Basketball Hall of Fame’s Silver Anniversary team in 2014, held the career scoring records at Immanuel, Seymour High School and Butler when she completed her playing time at those places.

She scored 1,564 points at Seymour, and was named to the Indiana All-Star team in 1989 and held nine school records including points in a game (43 against Bloomington North), field goals in a career (606) and 912 rebounds.

Shelton is Butler’s career points leader with 2,018 and is the only Bulldog to score more than 2,000 points.

She holds 11 game, season and career scoring marks at Butler and is the second all-time leading scorer in the Horizon League.

She led Butler in scoring and rebounding four straight seasons and was a four-time first team all-league performer, was named Midwestern Collegiate Conference Player of the Year in 1992-93 and was picked to the All-America team by Basketball Times in 1992-93.

Shelton was inducted into the Butler Athletic Hall of Fame in 2006.

Both of Shelton’s children attend schools in Mt. Vernon.

“It was a wonderful day with my family and a great day getting to reminisce and spend a lot of time with girls I played with on AAU teams, and against and we just had a lot of fun reliving a lot of great memories,” Shelton said.

Among the Silver Anniversary team members honored was Daria (Weitekamp) Terrell, wife of former Brownstown Central coach and teacher Sam Terrell.

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Julie (VonDielingen) Shelton

At Seymour High School:

-Helped Owls win three regional championship and advance to the 1987 state tournament

– Scored 1,564 points and had 906 rebounds

-Selected as 1989 Indiana All-Star

-Helped volleyball team reach the state finals two times, and compete in the state track meet.

-Held 9 school records when she graduated

At Butler University:

-Scored 2,018 points (only Butler player ever to score over 2,000 points)

-Led team in scoring and rebounding four straight years

-Midwestern Collegiate Conference Player of the Year in 1992-93

-Inducted into Butler Athletic Hall of Fame in 2006

-Holds 11 Butler game, season and career basketball records

-Named to All-America team by Basketball Times in 1992-93

At Mt. Vernon High School:

-Head girls’ basketball coach 16 seasons

-Posted a record of 260-107

-Won 2013 Class 3A state championship after finishing runner-up in 2012

-Won five sectionals

-Received numerous coaching honors from the ICGSA, IBCA, NFHS

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