A key member of the baseball program during the transition to NCAA Division II, Joe Shallenberger helped guide Concordia from the UMAC in his freshman season to an impressive 18-12 record at the Division II level in his senior campaign.
The Minneapolis, Minnesota (Patrick Henry HS) native made his presence known from day one as he stepped in to lead the team with a .355 batting average in his freshman year to push CSP to a 7-4 mark and a second-place finish in UMAC play.
He didn't miss a beat with the step up in competition to DII the following year as he slugged .500 for the second consecutive season before exploding for a massive junior season. Shallenberger hammered eight home runs while slugging a massive .690 to garner All-NSIC First Team honors in year three on campus.
He saved his best for last as he played a starring role in a massive seven-win improvement in NSIC play and an eight-win improvement overall in his senior campaign. The slugger slashed an incredible .451/.510/.901 with 11 home runs to make it back-to-back All-NSIC First Team seasons.
His baseball career continued post-college as he played professionally for the St. Paul Saints in the Northern League and the Kalamazoo Kings in the Frontier League from 2002-2004. He still plays for the Minnetonka Millers today.
Shallenberger, who earned his degree in K-12 Health/Physical Education from Concordia, spent 13 years as a physical education teacher in the Minneapolis Public School system before taking the assistant baseball coach job at Macalester College. He resides in Plymouth with his wife, Katie, and their three children, Griffin, Isabel and Zoey.
Career Awards
- All-NSIC First Team (2001, 2002)
- 2002 CSP Male Athlete of the Year
CSP Records
- 1st - season slugging percentage (.901, 2002)
- 2nd (at time of graduation, now t-7th) - career home runs (23)
- 2nd (at time of graduation, now 9th) - career runs batted in (104)
- 2nd (at time of graduation, now 11th) - career total bases (240)
- 2nd (at time of graduation, now 10th) - career slugging percentage (.650)
- 2nd (at time of graduation, now t-9th) - season home runs (11, 2002)
- t-2nd (at time of graduation, now t-3rd) - season triples (4, 1999)
- 3rd (at time of graduation, now 3rd) - season batting average (.451, 2002)
Career & Season Stats
- Career .358/.427/.650 hitter in 110 games
- Career 132 hits, including 23 home runs, 27 doubles and six triples
- Career 104 RBIs and 87 runs scored
- Career 240 total bases and .904 fielding percentage
- Slugged .500 or better in each of his four seasons
- Reached base at a .412 or better clip in three of four years
- Collected at least 11 extra-base hits all four seasons
- Slashed .451/.510/.901 with 11 home runs in his senior year
