DEFIANCE, Ohio – Defiance College baseball has found its next head coach with the hiring of Shane Gardner as the program's 34th leader, the athletic department announced on Wednesday.
Gardner brings 12 years of college head coaching experience to Defiance after eight years at his alma mater Hiwassee College followed by four more at Trinity International University. Over his head coaching career, Gardner has a cumulative record of 269-291-1 with four appearances in the National Christian College Athletic Association (NCCAA) World Series and nine postseason berths. He has also mentored four All-Americans, 25 First Team All-Region selections and 10 players that signed pro contracts after their college careers.
"I am excited to have been chosen to lead the baseball program here at Defiance College!" says Gardner. We have a great opportunity here to build a program that will make the community proud, that will promote character on and the field, and will graduate lifelong learners."
Under his leadership at Hiwassee, the Tigers put together five straight 30-win seasons while also reaching the NCCAA World Series four years in a row from 2016-19. In the process, Gardner was named Mideast Regional and Tennessee Baseball Coaches Association College Coach of the Year in 2016 and finished as the Tigers' all-time winningest head coach with a 214-189 mark. At TIU, his teams improved upon their win totals each year while increasing the size of the roster by 10 players in just four years leading the Trojans.
"We are excited to have Coach Gardner join us at DC. He has extensive knowledge of college baseball and how to build a successful program that we will benefit from as a university," says Defiance College Athletic Director Tiffani Selhorst. " He also has many other attributes that are important to me as we build a strong athletic department. Shane will work hard to bring a winning baseball program back to Defiance College."
Gardner is a native of Philadelphia, Tenn. and completed his Bachelor of Arts in Interdisciplinary Studies at Hiwassee in 2013 before adding his Master's Degree in sport management from Missouri Baptist in 2019.
Gardner takes over a program with repeated long-term stability at the head coaching position despite recent changes. He is just the fifth head coach for Defiance College baseball over the last 41 years by following three of the winningest coaches in team history: Craig Rutter (1983-2001), Derek Woodley (2008-22) and Chad Donsbach (2002-07).
Ben Babcock served as the interim head coach for the 2023 season after Woodley left DC after 15 years for a minor league coaching position with the New York Yankees in February. Babcock will remain for his third season as an assistant coach alongside graduate assistant Nate Kaffenbarger.