Shannon Salsburg - Softball Coach - Bowling Green State University Athletics

Shannon Salsburg

Title:
Head Softball Coach
Email:
ssalsbu@bgsu.edu
Phone:
419-372-7159

Shannon Salsburg embarks upon her ninth season as head coach for the Bowling Green State University softball program. She is the second-longest tenured coach in program history, and is also second in wins in BGSU softball annals, entering the season with 176 victories.

The Falcons went 23-28-1 overall a year ago, posting a 9-11 Mid-American Conference record. Under Salsburg’s guidance in 2014, the Orange and Brown had three players earn all-conference honors, including a first-team selection for Katie Yoho. Chelsea Raker and Aspen Searle both were named to the MAC's All-Freshman Team in their first year under Salsburg, and Raker was an All-MAC Second-Team choice.

In addition, Salsburg had several Falcons recognized for hard work in the classroom as well. Yoho was chosen to the 2014 Academic All-MAC Team, while six other teammates named to the Honorable Mention list.

In 2013, Salsburg and the Falcons finished the year with a 27-24 overall record, including a record of 7-9 in the MAC. The Falcons earned a trip to the conference postseason tournament for the second-straight season.

2013 also saw four Falcons earn all-conference honors under coach Salsburg's guidance, including first-team selections for Hannah Fulk and Jamie Kertes.

The Falcons posted an impressive 36-22 overall record in 2012, going 15-7 in MAC play. The 2012 team tripled the overall win total from the previous season, and fell just one win short of the school single-season record. The 24-game improvement from the previous season was the largest in the country. BGSU finished second in the East Division that spring, and earned the third seed in the MAC Tournament.

Not surprisingly, Salsburg was named MAC Coach Of The Year honors in 2012, becoming only the fourth coach in the history of the program to win the award, and the first since 2001.

Salsburg has never shied away from putting together a difficult non-conference schedule which includes multiple games against national powers. Along with a yearly schedule that rivals any in the conference, Salsburg’s teams display a strong power-hitting ability. She is the only head coach in BGSU history to coach her team to 30-plus home runs in a season, peaking with 47 in 2008. She is also the only coach to have her team reach 30-plus homers in consecutive seasons (35 in 2007 and 47 in 2008). In fact, the 2010 team again broke the 30-homer barrier with 31.

The 2011 season saw sophomore shortstop Hannah Fulk earn NFCA Second Team All-Region honors, while classmate Paige Berger was a second team All-MAC player. Also that saeson, freshman catcher Erika Stratton became the first player in program history to hit three home runs in a game.

The 2010 team was not expected to qualify for the MAC Tournament after graduating one of the greatest players in BGSU softball history in Hayley Wiemer. However, Salsburg guided the team to surprising success. The Falcons, predicted to finish last in the MAC's East Division in the preseason coaches poll, tied for fourth in the division and made the MAC Tournament as the No. 8 seed.

In 2009, Salsburg had two players named ESPN the Magazine Academic All-District, one All-MAC First-Team, one All-MAC Freshman Team and two Academic All-MAC. She also coached senior Wiemer to two MAC East Player of the Week selections (March 17 and April 28), a MAC East Pitcher of the Week selection (Feb. 17), a MAC Female Scholar Athlete of the Week selection (April 30) and lastly, a Lowe’s Senior Class Candidate nomination.

In Salsburg’s second season as the Falcons’ head coach she led the team to a 19-24 overall record and 14-5 record in the MAC. Salsburg and the 2008 Falcons finished the regular season second in the MAC East division and third at the MAC Tournament. As a team, the Falcons were ranked in the top 100 in the nation in four statistical categories -- home runs per game (36th), doubles per game (69th), slugging percentage (97th) and earned run average (100th).

In 2007, her first season at the helm of the Falcons, she posted a 33-12 season record good for a .733 winning percentage, the best winning percentage and the fourth most wins in BGSU softball history. The 2007 Falcons shattered the school single-season record by blasting 47 homers, and BGSU also recording a program best .449 slugging percentage. Wiemer led the way, by hitting 11 balls out of the park and Susan Sontag set a new rookie record with nine homers in her freshman season.

Salsburg debuted as the head coach of the Falcons at the Panera Bread Challenge in Chattanooga, Tenn., in February of 2007, recording her first win as the Falcons' head coach against Maine (Feb. 23, 2007). The Brown and Orange posted a 4-1 record that weekend, bringing home the Falcons’ second consecutive championship at Chattanooga, and BG followed that up with another championship crown at the Charleston Southern Tournament and a second place finish at the USF Speedline Tournament.

Salsburg was named the seventh head coach in the history of the program on Sept. 25, 2006, after spending the 2005 and 2006 seasons on the staff at Kent State University. While with the Golden Flashes, she helped the team to the MAC East Division title (just one-half game ahead of BGSU) and the MAC Tournament crown in 2006. Salsburg and KSU shattered the school and MAC record for home runs in 2006, ranking 13th in the nation with 54 round-trippers.

KSU had an overall record of 33-24 and a league mark of 16-5 in 2006. The Golden Flashes qualified for the MAC Tournament in each of Salsburg’s two seasons in Kent.

Prior to her two seasons at KSU, Salsburg served three seasons as an assistant coach at the University of Arkansas, helping the Razorbacks post two of the top three batting averages in school history during her time in Fayetteville. Arkansas advanced to the Southeastern Conference tournament as well as to NCAA Regional play in 2002. UA set school single-season records in batting average, homers, slugging percentage and on-base pct. during Salsburg’s tenure.

In addition to KSU, Salsburg has worked at two other MAC institutions. She spent one season (2001) as an assistant coach at the University at Buffalo, and began her coaching career as a graduate assistant coach at the University of Akron, helping the Zips advance to the MAC Tournament in both years there (1999 and 2000).

A native of Navarre, Ohio, Salsburg is a 1998 graduate of Penn State University, where she was a four-year starter at first base. She captained the Nittany Lions in three of those seasons, and still holds the school career records for home runs (34), runs batted in (118) and walks (99). A two-time All-Big Ten selection, she earned All-Great Lakes Region First-Team honors in 1995.

Salsburg received her bachelors degree from Penn State in 1998, and earned her masters degree from Akron in 2000. She is a graduate of Tuslaw High School.