Newman University Men's Baseball

Lance Spongberg enters into his first season leading the Jets in 2025-26.  During Spongberg’s first season in 25-26, Spongberg led the Jets to a 6-44 overall record. Under Spongberg, Nicolas Ely earned Third Team All-MIAA and Kaynan Kaku earned All-MIAA Honorable Mention.  Spongberg joins the Jets after spending last season as an assistant coach and pitching coach for Southeastern University. Spongberg helped lead the Fire to the NAIA National Championship Game in the 2025 season. The Fire earned National Runners-Up after falling to historic LSU Shreveport, who won the National Title with an undefeated season.  Before his stint with Southeastern University, Spongberg spent three seasons as an assistant coach at William Jewell College. While at WJC, the Cardinals had three straight 30+ win seasons and earned their first GLVC postseason tournament appearance since 2018.  Prior to William Jewell, Spongberg spent three years at Ottawa University as an assistant coach. He helped lead the Braves to their first regional appearance in program history. That same season the Braves topped the KCAC, winning the conference tournament.  Spongberg also spent time at Morningside College as an assistant coach and as a head coach for the Haysville Aviators.  Spongberg was a student-athlete at Morningside College where he helped the team reach NAIA Regionals. He also played for the Haysville Aviators. His playing accomplishments include: four-time GPAC All-Conference pitcher, two-time NBC World Series Qualifier, 2014 Walter Johnson League Co-Pitcher of the Year, and earned a spot on the NBC World Series All-American Team in 2014.  After his collegiate career, he went on to play professional baseball for the Sioux City Explorers in 2016-2017. While at Morningside, Spongberg earned his degree in Business Administration (Coaching Endorsement). He earned his Masters of Business Administration with a Leadership Development concentration from Ottawa University.

Jake Sellinger enters into his first season with the Jets in 2025-2026.  He joins the program from the University of Colorado Colorado Springs (UCCS), where he served as an assistant coach for the Mountain Lions. In addition to his coaching duties, Sellinger also assisted with the team’s strength and conditioning program. In his four seasons coaching at UCCS, he primarily worked with outfielders, catchers, hitters, and base runners. As a student-athlete, Sellinger played five seasons for the Mountain Lions. During his career, UCCS won the 2021 RMAC Tournament Championship and advanced to the NCAA Regionals that same year. He earned his bachelor’s degree in Leadership Communication from UCCS and later completed a master’s degree in Health and Sport Science from Northeastern State University. Sellinger was born and raised in Las Vegas, Nevada.

Jordan Phillips enters into his first season with the Jets in 2025-26.  Phillips earned his undergraduate degree from William Jewell College, where he played baseball for three seasons and was named as a First Team All-Region Utility Player. Before his time at William Jewell, Phillips played at Blinn College, Panola College, and Taft College.