Mike Davenport took over as MATC head baseball coach and physical education instructor during the 2004-05 season. After leading the team to an eighth place national finish at the NJCAA Division II World Series during the his first season, Davenport has guided the team to an impressive 76-39-2 record over the past two seasons. He has had several players drafted and three NJCAA All-Americans over the past three seasons.

Before arriving at MATC, Davenport spent the previous nine seasons as the Head Coach, Athletic Director and Assistant Wellness Center Director at his alma mater, Kishwaukee College, in Malta, Illinois.

Coach Davenport experienced tremendous success while coaching at NJCAA Division II Kishwaukee College from 1995-2004. Under his guidance, his teams recorded a 340-170 record in nine seasons, claiming five conference titles and winning the NJCAA Division II National Championship in 1999. In addition to his teams’ successes, he helped almost ninety Kishwaukee players transfer on to four-year schools. Davenport has coached nine players selected as NJCAA All-Americans and thirty-six players selected in the Major League draft. Of those thirty-six draftees, ten are playing professional baseball and two have played in the Major Leagues.

Davenport, the 1999 NJCAA Division II National Coach-of-the-Year, also serves as a Major League scout for the Chicago White Sox. Over his final six years at Kishwaukee College every one of his recruited players received a scholarship offer to either a NCAA or NAIA institution. His solid relationship with professional scouts and coaches combined with his exceptional teaching skills have allowed him to recruit high quality players from across the Midwest and place those student-athletes in high quality four-year NCAA programs.

Before taking over the Kishwaukee baseball program, Davenport coached at Clarke College. He was an assistant from 1992-1994 before taking over head coaching duties and becoming the Sports Information Director during the 1994-1995 seasons.

Davenport was born and raised in DeKalb, Illinois. In high school, he was a three-sport letterwinner in baseball, basketball and golf. He earned all-conference honors in baseball and basketball his senior season.

Coach Davenport played collegiate baseball at Kishwaukee College in 1989 and 1990 before transferring to Clarke College in Dubuque, Iowa, to play his final two seasons. While at Kishwaukee he earned academic all-conference honors in both seasons. At Clarke College, Davenport earned academic and athletic first team all-conference honors in baseball. In 1991, he was named to the all-district first team for his play at shortstop. In addition, Davenport was selected team MVP in both his seasons at Clarke College.

In 1992, Davenport graduated from Clarke College with a Business Administration/Sports Management degree. In 2003, he received his Physical Education/Sports Management masters degree from Northern Illinois University.

C.J. Thieleke has been an MATC assistant baseball coach since the 2005 season.

Thieleke was born in Madison, WI and grew up in Iowa City, IA. At Iowa City High School, he was a four-sport standout athlete. He received first team all-state baseball honors in his junior and senior seasons while batting an impressive .470. In his senior season, he was named Iowa’s high school baseball player-of-the-year. After graduating high school in 1993, Thieleke received a baseball scholarship to attend the University of Iowa. In 1994, he was named Big Ten freshman-of-the-year and played second base for the Hawkeyes from 1994-96. In 1996, Thieleke was drafted in the 32nd round of the Major League amateur draft by the Minnesota Twins and played in the organization for two years.

In 1998, Thieleke graduated from the University of Iowa with a Sports Management degree. Since then, he has served as assistant coach at Mount Mercy College, volunteer assistant with the University of Iowa, and was the top assistant coach with the Madison Mallards for two summers before being named head coach during the 2005 season.

Under Coach Thieleke’s guidance, the Madison Mallards finished the 2005 season with a 43-25 overall record. The team was runners-up in the Northwoods League, losing by one run in game three of the league championship. Thieleke will coach for the Mallards again this summer.