Shane Basen

Classroom

Shane Basen earned a Capital One Academic All-American Second-Team honor last season, the fourth academic All-American award for a baseball player in school history. He is a two-time Academic All-Conference award winner in the Atlantic 10 Conference (the two years he was eligible to win such an honor) and has appeared on the University’s Chancellor’s List (3.8 GPA or better) in all seven previous semesters. He currently holds a 3.97 cumulative GPA (4.0 within his majors) working towards a double-major in accounting and finance. He will earn both degrees at graduation ceremonies in May. Basen was also accepted into the graduate program at Charlotte and plans to get a Master’s in Accountancy with the end goal of becoming a Certified Public Accountant. He will work an internship this summer at Deloitte and Touche, one of the Big Four professional services firms in the world, before returning to campus in the fall to begin postgraduate study.

Character

A recruited walk-on, Shane Basen played his way into the lineup and became Charlotte’s regular starting third baseman midway through that 2010 season and has missed just one game in the past two and a half seasons for the 49ers. He claims not to be the “most talented or gifted baseball player,” but one who works hard to get the most out of his abilities. He says the key to any success he has had in life is “Preparation… The more you put in, the more you will get out of anything that you do.”

Basen credits his parents with his drive and competitive nature. The rules in the house growing up were to finish all homework first before going to the field, but his parents were always available to take him to the field to play sports. His preparation has put him in position not only to succeed on the field (adding 30 points to his batting average from 2011 to 2012), but his hard work in the classroom earned him Capital One Academic All-American recognition last year. He came to Charlotte with an appetite to problem solve, and was introduced to accounting. After the first few classes in the field, “it sort of clicked for me.” Basen has set goals for himself beyond baseball. “I heard the CPA exam is tough, where only a small percentage pass it the first time, so I want to take that on next.”

Community

Basen has worked with many projects in the community, through the baseball program, the 49ers Athletics Department and the Business Honors program at the University. Last fall, the baseball team paired up with the Miracle League, a local YMCA project that began in the fall of 2012. The organization opened its new facility that allows kids with disabilities to play baseball on a specially-designed field that accommodates kids with varying disabilities on their own safe and functional field. Basen and the baseball program spent multiple fall Saturdays teaching the game of baseball and getting those kids into the games. Basen made a personal connection at the Miracle League games, discovering that a previous coach of his had a child with a disability and he visited with them on their living situation. “It taught me how precious life is and that I am truly blessed to have the things I have and the ability to do the things I am able to do.”

In 2010-11, Basen worked with the local March of Dimes chapter on some database work in their main Charlotte offices. Basen has participated in the Avon Walk and the Stroll for Epilepsy events on campus in the city of Charlotte. He was also selected as a speaker at Harrisburg Elementary School, talking to the entire second grade. He and a teammate spoke on topics of baseball and staying in school and had a question-and-answer session with a little over one hundred second graders during their visit.

Competition

Basen has started Charlotte’s last 122 contests and all but one of the last 141 contests of his 175 career games played. Basen is currently second on the 2013 squad with 42 hits, six stolen bases and a .362 batting average while starting all 27 games so far this season. Through the midway point of the regular season, he is tied for the team lead in triples and RBI. His 25 RBI were tied for the conference lead as of April 1. He earned Atlantic 10 Conference Co-Player of the Week for week two this season, on 2/25. Last season, he tied for the league lead with five triples, posted 45 RBI, fourth-most in the conference and posted a .327 batting average for a second-team All-Conference nod after earning a pair of league Player of the Week honors. He followed that season with an All-Star nod in the Southern Collegiate Baseball League in July. In 2011, he played third base for all but one game for the 49ers en route to the team’s 43-16 finish, it’s fourth conference title in five years and third trip to the NCAA Regionals in that span. Basen finished 30th in the country in walks, leading the league with 44, while batting .298 and leading the team with 17 doubles. That team also captured its third postseason win, a 3-2 decision over No. 19 Arkansas in the Tempe, Ariz. Regional. Basen was named to the 2010 A-10 All-Tournament Team after driving in five runs in four games of the tournament his freshman year, after helping Charlotte to a regular-season conference title. For his career, he is tied for fifth all-time with 11 triples and has the 14th-most defensive assists (388) in program history.