Macalester College Director of Athletics Kim Chandler has announced the hiring of Abe Woldeslassie ’08 as head men’s basketball coach. Woldeslassie returns to Macalester after spending the past eight years as an assistant coach at the Division I and III levels.
“It is an honor to be named head men’s basketball coach at Macalester College,” Woldeslassie said. “I am a proud Macalester graduate and I am grateful for the opportunity to come home. I am excited to work with our student-athletes and build a program that the entire Macalester community will be proud of. Thank you to Kim Chandler and President Brian Rosenberg for this tremendous opportunity.”
Woldeslassie comes to Macalester following a two-year stint as an assistant coach at Siena College, where he helped the Saints advance to the finals of the 2017 MAAC Tournament. As an assistant at Siena, Woldeslassie helped the Saints with recruiting, player development, compliance, video breakdowns and opponent scouting, and monitored the team’s academic progress throughout the year.
Prior to his time at Siena, he served as the director of basketball operations at Davidson College for three seasons. While at Davidson, the Wildcats posted 20-win campaigns and advanced to national postseason tournaments in each of Woldeslassie’s three seasons with the program. The Wildcats amassed 64 wins, captured two conference regular-season titles, made two NIT appearances, and earned the program’s first at-large bid to the NCAA Tournament in 2015.
Before Davidson, Woldeslassie also was the director of basketball operations at Dartmouth College of the Ivy League for one season. His coaching career started in the NESCAC in 2010 at Bowdoin College, where he served as an assistant coach for two years.
Since 2010, Woldeslassie has helped develop student-athletes who are currently playing professionally in Portugal, Lithuania, Spain, Germany, Belarus, Belgium, Czech Republic, Hungary and Sweden.
Woldeslassie played two seasons at Macalester after transferring from the University of St. Thomas. As a Scot, he was a two-time, All-MIAC guard and led the conference in assists both seasons. In 50 career games, Woldeslassie averaged 17.2 points and 5.4 assists per game while totaling 858 points. He graduated in 2008 with a degree in sociology.
A native of Minneapolis, Minn., Woldeslassie attended St. Thomas Academy, where he was an all-conference player and team co-MVP in 2004.
“We are thrilled to welcome Abe home as our new men’s basketball coach at Macalester,” Chandler said. “He brings a wealth of coaching experience back to Mac, and we are fortunate to entrust our men’s basketball program to such an accomplished alumnus. Our student-athletes will greatly benefit from his leadership, both on and off the court.”
