Ellenbest, a native of Medina H.S. is heading into his red-shirt sophomore season at Division II Saginaw Valley State University. In his RS-Freshman campaign, Ellenbest completed a masterful season in which he finished with a 5-3 record (1st team), 2.57 ERA (2nd team, 5th GLIAC), in 49.0IP (2nd team). On May 5th, Ellenbest was named GLIAC Freshman Pitcher of the Year, and second-team All-GLIAC. In the league, he was 4-2 with a 0.97 ERA. He finished 2015 with four starts of 26 scoreless innings. His two complete games on the campaign led the Cardinals, as did his 54 strikeouts.

He returns to Green Bay after posting 10 starts last summer. He was one of three pitchers for the squad to post double-digit starts and his four wins were second-most on the starting staff.