Ryan Ray became Arizona State’s head cross country coach in December 2022 after being named the interim head coach in September 2022. He previously was an assistant coach and recruiting coordinator at University of Arizona (2021-22) and Boise State University (2019-20).
Lemerian Lemashon was consistently the top runner for the Sun Devil Men in 2024, adding a season-best sixth-place finish in the 8k (23:40.9) at the UC Riverside Invite in September. The Sun Devil Men and Women placed 9th and 11th at the conference XC championships, respectively, and will return a majority of their core next fall for what is shaping up to be one of the most anticipated seasons in team history.
At Sun Devil Track and Field's first Big 12 Indoor Championships (Feb. 28-March 1), Ray's distance athletes of Evaline Chepkoech-Taylor Brown-Mia Chavez-Judy Chepkoech broke a nine-year school record in the Women's 4x1400m distance medley relay, finishing at 11:08.04@ to place second overall. It was tied for the Sun Devils' best placement at their inaugural Big 12 Conference Championships.
In his second year at the helm, Ray continued to lead the development of young talent in Claire Le Gallo, Sadie Heeringa, Johnathan Estrada, Tyler Schierenberg, Zach Weaver and Mia Chavez, as he brought in the latter as a transfer from the University of Arizona. Le Gallo set multiple career-bests in her sophomore campaign, hitting new PRs in the 2.5 mile (15:11.7/6th), the 6k (20:52.7/17th) and the 3000m (9:37). Chavez also established herself as a pivotal piece for the track and XC program, running 4:53 (indoor mile) 4:26 (1500m), 2:06 (800m), and 21:17 (6k). In addition to a pair of PRs set in the Cross Country season (2.5 mile/16:08.9, 6k/21:17.3), Chavez was a major contributor for Sun Devil Track in the team's distance events this spring.
In his first year as head coach for ASU, Ray led the cross country and distance teams to impressive marks. Ray coached the cross country team to 14 personal bests and multiple notable finishes. Vincent Mauri ran No. 1 all-time marks in the 8K (22:59) and 10K (28:34). He became ASU’s first runner to reach the cross country conference podium since 2009 when he finished ninth. Mauri then took 11th at the NCAA West Regionals and 87th at the NCAA Cross Country Championships. His Championship finish was ASU’s highest since 2017. Track side, Ray coached the Sun Devils to 19 personal bests and three top-10 all-time marks in 2023 across both the indoor and outdoor season, including Dayton Carlson who broke a 14 year-old school record in the indoor 800m (1:47.2).
In the season-opening meet at the George Kyte Invitational, six women placed in the top-20 in individual finishes (6th/Claire Le Gallo, 8th/Sadie Heeringa, 11th/Kayla Case, 14th/Jenna Lee, 15th/Lindsey Reed, 16th/Mia Chavez). At the 2023 Cross Country season finale, four Sun Devil underclassmen earned top-75 finishes at the Pac-12 Championships (60th/Tyler Schierenberg, 62nd/Johnathan Estrada, 72nd/Kristian Kimberlin and 74th/Ethan Bukowski), rounding out a second consecutive productive season under Ray's guidance. Other top marks from the Cross Country and Track & Field season saw Sadie Heeringa run 20:38 in the 6k and 16:18 in the 5k, Johnathan Estrada go 22:34 in the 4.5 mile, 24:12 in the 8k and 14:33 in the 5k. Zach Weaver went 1:53 in the 800m and 4:15 in the mile as a true freshman, while Tempe native Tyler Schierenberg went 1:51 in the 800m and 24:48 in the 8k. Weaver (1:21.92/3rd) and Chavez (1:36.55/5th) cemented themselves as Sun Devil legends by running top-10 times in program history in the 600m in the 2023-24 campaign, as well. Chavez also ran top-ten times in team history in the Indoor Mile, the Indoor 800m and the Outdoor 800m, completing a fantastic first season for the Sun Devils.
CONFERENCE/NCAA HONORS UNDER COACH RAY
Judy Chepkoech Notches All-American Honors at NCAA Championships to Close Freshman Season (Nov. 23, 2024)
Ticket Punched! Chepkoech Places Fifth at West Regionals to Reach NCAA Championships (Nov. 15, 2024)
Chepkoech Earns Second Big 12 Women's Cross Country Runner of the Week Honors (Sept. 24, 2024)
Judy Chepkoech, Big 12 Women's Cross Country Runner of the Week (Sept. 3, 2024)
Prior to ASU, Ray coached at Boise State for one year where he was an assistant for the Broncos. He was a part of a successful coaching staff that coached several athletes to All-Mountain West Conference, All-West Region, and All-America honors. Their men’s and women’s programs both qualified for the NCAA Cross Country Championships. Ray worked with 2020 Mountain West indoor mile and 5K champions Ahmed Muhumed and Yukino Parle, respectively. Ray also acted as the assistant meet manager for BSU’s indoor track and field meets and was the lead recruiter - his efforts leading to the Broncos landing several top recruits from the 2021 class.
Ray has 12 years of higher education experience, specializing in student life. Ray has worked as a resident director, community director, Director of International Admissions, and head cross country and assistant track coach.
Ray is the son of former USA middle-distance national coach Irv Ray. His father coached several national championship teams, national champions, All-Americans, and Olympians during his 30-year career.
The 2024-25 season, Ray's third at the helm of the Sun Devils, proved to be one of the most exciting in recent team history. An influx of new talent helped the team navigate their first season in the Big 12 Conference, as true freshmen Judy Chepkoech, Evaline Chepkoech, Lemerian Lemashon and Dennis Rono made immediate impacts in their true freshmen seasons. Judy Chepkoech pieced together one of the best seasons in recent team history, becoming the 10th individual in Sun Devil Women's team history to earn All-American honors after placing 30th (19:59.0/6k) at the NCAA Cross Country Championships in November. The first freshman in team history to earn All-American honors, Chepkoech was the first Sun Devil to reach the NCAA Championships since Shelby Houlihan in 2014. Weeks prior at the team's first Big 12 Championships, Chepkoech placed fourth overall to become just the fourth Sun Devil in the past decade to have a top-20 finish at the conference championships, joining Shelby Houlian (1st/2014), Chelsey Albertson (14th/2017) and Samantha Ortega (18th/2015). In doing so, she was named to the Big 12's All-Conference Team. Judy Chepkoech's rookie campaign also included two individual wins, five top-five finishes and the school record in the Women's 6k (19:07.0).Coming to Tempe this fall ?? pic.twitter.com/qChz76AiMp
— Sun Devil Track and Field/XC (@SunDevilTFXC) August 5, 2024
Lemerian Lemashon was consistently the top runner for the Sun Devil Men in 2024, adding a season-best sixth-place finish in the 8k (23:40.9) at the UC Riverside Invite in September. The Sun Devil Men and Women placed 9th and 11th at the conference XC championships, respectively, and will return a majority of their core next fall for what is shaping up to be one of the most anticipated seasons in team history.
At Sun Devil Track and Field's first Big 12 Indoor Championships (Feb. 28-March 1), Ray's distance athletes of Evaline Chepkoech-Taylor Brown-Mia Chavez-Judy Chepkoech broke a nine-year school record in the Women's 4x1400m distance medley relay, finishing at 11:08.04@ to place second overall. It was tied for the Sun Devils' best placement at their inaugural Big 12 Conference Championships.
In his second year at the helm, Ray continued to lead the development of young talent in Claire Le Gallo, Sadie Heeringa, Johnathan Estrada, Tyler Schierenberg, Zach Weaver and Mia Chavez, as he brought in the latter as a transfer from the University of Arizona. Le Gallo set multiple career-bests in her sophomore campaign, hitting new PRs in the 2.5 mile (15:11.7/6th), the 6k (20:52.7/17th) and the 3000m (9:37). Chavez also established herself as a pivotal piece for the track and XC program, running 4:53 (indoor mile) 4:26 (1500m), 2:06 (800m), and 21:17 (6k). In addition to a pair of PRs set in the Cross Country season (2.5 mile/16:08.9, 6k/21:17.3), Chavez was a major contributor for Sun Devil Track in the team's distance events this spring.
In his first year as head coach for ASU, Ray led the cross country and distance teams to impressive marks. Ray coached the cross country team to 14 personal bests and multiple notable finishes. Vincent Mauri ran No. 1 all-time marks in the 8K (22:59) and 10K (28:34). He became ASU’s first runner to reach the cross country conference podium since 2009 when he finished ninth. Mauri then took 11th at the NCAA West Regionals and 87th at the NCAA Cross Country Championships. His Championship finish was ASU’s highest since 2017. Track side, Ray coached the Sun Devils to 19 personal bests and three top-10 all-time marks in 2023 across both the indoor and outdoor season, including Dayton Carlson who broke a 14 year-old school record in the indoor 800m (1:47.2).
In the season-opening meet at the George Kyte Invitational, six women placed in the top-20 in individual finishes (6th/Claire Le Gallo, 8th/Sadie Heeringa, 11th/Kayla Case, 14th/Jenna Lee, 15th/Lindsey Reed, 16th/Mia Chavez). At the 2023 Cross Country season finale, four Sun Devil underclassmen earned top-75 finishes at the Pac-12 Championships (60th/Tyler Schierenberg, 62nd/Johnathan Estrada, 72nd/Kristian Kimberlin and 74th/Ethan Bukowski), rounding out a second consecutive productive season under Ray's guidance. Other top marks from the Cross Country and Track & Field season saw Sadie Heeringa run 20:38 in the 6k and 16:18 in the 5k, Johnathan Estrada go 22:34 in the 4.5 mile, 24:12 in the 8k and 14:33 in the 5k. Zach Weaver went 1:53 in the 800m and 4:15 in the mile as a true freshman, while Tempe native Tyler Schierenberg went 1:51 in the 800m and 24:48 in the 8k. Weaver (1:21.92/3rd) and Chavez (1:36.55/5th) cemented themselves as Sun Devil legends by running top-10 times in program history in the 600m in the 2023-24 campaign, as well. Chavez also ran top-ten times in team history in the Indoor Mile, the Indoor 800m and the Outdoor 800m, completing a fantastic first season for the Sun Devils.
Prior to his return to Tempe, Ray spent the 2021-22 season as an assistant coach and recruiting coordinator for Arizona’s cross country and track program. In his lone season with the Wildcats, he coached Grace Driskill to a school record in the 3000m steeplechase and a qualifying bid to the first round of the NCAA championships, leading to a nod on the Pac-12 All-Conference first team. He also successfully recruited one of the best classes in the nation, signing several student-athletes ranked in the national top-10, top-20 and top-50. These signees included the Arizona and Washington state champions, along with the California CIF champion in the 800m, 1600m, 3200m and in cross country.
Ray initially joined ASU’s cross country and track & field staff in December 2020 as a distance assistant and certified USA Track and Field level 1 coach under Patrick Henner. Ray helped coach Lena Lebrun to qualify for the first round of the NCAA Championships in the 3000m steeplechase. He also helped then-freshman Vincent Mauri to recognition on the All-Pac-12 first team after becoming a national qualifier in the outdoor 1500m. Also acting as the recruitment coordinator for the distance program, Ray successfully recruited Dayton Carlson who came to campus for the 2021-22 season and capped off year one by breaking the Sun Devils’ outdoor 800m program record en route to All-America honors (sixth place finish).CONFERENCE/NCAA HONORS UNDER COACH RAY
Judy Chepkoech Notches All-American Honors at NCAA Championships to Close Freshman Season (Nov. 23, 2024)
Ticket Punched! Chepkoech Places Fifth at West Regionals to Reach NCAA Championships (Nov. 15, 2024)
Chepkoech Earns Second Big 12 Women's Cross Country Runner of the Week Honors (Sept. 24, 2024)
Judy Chepkoech, Big 12 Women's Cross Country Runner of the Week (Sept. 3, 2024)
The storybook start to her Sun Devil career continues.
— Sun Devil Track and Field/XC (@SunDevilTFXC) September 3, 2024
Freshman Judy Chepkoech is your @Big12Conference Women's Cross Country Runner of the Week ??
?? https://t.co/XoZ0sTp1Y4 pic.twitter.com/NoBneC1MPT
Prior to ASU, Ray coached at Boise State for one year where he was an assistant for the Broncos. He was a part of a successful coaching staff that coached several athletes to All-Mountain West Conference, All-West Region, and All-America honors. Their men’s and women’s programs both qualified for the NCAA Cross Country Championships. Ray worked with 2020 Mountain West indoor mile and 5K champions Ahmed Muhumed and Yukino Parle, respectively. Ray also acted as the assistant meet manager for BSU’s indoor track and field meets and was the lead recruiter - his efforts leading to the Broncos landing several top recruits from the 2021 class.
Ray has 12 years of higher education experience, specializing in student life. Ray has worked as a resident director, community director, Director of International Admissions, and head cross country and assistant track coach.
Ray is the son of former USA middle-distance national coach Irv Ray. His father coached several national championship teams, national champions, All-Americans, and Olympians during his 30-year career.