Ryker Chason enters his third season as an assistant coach for Auburn softball. Co-head coaches Chris and Kate Malveaux announced Chason as part of their inaugural staff on June 10, 2024. Chason serves as the Tigers’ pitching coach.

The 2026 season was a rebuilding year for the Tigers following the graduation of nine seniors. Auburn finished with 27 victories, including upset wins over No. 13 Clemson, No. 18 Oregon and No. 4 Florida during the regular season.

The Tigers showed incredible fight during the 2026 SEC Tournament in Lexington to close the season. Despite entering as the No. 14 seed, Auburn upset Missouri and Texas A&M to advance to the quarterfinals. It marked Auburn’s first SEC Tournament quarterfinal appearance since 2023 and the program’s first back-to-back wins at the tournament since 2019. Auburn set seven individual or team records during its SEC Tournament run.

Chason brought in Ella Harrison from Rutgers, who played a crucial role in Auburn’s success in the circle. Harrison finished in the top 10 in the SEC in multiple categories, including starts (32), complete games (9), innings pitched (162.2) and appearances (37), while also ranking 11th in the conference in strikeouts.

Harrison earned three ranked victories, including a shutout of No. 4 Florida in Gainesville on April 18. It marked the first time Florida had been shut out at home since Feb. 19, 2024. Harrison also recorded 10 or more strikeouts in three appearances, becoming the first Tiger since Maddie Penta in 2024 to reach double-digit strikeouts in a game.

The Tigers opened the 2025 season with a 20-1 start, their best since 2022. Auburn finished the year with a 35-24 record, which included winning three of its final four SEC series. With its appearance at the 2025 Tallahassee Regional, Auburn extended its streak of consecutive NCAA postseason appearances to 11.

Inheriting a pitching staff that returned the fewest innings pitched among all 15 Southeastern Conference teams, Chason used his experience to help transfer SJ Geurin emerge with a breakout season.

After tossing just 10 innings prior to the 2025 season, Chason guided Geurin to 2025 NFCA All-Gulf Region Second Team honors. Geurin was responsible for 27 of Auburn’s 35 victories by earning either the win or the save. She finished fourth in the SEC and 18th nationally in total victories.

Geurin became just the 12th pitcher in Auburn history to record 20 or more wins in a season and finished tied for the seventh-most victories by a Tiger pitcher in a single season with 23. She also tied for seventh in program history with four saves in a season. Prior to arriving at Auburn, Geurin had never thrown a complete game in her collegiate career before recording five in an Auburn uniform. Three of those five complete games were shutouts.

Chason joined the Tigers after spending the previous 10 months as director of pitching growth for OGX Softball in Romeoville, Illinois. The company specializes in using data and human performance science to develop individualized, science-backed programs to elevate softball training and performance.

Prior to his stint at OGX, Chason spent three seasons on staff at Ole Miss from 2021-23, helping the Rebels’ pitching staff post a 2.91 ERA in his final season.

The 2023 season also saw the Ole Miss pitching staff combine for nine shutouts. The Rebels were anchored by sophomore hurler Catelyn Riley, who earned five ranked victories in the circle. Chason’s staff also compiled 24.1 consecutive scoreless innings at the Ole Miss Classic in March of that season.

In his second season at Ole Miss, Chason helped Riley burst onto the scene with a team-leading 12 wins, the second most by an Ole Miss freshman in program history. As a staff, Chason guided the Rebels to their first no-hitter since March 2014 as Savannah Diederich, Brooke Vestal and Landyn Bruce combined to shut down Tennessee State. Ole Miss also tallied 13 shutouts in 2022, tied for third in the SEC, while posting a 3.34 team ERA.

Chason’s debut season in Oxford saw the Rebel staff hold opponents to three earned runs or fewer in 42 of 58 contests. The season featured two of the most notable pitching performances in program history, as Anna Borgen set the school record with 35 consecutive scoreless innings and Diederich tied the school record with 15 strikeouts in a 3-0 victory over Indiana State.

Chason joined Ole Miss from fellow SEC program Louisiana State University, where he spent four seasons as a student coach on the Tigers’ staff. Chason assisted head coach Beth Torina with pitching charts and pitch calls. During his three completed seasons with LSU, Chason worked with seven NFCA All-Americans, including four pitchers.

With Chason on staff, LSU compiled 157 total wins, including 39 in SEC play. The Tigers also enjoyed postseason success, winning an NCAA Regional championship and advancing to Super Regionals in all three completed seasons, including a trip to the 2017 Women’s College World Series.

In addition to his work at LSU, Chason served as pitching coach for the nationally renowned Georgia Impact Premier Club in Atlanta for four years and was responsible for scouting. With Chason leading the pitching staff, Georgia Impact captured the 2018 PGF National Championship and finished as the PGF National Runner-Up in 2019.

Prior to moving to Baton Rouge, Chason served as an assistant coach at South Georgia State College for the 2016 season. During his stint in Douglas, Georgia, Chason helped guide the Hawks to a program-best runner-up finish in the conference tournament and oversaw the organization and implementation of the program’s camps.

Chason was also a standout athlete in men’s fastpitch softball with the United States Junior Men’s National Team. He twice competed for Team USA at the WBSC Junior Men’s World Championship in 2014 and 2016.

A native of Grand Ridge, Florida, Chason earned a bachelor’s degree in interdisciplinary studies from LSU.