The University of Mississippi Athletics
Softball
Ryker Chason
- Title:
- Assistant Coach
- Year at Ole Miss:
- Third
- E-mail:
- rzchason@olemiss.edu
- Phone:
- 662-915-7186
- Alma Mater:
- LSU (2020)
Ryker Chason completed his third season on Jamie Trachsel's staff at Ole Miss, working primarily with the Rebel pitching staff.
With six pitchers on staff in 2023, the Rebels had plenty of options in the circle. Four returners and two newcomers helped Ole Miss finish the year with a 2.91 ERA, the second-best mark ever under Chason. His staff also combined for nine shutouts on the year. Catelyn Riley returned for her sophomore season and carried a large workload after missing a month due to injury. She still managed to lead the staff with 106.2 innings pitched, including wins over No. 10 LSU, No. 19 Auburn, No. 15 Kentucky, No. 14 Florida and a pair over No. 16 Baylor. Junior Aynslie Furbush and Oregon Transfer Makenna Kliethermes carried the team early on in the season. Furbush led the team with a .224 ERA and a 9-6 record. Kliethermes also saw 93.2 innings of work, striking out a team-high 92 batters with earning six victories and four saves. Senior Brooke Vestal worked 55.1 innings on the season for Ole Miss, combining on three shutouts while holding opposing batters to a team-low .174 average at the plate. Freshman Grace Sparks had an immediate impact in the circle in her first season, posting a 3.04 ERA in 48.1 innings, and Landyn Bruce allowed only one earned run in 3.1 innings. Chason’s staff also went 24.1 straight scoreless innings at the Ole Miss Classic in March.
The Rebels returned their top two arms from a season ago in 2022 with Anna Borgen and Savannah Diederich back in the circle; however, injuries led to opportunities for Aynslie Furbush and newcomers Brooke Vestal and Catelyn Riley. Only a freshman, Riley burst onto the scene, tallying a team-high 12 wins, the second most by an Ole Miss freshman in program history. Vestal, an Oklahoma transfer, also saw success in the circle, winning eight contests and tossing two complete game shutouts. Still, it was Borgen who stepped up in the biggest games, earning a pair of wins in the sweep of Missouri and earning SEC Pitcher of the Week honors. She also was the go-to hurler down the stretch in Ole Miss’ late season surge. As a staff, Chason guided the Rebels to their first no-hitter since March 2014 as Diederich, Vestal and Bruce combined to stifle Tennessee State. Ole Miss also tallied 13 shutouts on the year, tied for third in the SEC, and posted a 3.34 team ERA.
With no players on the roster with at least 75 innings pitched in a season, Chason's pitching staff proved its doubters wrong with the trio of Anna Borgen, Savannah Diederich and Ava Tillmann as well as the emergence of freshmen Landyn Bruce and Aynslie Furbush. Borgen and Diederich tied for the team lead with 12 wins apiece, with Tillmann close behind with nine victories in the circle. All together, the Rebel hurlers held its opponents to three earned runs or less in 42-of-58 games. The season saw two of the most notable pitching performances ever seen in Oxford, with Borgen setting the school record with a streak of 35-straight scoreless innings and Diederich tying the school record with 15 strikeouts in a 3-0 victory over Indiana State.
Chason joined the Ole Miss staff from SEC foe, LSU, where he spent four seasons as a student coach on the Tiger staff, assisting head coach Beth Torina with pitching charts and pitch calls. During his three complete seasons with LSU, Chason worked with seven NFCA All-Americans, including four at the pitcher position.
With Chason on staff, LSU put together an extremely successful four-year run, racking up 157 total wins, including 39 in SEC play. The Tigers continued their success into postseason play, 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.
Among the lauded student-athletes Chason worked with in Baton Rouge are Tiger greats such as two-time All-American Carley Hoover, two-time All-American Allie Walljasper and 2019 Second Team All-American Shelbi Sunseri. Chason also helped instruct senior hurler Maribeth Gorsuch, who tossed the first seven-inning perfect game in LSU history this past season.
In addition to his work with the Tiger program, Chason served as pitching coach for the nationally renowned Georgia Impact Premier Club in Atlanta for four years, being responsible for the scouting the teams’ offense and defense. With Chason at the helm of the pitching staff, Georgia Impact captured the 2018 PGF National Championship and finished as the PGF National Runner Up in 2019.
Prior to making the move to Baton Rouge, Chason was an assistant coach at South Georgia State College for the 2016 season. During his stint in Douglas, Georgia, Chason helped the Hawks to a program-best runner-up finish in the conference tournament and was responsible for the organization and implementation of the program’s camps.
When not on the coaching side of the game, Chason is also a premier 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. Chason is currently in the 40-man pool for the US Men’s National Team.
A native of Grand Ridge, Florida, Chason holds a bachelor’s degree in interdisciplinary studies for Louisiana State University.
With six pitchers on staff in 2023, the Rebels had plenty of options in the circle. Four returners and two newcomers helped Ole Miss finish the year with a 2.91 ERA, the second-best mark ever under Chason. His staff also combined for nine shutouts on the year. Catelyn Riley returned for her sophomore season and carried a large workload after missing a month due to injury. She still managed to lead the staff with 106.2 innings pitched, including wins over No. 10 LSU, No. 19 Auburn, No. 15 Kentucky, No. 14 Florida and a pair over No. 16 Baylor. Junior Aynslie Furbush and Oregon Transfer Makenna Kliethermes carried the team early on in the season. Furbush led the team with a .224 ERA and a 9-6 record. Kliethermes also saw 93.2 innings of work, striking out a team-high 92 batters with earning six victories and four saves. Senior Brooke Vestal worked 55.1 innings on the season for Ole Miss, combining on three shutouts while holding opposing batters to a team-low .174 average at the plate. Freshman Grace Sparks had an immediate impact in the circle in her first season, posting a 3.04 ERA in 48.1 innings, and Landyn Bruce allowed only one earned run in 3.1 innings. Chason’s staff also went 24.1 straight scoreless innings at the Ole Miss Classic in March.
The Rebels returned their top two arms from a season ago in 2022 with Anna Borgen and Savannah Diederich back in the circle; however, injuries led to opportunities for Aynslie Furbush and newcomers Brooke Vestal and Catelyn Riley. Only a freshman, Riley burst onto the scene, tallying a team-high 12 wins, the second most by an Ole Miss freshman in program history. Vestal, an Oklahoma transfer, also saw success in the circle, winning eight contests and tossing two complete game shutouts. Still, it was Borgen who stepped up in the biggest games, earning a pair of wins in the sweep of Missouri and earning SEC Pitcher of the Week honors. She also was the go-to hurler down the stretch in Ole Miss’ late season surge. As a staff, Chason guided the Rebels to their first no-hitter since March 2014 as Diederich, Vestal and Bruce combined to stifle Tennessee State. Ole Miss also tallied 13 shutouts on the year, tied for third in the SEC, and posted a 3.34 team ERA.
With no players on the roster with at least 75 innings pitched in a season, Chason's pitching staff proved its doubters wrong with the trio of Anna Borgen, Savannah Diederich and Ava Tillmann as well as the emergence of freshmen Landyn Bruce and Aynslie Furbush. Borgen and Diederich tied for the team lead with 12 wins apiece, with Tillmann close behind with nine victories in the circle. All together, the Rebel hurlers held its opponents to three earned runs or less in 42-of-58 games. The season saw two of the most notable pitching performances ever seen in Oxford, with Borgen setting the school record with a streak of 35-straight scoreless innings and Diederich tying the school record with 15 strikeouts in a 3-0 victory over Indiana State.
Chason joined the Ole Miss staff from SEC foe, LSU, where he spent four seasons as a student coach on the Tiger staff, assisting head coach Beth Torina with pitching charts and pitch calls. During his three complete seasons with LSU, Chason worked with seven NFCA All-Americans, including four at the pitcher position.
With Chason on staff, LSU put together an extremely successful four-year run, racking up 157 total wins, including 39 in SEC play. The Tigers continued their success into postseason play, 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.
Among the lauded student-athletes Chason worked with in Baton Rouge are Tiger greats such as two-time All-American Carley Hoover, two-time All-American Allie Walljasper and 2019 Second Team All-American Shelbi Sunseri. Chason also helped instruct senior hurler Maribeth Gorsuch, who tossed the first seven-inning perfect game in LSU history this past season.
In addition to his work with the Tiger program, Chason served as pitching coach for the nationally renowned Georgia Impact Premier Club in Atlanta for four years, being responsible for the scouting the teams’ offense and defense. With Chason at the helm of the pitching staff, Georgia Impact captured the 2018 PGF National Championship and finished as the PGF National Runner Up in 2019.
Prior to making the move to Baton Rouge, Chason was an assistant coach at South Georgia State College for the 2016 season. During his stint in Douglas, Georgia, Chason helped the Hawks to a program-best runner-up finish in the conference tournament and was responsible for the organization and implementation of the program’s camps.
When not on the coaching side of the game, Chason is also a premier 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. Chason is currently in the 40-man pool for the US Men’s National Team.
A native of Grand Ridge, Florida, Chason holds a bachelor’s degree in interdisciplinary studies for Louisiana State University.
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