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14 NCAA TOURNAMENT APPEARANCES
5 COLLEGE WORLD SERIES APPEARANCES
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Ryan Strain enters his third season as an assistant
coach at SIU after he was hired on Feb. 7, 2011. His
main responsibilities with the Salukis include coaching
hitting and outfield defense while also assisting with all
recruiting efforts and the day-to-day operation of the
program.
In 2012 Strain worked with one of the best offensive
teams in the conference.The Salukis finished with a team
batting average of .294, second highest in the Missouri
Valley. That was an improvement from a .270 team
average in his first season coaching the Saluki hitters. In
addition, SIU lead the conference in slugging percentage
(.436), runs scored (378), hits (610), RBI (342), doubles
(125), home runs (50), extra-base hits (185) and total
bases (905) in 2012. The team’s 125 doubles matched
a school record.
Three Saluki hitters garnered first-team All-MVC
honors in 2012. That list includes Austin Montgomery
(utility), Chris Serritella (first base) and Jordan
Sivertsen (outfield). Serritella, a fourth round pick by
the Phillies, was also named an All-American by five
different publications including Baseball America, which
selected him for its first team.
In 2011, his first season at Southern, Strain helped
rejuvenate several players at the plate. Outfielder Jordan
Sivertsen hit .230 in his first two seasons, but after one
year working with Strain, Sivertsen hit .302 and received
second-team All-Missouri Valley Conference accolades.
Sivertsen led the team with nine home runs and 48 RBIs
and ranked in the top 10 in the MVC in sacrifice flies
(second), doubles (tied fourth), home runs (tied sixth),
RBIs (seventh), slugging percentage (eighth) and walks
(ninth).
Nick Johnson upped his RBI total by 16 with Strain’s
guidance, andWes Neece, who only had four hits in 21 at-
bats in 2010, finished with 56 hits and 13 doubles under
Strain in 2011.
That season Southern Illinois hit 107 doubles,
which was the fifth time in the last seven years that SIU
posted 100 or more doubles. Strain’s offense featured
six different hitters who had 10 or more doubles on the
year.That is the most since the 2006 team featured seven
players with two or more doubles.
Strain joined SIU after serving three seasons as
an assistant coach at Northern Colorado. At UNC from
2008-10, Strain was in charge of coaching the UNC
hitters and infield defense while also serving as the
recruiting and camp coordinators.
In his time at Northern Colorado, Strain led the
club that set 28 new school records. The 2010 season
was a monster one for UNC, as the Bears finished with
a 34-24 overall record and 22-6 mark in the Great West
Conference. Along the way UNC set new school records
in runs scored (510), hits (740), doubles (142), home
runs (80) and runs driven in (478).
Northern Colorado also turned a school record 62
double plays in 2010 under his guidance.
Strain was instrumental in leading utility player
Mark Shannon to freshman All-America honors, as
Shannon became UNC’s first freshman All-American.
Shannon hit .326 on the year and was the Great West
Conference Newcomer of theYear.
Prior to his time at Northern Colorado, Strain spent
two years as the graduate manager with the Nebraska
Cornhuskers. While with the Huskers, he assisted the
coaching staff with on-field duties, including helping with
batting practice, while overseeing the undergraduate
managers and helping with team video. He also assisted
in on-campus recruiting and helped in the day-to-day
operations of the program. Strain was also an instructor
in the Nebraska Baseball Academy, giving hitting lessons
and running camps.
In the summer of 2006, Strain was an assistant
coach for the St. Cloud Riverbats in the Northwoods
League. There he served as the hitting and infield coach,
helping St. Cloud lead the Northwoods League in hitting
during the 2006 campaign.
Strain began his career playing at North Carolina
State before transferring to Nevada. Following his
collegiate career, he played two seasons in the San
Francisco Giants organization and one year for the
Rockford Riverhawks in the independent professional
Frontier League.
Strain was a three-sport standout at Cherry Creek
High School in Greenwood Village, Colo., earning All-
State honors as a senior in baseball. He led Cherry Creek
to three straight state titles in 1997, 1998 and 1999
and was inducted into the Cherry Creek Hall of Fame
in 2011.
He earned his undergraduate degree in secondary
education/history from Nevada in 2003 and his master’s
degree in educational administration from Nebraska in
2007. He and his wife Katie married in 2008. In July of
2011, they welcomed the birth of their daughter Addison,
who is their first child.
RYAN
STRAIN
Assistant Coach - Hitting / Outfield
Experience: 8th Year
At SIU: 3rd Year
Birthday: Oct. 15, 1980
High School: Cherry Creek (Colo.)
Alma Mater: Nevada, Bachelor’s, 2003; Nebraska, Master’s, 2007
SUPPORT STAFF
Adam Borts
Equipment Manager
5
Ted Evans
Athletic Trainer
Lacey King
Equipment Assistant
Lee Land
Asst AD/Athletic Trainer
Clete McLeod
Head Strength Coach
Andy Pettit
Associate Athletic Director
Chet Savage
Senior Associate AD
Kristina Therriault-Stepps
Associate AD/Student Services
COACHING/SUPPORT STAFF