Lance Ratchford (born October 5, 1988) is an American baseball coach and former infielder, who is the current head baseball coach of the Marist Red Foxes. He played college baseball at Mansfield University of Pennsylvania from 2008 to 2010 before transferring to Keystone College. He has also been the head coach of the SUNY Cobleskill Fighting Tigers (2019–2022). Under Ratchford the Fighting Tigers captured back to back Conference Division Titles in 2021 and 2022. After the 2022 season Ratchford was named North Atlantic Conference (NAC) Coach of the Year.
| Current position | |
|---|---|
| Title | Head coach |
| Team | Marist |
| Conference | MAAC |
| Record | 36–71 (.336) |
| Biographical details | |
| Born | October 5, 1988 Oneonta, New York, U.S. |
| Alma mater | Keystone College |
| Playing career | |
| 2008–2010 | Mansfield |
| 2011 | Keystone |
| Position(s) | Infielder |
| Coaching career (HC unless noted) | |
| 2012–2015 | SUNY Oneonta (AC) |
| 2016–2018 | Marist (AC) |
| 2019–2022 | SUNY Cobleskill |
| 2023–present | Marist |
| Head coaching record | |
| Overall | 96–127 (.430) |
| Tournaments | NCAA: 0–0 |
Playing career
editRatchford attended Oneonta High School in Oneonta, New York. During his senior year Ratchford earned 2nd Team All-State honors from the NYSSWA. He would go on to play college baseball at Mansfield University of Pennsylvania from 2008 to 2010 before transferring to Keystone College. As a senior in 2011, he helped Keystone advance to the NCAA Division III World Series, where they finished tied for third. The Giants won the New York Regional tournament and he was named to the NCAA Regional All-Tournament Team. The 2011 Keystone team was inducted into the school’s Hall of Fame in 2021.
Coaching career
editIn 2015 and 2016, and again in 2021 and 2022, Ratchford served as assistant coach of the Brewster Whitecaps, a collegiate summer baseball team in the Cape Cod Baseball League. The Whitecaps won the Cape Cod Baseball League Championship in 2021.[1][2] On August 9, 2022, Ratchford was named the head coach of the Marist Red Foxes.[3] Ratchford returns to Marist, having served as assistant coach under former head coach Chris Tracz from 2016-18. As an assistant, Ratchford helped the Red Foxes capture the 2017 MAAC Championship and earn a trip to the Gainesville Regional.
Head coaching record
edit| Season | Team | Overall | Conference | Standing | Postseason | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| SUNY Cobleskill Fighting Tigers (North Eastern Athletic Conference) (2019–2020) | |||||||||
| 2019 | SUNY Cobleskill | 16–22 | 9–9 | T-4th | NEAC Tournament | ||||
| 2020 | SUNY Cobleskill | 8–5 | 0–0 | NA | Season canceled due to COVID-19 | ||||
| SUNY Cobleskill Fighting Tigers (North Atlantic Conference) (2021–2022) | |||||||||
| 2021 | SUNY Cobleskill | 15–9 | 10–4 | 1st (West) | NAC Tournament | ||||
| 2022 | SUNY Cobleskill | 21–20 | 11–4 | 1st (West) | NAC Tournament | ||||
| SUNY Cobleskill: | 60–56 (.517) | 30–17 (.638) | |||||||
| Marist Red Foxes (Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference) (2023–present) | |||||||||
| 2023 | Marist | 16–36 | 10–14 | T-7th | |||||
| 2024 | Marist | 20–35 | 10–14 | 6th | MAAC Tournament | ||||
| Marist: | 36–71 (.336) | 20–28 (.417) | |||||||
| Total: | 96–127 (.430) | ||||||||
|
National champion
Postseason invitational champion
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References
edit- ^ "Meet the Coaches". brewsterwhitecaps.org. Retrieved July 28, 2023.
- ^ "Lance Ratchford". cobleskill.edu. Retrieved July 28, 2023.
- ^ Ken McMillan (August 9, 2022). "College baseball: Marist hires former assistant Ratchford". www.recordonline.com. USA TODAY Network. Retrieved January 9, 2023.