Ray Slagle

Head Men's Basketball Coach

937-766-7644 or e-mail Coach Slagle

Ray Slagle is in his eighth season as head men's basketball coach at Cedarville University. He has developed the Yellow Jackets into one of the more prominent NAIA Division II programs in the country with six straight 20-win seasons and four national tournament appearances.

Cedarville has grabbed at least a share of three of the last five American Mideast Conference South Division championships including a tie last winter with two other nationally-ranked programs - Mount Vernon Nazarene and Walsh - with identical 15-3 marks. The Yellow Jackets, 23-8 overall, went on to advance to the NAIA Division II Elite Eight.

Slagle had CU ranked as high as No. 4 in the country in 2005-06 and finished with a 20-11 record against one of the toughest schedules in school history. The Jackets tied for 2nd place in the AMC South Division with a 13-5 record and ended up as the AMC Tournament runner-up.

The 2004-05 campaign was ultimately one of the best ever for Cedarville. The Jackets won the AMC Tournament by an average of 23 points per contest, finished with a school-record 28 victories, a berth in the NAIA Division II Final Four, and at one time a No. 1 ranking in the national poll.

Cedarville was ranked as high as No. 2 in the country during the 2003-04 season with a 27-9 record and the school's second consecutive AMC South Division championship. The Jackets headed back to the 32-team NAIA Nationals where they won twice to advance to the Elite Eight only to be eliminated by the eventual national champion.

Slagle's 2002-03 squad assembled one of the best campaigns in school history at 27-8 and was ranked as high as No. 8 in the nation. Cedarville won the first-ever AMC championship game after rolling through the South Division with a 14-2 mark. The Jackets also qualified for the NAIA national tournament - their first NAIA appearance in 21 years - and advanced to the Sweet 16.

CU won the NCCAA Midwest Region championship in 2002 under Slagle's leadership. His club went on to finish 3rd at the NCCAA Nationals.

Slagle was recognized as the 2003 NCCAA National Coach of the Year. He was also voted the AMC Coach of the Year in both 2003 and 2004.

Slagle came to the Yellow Jackets after developing Worthington Christian into an Ohio high school basketball powerhouse. He had an impressive ten-year run at the school in which the Warriors became one of the elite Division IV programs in the state. He posted a 194-50 career record for a .795 winning percentage with a state championship in 1999, a state runner-up finish in 1994, and six straight Mid-Buckeye Conference titles which included a 72-1 mark in the league.

Slagle was a two-time Ohio Division IV Coach of the Year selection including the 1999-2000 season when he was one of three coaches to share the honor after leading his team to a 26-1 record and another berth in the state finals. The Warriors completed the year ranked No. 1 in the Associated Press poll which is a finish they also achieved in 1995.

Slagle spent four years at Christian Heritage College near San Diego from 1986 through 1990. He was the assistant coach for two years and then became co-head coach his final two years along with former UCLA standout and NBA player Swen Nater. The tandem led the Hawks to a 52-14 record and the National Christian College Athletic Association title in 1990 which culminated, ironically, with a title game victory over Cedarville.

Prior to heading to the west coast, Slagle was at Inter-City Baptist School in Allen Park, Michigan from 1971 through 1986. His 1985 boys basketball team was the Michigan Class D state champions and he posted a 229-114 career record at the school. He also held positions as athletic director, instructor, and head varsity soccer coach.

Slagle serves as an assistant professor in the Department of Exercise and Sport Science at Cedarville University. He directs the Yellow Jacket Basketball Camp in the summer and is also a popular speaker at camps and coaches' clinics.

Slagle is a 1971 graduate of Bob Jones University with a degree in physical education. He earned his master's degree in athletic administration from Eastern Michigan University in 1979.

Ray and his wife, Matsi, reside in Springfield. They have three married children and six grandchildren.

The Slagle File