KLAMATH FALLS, Ore. – Following the most prolific season in Oregon Tech baseball history, athletic director John Van Dyke has officially announced Ricky Walker as head coach of the Hustlin’ Owls.
Walker, who served as an assistant coach from 2021-24, was the interim head coach for the program during a highly-successful 2025 campaign.
“Ricky took the ball last year and ran with it,” Van Dyke said. “He was dealt a tough situation becoming the interim head coach late in the game – but was able to provide stability through the fall season. This spring, we saw what kind of coach he is – what a great season the Owls had. I am excited to see the program continue to grow under his leadership.”
As the interim skipper, Walker and the Hustlin’ Owls set a new program record with 39 wins, posting an 18-2 record at Steen Sports Park. The squad reached the Cascade Conference Tournament semifinals, earned their first-ever bid to the NAIA Baseball National Championships and won their first-ever national tournament game.
“I am beyond blessed for the opportunity to continue what we have started, beginning in 2021 and culminating with our great run last season,” Walker said. “The foundation that is Tech Baseball is built – thanks to great senior classes that have bought into our philosophy. We have been on the recruiting trail to replace 18 amazing seniors and am confident that the 2026 season will be another memorable one.”
His development of both Bronson Chapple and Tim Williams on the mound earned the duo CCC Pitcher of the Year honors, while catcher Tyler Horner claimed back-to-back CCC Player of the Year and NAIA All-America accolades. Chapple recently became the first OIT player to play professional baseball since 2019 – signing a contract with the Trois-Rivieres Aigles in the Frontier League, with Horner looking forward to next week’s Major League Baseball First Year Player Draft – with the potential of being Tech’s first draft pick since 1992.
Under Walker’s direction, the 2025 squad slashed .322/.432/.494 – the highest batting average, on-base percentage and slugging percentage marks since the sport returned to Tech in 2002 – while setting new school records for runs (493), hits (600), doubles (139), triples (19), RBI (425), walks (281), hit-by-pitches (121) and sacrifice flies (50). Pitchers held opponents to a .258 batting average, the lowest in program history, while defensively, the Owls set a new school record with a .977 fielding percentage.
The Owls will also be honored as a NAIA Scholar-Team, posting a team GPA of 3.22.