<figure>
 <img src="https://media.eaglewebservices.com/public/2024/12/1735329805054.jpeg" alt="Photo Courtesy Kansas Athletics" />
 <figcaption>Photo Courtesy Kansas Athletics</figcaption>
 </figure><div>Kansas Athletics
 
LAWRENCE, Kan. &ndash;&nbsp;Ray Bechard, the winningest coach in Kansas volleyball history and a five-time Big 12 Conference Coach of the Year, announced his retirement Friday after 27 seasons at the helm. &nbsp; Bechard, who coached 26 All-Americans during his time at Kansas and led the Jayhawks to 13 NCAA Tournament appearances, amassed a 496-313 record at KU. His .613 winning percentage is the best by a Kansas volleyball coach in program history. &nbsp; &quot;It&apos;s been the honor of a lifetime to fulfill the role as Head Volleyball Coach at the University of Kansas for the last 27 years,&quot; Bechard said. &quot;This professional journey was made possible by a supportive administration, a coaching staff that worked tirelessly and together and by countless young women who competed with grit and demonstrated grace, while representing the university with class. &nbsp; &quot;I&apos;m proud of what we accomplished during my time at Kansas; we built a program that was nationally competitive and nationally respected.&quot; &nbsp; A Grinnell, Kansas native, Bechard took the reins of his dream job in 1998 after 13 seasons at Barton County Community College. He rewrote the Kansas volleyball record books, including being named the 2015 National Coach of the Year after leading the Jayhawks to the Final Four. He is also a member of the Kansas Volleyball Association Hall of Fame, the NJCAA Volleyball Coaches Association Hall of Fame and is a three-time AVCA Region Coach of the Year. &nbsp; A Jayhawk to the core, Bechard coached his daughter, Ashley, for four seasons at KU. His son Brennan, played for the men&apos;s basketball team and currently serves as the program&apos;s Director of Scouting. &nbsp; &quot;Ray Bechard is a University of Kansas icon and has had one of the most influential and accomplished careers in college volleyball,&quot; Kansas Director of Athletics Travis Goff said. &quot;We are forever grateful for the incredible impact he made on so many in our athletic department, with his student-athletes being at the forefront. Coach B enriched the lives of countless people and is the architect of a program that has flourished on and off the court throughout his tenure. We will miss him dearly and will work with the same intensity and passion he coached with to continue the legacy he built.&quot; &nbsp; Throughout his Kansas career, Bechard led the Jayhawks to the NCAA Tournament 13 times, including three Sweet 16 appearances and a spot in the National Semifinals in 2015. Kansas also finished the season in the AVCA Top 25 rankings seven times. Prior to his arrival, Kansas had never qualified for the NCAA Tournament. The longtime coach finished his illustrious career in style, posting winning seasons in 16 of his final 17 seasons leading the program. Additionally during his tenure, Kansas unveiled Horejsi Family Volleyball Arena in 2019, a result of the program&apos;s success and popularity under Bechard. &nbsp; Not only did Bechard leave an indelible mark at Kansas, but he also cemented himself as one of the best coaches ever in the Big 12 Conference. He finishes his career with 238 Big 12 wins, which ranks second all-time. He departs the league having coached more Big 12 matches than any coach in conference history. Bechard&apos;s success at Kansas followed a brilliant career at Barton, where he won 92 percent of his matches (716-90), won 13 conference championships and advanced to 10 NJCAA Final Fours. &nbsp; &quot;We are grateful for all Coach Bechard has done for our university and our student-athletes during his remarkable career at KU,&quot; Chancellor Douglas A. Girod said. &quot;Beyond the excellence his programs displayed on the court, Coach Bechard was a terrific ambassador for our university and always represented us well on the national stage. We wish him the best in retirement and thank him for his contributions to KU.&quot; &nbsp; A staple for Bechard throughout his career was player development, which was evident by the accolades his student-athletes earned. Bechard coached 12 AVCA All-Americans, including First Team selections Kelsie Payne (2015 and 2016) and Ainise Havili (2015) and Second Team selection Caroline Jarmoc (2012), on top of Third Team selections&nbsp;<a href="https://kuathletics.com/sports/womens-volleyball/roster/reagan-cooper/10318" rel="smarttag">Reagan Cooper</a>&nbsp;(2023) and&nbsp;<a href="https://kuathletics.com/sports/womens-volleyball/roster/camryn-turner/10268" rel="smarttag">Camryn Turner</a>(2024). He also saw several other Jayhawks earn All-America honorable mention from the AVCA including Josi Lima, Erin McNorton, Sara McClinton, Chelsea Albers, Cassie Wait, Madison Rigdon,&nbsp;<a href="https://kuathletics.com/sports/womens-volleyball/roster/caroline-bien/10231" rel="smarttag">Caroline Bien</a>&nbsp;and&nbsp;<a href="https://kuathletics.com/sports/womens-volleyball/roster/toyosi-onabanjo/10221" rel="smarttag">Toyosi Onabanjo</a>. &nbsp; In his first season at KU in 1998, Bechard improved the Jayhawks&apos; win total by six matches from the previous season and then posted five-straight winning seasons, before leading the program to its first ever NCAA Tournament selection in 2003. That squad, led by Lima, went 22-11 on the year and advanced to the second round of the tournament. That marked the first of three-straight postseason appearances for Bechard and the Jayhawks. &nbsp; Bechard and the Jayhawks started another postseason streak in 2012 when the team went 26-7 on the season, advanced to the second round and finished the year ranked No. 25 in the final AVCA Top 25 of the season for the first time in program history. The following season, Kansas went 25-8 and advanced to the Sweet 16 for the first time ever and finished second in the Big 12. Two seasons later, led by Payne and Havili, Kansas went 30-3, advanced to the Final Four and finished the season ranked No. 4 in the country. &nbsp; The following season, Kansas went 15-1 in Big 12 play and won the program&apos;s first-ever Big 12 Championship and finished the season ranked No. 12 in the country. Bechard finished his career on a four-year NCAA Tournament streak, including another Sweet 16 appearance in 2021. &nbsp; &quot;I&apos;m thankful for the support of Chancellor Girod, Director of Athletics Travis Goff and sport administrator Nicole Corcoran,&quot; Bechard said. &quot;They will find the right person to elevate this nationally prominent program to even greater heights. This decision, though a difficult one, won&apos;t change my devotion to this athletic department and volleyball program.&nbsp; &nbsp; &quot;I&apos;m looking forward to the time it will allow for a more consistent presence in the lives of my wife, children and grandkids who all have supported me in my coaching career. Thank you, Jayhawk Nation!&quot; &nbsp; Kansas will now begin a national search for its next leader.</div>

🏐 Bechard retires after 27 seasons at KU