NORMAL, Ill. – Following three consecutive MVC Coach of the Year honors, Illinois State head men's golf coach Ray Kralis has signed a three-year contract extension to continue his record-setting tenure with the Redbirds.

"With the tremendous support from our administration, generous alumni, and program friends, Redbird Golf is on the right trajectory and momentum is on our side," said Kralis. "I have been fortunate to coach and learn from so many talented student-athletes who have left Redbird Golf better than they found it, and we continue to build on their successes. With a great team of people around and behind me, I am confident we'll continue to rise and the best is yet to come.

Kralis took over the reigns of the men's golf program just prior to the start of the 2005 spring season and since he has helped lead ISU to four MVC Tournament crowns (2005, 2007, 2023, and 2025) while earning MVC Coach of the Year honors in 2007, 2019, 2023, 2024, and 2025. He was also the head women's golf coach at ISU from 2000 through the 2007 season, and he was twice named Coach of the Year (2003, and 2005) while leading the Redbirds to a pair of MVC titles (2004 and 2005).

"Ray Kralis has been the face of men's golf at Illinois State for over 20 years," said Illinois State Director of Athletics Dr. Jeri Beggs. "From his time as a student-athlete to serving as head coach for the past 21 seasons, Ray's commitment to our men's golf program has been incredible. The accomplishments of the team and the relationships Ray has built with our biggest supporters has made men's golf a model for how to build a successful program. I'm thrilled to announce that we have extended his contract for three more years and I'm eager to see how far we can take men's golf in the future."

In addition to the six MVC titles, his teams have collected nine runner-up finishes and five third-place finishes at the conference championship. Four of his men's golfers and two women's won MVC individual medalist honors, and he has coached 49 players who earned All-MVC honors, 41 men and 8 women. He successfully recruited and coached the only two MVC student-athletes to play at the NCAA National Championship (Samantha Richdale and Trent Wallace) and coached the only All-American (David Perkins) from a current MVC school.

Kralis has coached the men to 19 tournament victories after leading the women's squad to four during his tenure. His men's teams have 89 wins over schools in the power conferences, including 58 wins over schools within the Big 10. Over the last nine seasons he has coached a team or individual golfers in the NCAA Regionals seven times, including the team competing in 2023 and 2025, while sending individuals in 2016, 2017, 2019 (two golfers), 2021, and 2024 (two golfers). This past season the Redbirds kept themselves in contention for a team berth for the NCAA National Championship through the final round of the tournament.

For as strong as his athletic honors are, his academics are just as strong with 30 golfers earning All-America Scholar honors from the Golf Coaches Association of America (GCAA), and 13 from the Women's Golf Coaches Association. Last season, his squad had a team GPA of 3.4875 including a team record GPA of 3.53 in the fall of 2024