Ray Aguirre is in his seventh season as Blue Dragon Softball’s pitching coach. He has elevated the Blue Dragon pitching staff to one of the top pitching staffs in the nation.

That has been none more evident than over the past two seasons where the Blue Dragons have posted back-to-back 40-win seasons and the 2023 Blue Dragons snapped a 31-year championship drought by winning the Jayhawk Conference Championship.

The 2023 Blue Dragons posted a 2.80 ERA, which was 20th in the NJCAA. Sophomore relief pitcher Riley Wertz led the nation in saves for the second-straight season with eight saves, while starting pitcher Morgan Pennycuff racked up 17 victories, the eighth most in Blue Dragon single-season history. Wertz, Pennycuff and Emily Munson all earned All-Jayhawk Conference honors. The 2023 Blue Dragons broke the program’s single-game record for victories with 44.

Aguirre led the 2022 pitching staff to one of the most impressive seasons in program history. The Blue Dragons’ team ERA was 2.86, third-best in team history; 309 strikeouts, second-most in team history; and 41 victories, second-most in team history. NJCAA third-team All-American and Jayhawk Conference Freshman of the Year Riley Wertz set season and career records and led the nation with nine saves. Wertz went 13-1 with a modern-day single-season record 1.35 ERA. Wertz also had a school single-game record 18 strikeouts vs. Garden City. Munson went 10-1 and was a second-team all-KJCCC selection.

Aguirre’s first season with the Blue Dragons was highly successful as Hutchinson posted the top team ERA in the Jayhawk East in 2017 at 2.81. That’s the first time in team history the Blue Dragons led the league in team ERA. Aquirre’s pitching staff was a big part of Hutchinson advancing to the Region VI Tournament championship game for a second-straight season. The 2018 Blue Dragons finished 38-11 and No. 15 in the country.

D.J. Cannon, who moved onto Missouri-Kansas City after the 2017 season, was Aguirre’s first all-conference pitcher with the Blue Dragons. Aguirre added Jordan Galliher to that list after the 2021 season as a second-team all-conference performer. Galliher had two no-hitters, including a perfect game in her HutchCC debut, in her Blue Dragon career.

Moving up to NJCAA Division I in 2019, the Blue Dragons went 26-16 posited a solid 3.87 ERA with 16 complete games and seven shutouts.

The 2020 season was wiped out after 24 games because of the Coronavirus pandemic. Hutchinson was 18-6 overall and in first place in the Jayhawk Conference with a 7-1 record when the season was halted. The Blue Dragon pitching staff had a 4.37 team ERA at that point in the season.

Injuries slowed progress of the program of the 2021 Blue Dragons, who still managed to 29-17 season, second-place finish in the Jayhawk East and third-place finish in Region VI.

Before coming to Hutchinson, Aguirre was the pitching coach for Friends University in Wichita for 11 seasons.

Under Aguirre, the Falcons had one of the best earned run averages over the last nine years at the NAIA level, increasing win totals along with strikeouts and reducing walks. In 2008 and 2009, Friends had an ERA in the top-10 in the nation.

Aguirre has a passion is for fastpitch softball. Growing up, he played all positions, but mostly pitcher and infield, playing semi-pro for several teams in and around the Wichita area. His love of the game eventually led him to coaching.

Aguirre’s career started as the head coach at Augusta High School in 2000. He remained at Augusta for 13 seasons. In his first season, the Orioles were Kansas Class 4A state champions. His teams also earned 4A state runners-up 2005 and another state championship in 2006.

Aguirre also served as the head bowling coach at Augusta in 2006, winning the AVCTL title and regional championship before finishing fourth at state in his first season.

His daughter, Rachael, won the 5-1A individual state championship with a 701 series.

Aguirre brings 41 years of pitching experience to the Blue Dragons as both a player and coach. His coaching philosophy is not to change what you are comfortable with, but to tweak the approach that works best for you.

Aguirre and his wife, Barbie have several kids: daughter, Shonda, her children, Brodie, Rayna, and Zarah; son, Mike and his son Preston, daughter Rachael and her fiancé, Eric, and her son, Jaxon.