(June 24, 2026) Mena, Arkansas - With the departure of Peyton Traywick, Athletic Director Jerod McCormick is proud to announce the hiring of Noe Ruiz Jr. as the next Head Baseball Coach at UA Rich Mountain. Ruiz comes to UARM from Texas A&M Corpus Christi as an Assistant Coach. He spent the last 4 seasons with the Islanders that included three Southland Conference Tournament appearances in 2023, 2024, & 2025.
Ruiz began his coaching career as a student-assistant at Texas A&M-International after injuries ended his baseball career. After graduation, he got the opportunity to join Coach Matt Parker's staff at Oklahoma Wesley as a Graduate Assistant and stayed at OKWU from 2012-2019. The staff then moved to Eastern Oklahoma State College in Wilburton, where he served as the hitting coach and recruiting coordinator for the Mountaineers. Eastern Oklahoma State competes in NJCAA Region 2 at the DI level. UARM is in the DII league of Region 2.
While at Oklahoma Wesleyan, Coach Ruiz coached 3 NAIA National Players of the Year, and the team made 2 NAIA World Series Appearance in 2014 and 2017. While at Eastern Oklahoma State, the staff had an overall record of 142-39 that included back-to-back NJCAA Region 2 DI Tournament Championships and regular season titles in 2021 & 2022. Coach Ruiz helped move 55 student-athletes on to the next level, including 21 to NCAA DI programs. The Mountaineers were 6th in the country in batting average in 2022 with a team .369 AVG that placed the team 15th in hits in the NJCAA.
Coach Ruiz has coaches 9 athletes that have been drafted and signed to Major League Baseball teams from their Eastern Oklahoma State teams. Currently, he has coached two current big leaguers in Jonah Cox (CF - San Francisco Giants) and David Sandlin (RHP - Chicago White Sox).
- Christian McGowan (Bokchito, OK) - Philadelphia Phillies (7th Round) - 2021
- Tyler Johnson (Bentonville, AR) - Detroit Tigers (Free Agent Signee) - 2022
- Blake Klassen (Mission Viejo, CA) - Washington National (17th Round) - 2022
- Andrew Walling (Castle Rock, WA) - Philadelphia Phillies (Free Agent Signee) - 2022
- Mac McCroskey (Springdale, AR) - Los Angeles Angels (20th Round) - 2023
- Nate Ackenhausen (Owasso, OK) - Kansas City Royals (10th Round) - 2024
- Matthrew Watson (Rogers, AR) - San Diego Padres (13th Round) - 2024
On the hiring of Coach Ruiz, Athletic Director Jerod McCormick stated, "The few things that stood out during the interview process with Coach Ruiz is the relationship he has with his student-athletes on and off the field and his ability to develop high level baseball players that have the opportunity to move on to the next level. We couldn't be more excited to have Coach Ruiz and his family joining us in Mena."
Coach Noe Ruiz added, "We are excited to be back in this area of the country and for joining a college that supports baseball and athletics the way that UA Rich Mountian does."
Ruiz earned his Bachelor's Degree in Fitness and Sports at Texas A&M-International before obtaining his Master's in Business Administration from Oklahoma Wesleyan University.
A native of San Antonio, Coach Ruiz will bring his wife Rebecca and 5-month old Ophelia Joy (O.J.) to Mena.
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