HICKORY, N.C. - Ryan Crompton as been promoted to Associate Head Coach of the Lenoir-Rhyne Men's Lacrosse program. 

The long time assistant and former goalie has been a member of the men's lacrosse staff since joining the program as an assistant prior to the 2019 campaign. During his seven years with the program, Crompton has helped lead the Bears to a 105-29 record, six NCAA Tournament appearances, five SAC Championships, three appearances in the NCAA DII National Championship game, and the 2023 National Championship. 

"As both a player and a coach, Ryan has helped build the Lenoir-Rhyne men's lacrosse program from the ground up," said head coach Greg Paradine. "This promotion is a direct reflection of his commitment to excellence and the impact that he has had on our program. Ryan has developed into one of the nation's best defensive coordinators and teachers of the game. I'm incredibly excited to have Ryan step into the role of Associate Head Coach and continue helping us be one of the nation's top Division II lacrosse programs."

Lenoir-Rhyne has produced 65 All-Conference performers since Crompton began coaching the Bears, including goalies Owen Peters, Rob Pensabene, and Noah Johnson. In addition to those All-Conference honorees, 28 Bears have been named to a USILA All-America team. Crompton helped coach Noah Johnson to become one of the premier goalies in the nation over his final three seasons as Johnson would go on to win SAC Tournament MVP honors in 2022 and become the program's all-time leader in saves and wins. In the 2023 National Championship, Crompton's defense suffocated Mercyhurst and allowed five goals, the third-fewest in a National Championship game in DII history. It wrapped up a standout season for Crompton's defense that saw the unit finish fourth in the nation in goals allowed per game at 8.10 and allowed opponents to score just 33 goals in four NCAA Tournament games. In total, the 2023 Bears allowed just seven teams to reach double digits in the scoring column in their 23 games.

As a goalie for the Bears, Crompton led the Bears to a 2018 National Semifinal appearance and a 2017 NCAA Tournament appearance. Crompton finished his esteemed career as the program's all-time leader in saves with 616 but was surpassed by Noah Johnson. The Frederick, Maryland native posted a 40-10 career record in goal for the Bears and a 56.3 career save percentage. Crompton was named First Team All-SAC as a senior and also earned the SAC Men's Lacrosse Scholar-Athlete of the Year award. Additionally, he was a four-time SAC Commissioner's Honor Roll selection, a Lenoir-Rhyne Athletic Director's Honor Roll honoree, a two-time member of the LR Dean's and President's Lists and a member of Alpha Lambda Delta. In his career, Crompton saw action in 50 career games and played over 2,700 minutes. He graduated with a bachelor's in sports management.