Cal State Bakersfield announced another head coach hiring on Tuesday, but this was done simply by removing the interim tag off Ray Alvarado as women’s basketball coach.
Alvarado was hired as the CSUB associate head coach in summer 2025 and was suddenly named interim head coach when the university put former head coach Ari Wideman on administrative leave in March. Alvarado coached the Roadrunners’ last two Big West Conference games of the 2025-26 season. Wideman officially resigned in April and Alvarado was handling the coaching duties, recruiting and summer basketball camp stuff until Tuesday’s announcement was made by CSUB Acting Director of Athletics Sarah Tuohy.
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The move seemed natural given Alvarado being a Central Valley native, vast area coaching experience and his program-building skills. Following a national search, Alvarado is now the official head coach.
“Ray brings exactly what we were looking for at the helm of our women’s basketball program,” Tuohy said in a statement to announce Alvarado’s new status. “His extensive coaching career, including his experience at the junior college level, has given him a deep understanding of how to develop players and win — and his record speaks for itself. What excites me just as much is his connection to the Central Valley. That connection is core to what it means to be a Roadrunner, and Ray is going to recruit this backyard with a passion and credibility that will be transformative for our program.”
Before arriving in Bakersfield, Alvarado was the head coach at Hawaii Pacific University, leading the Sharks’ women’s basketball program after a very successful 13-year run as head coach for Visalia’s College of the Sequoias (COS). At COS, Alvarado guided the Giants to a CCCAA State Championship Final Four appearance in 2022 and multiple Elite Eight berths while earning five Central Valley Conference Coach of the Year honors.
Alvarado has also been a head coach at Fresno City College, Bullard and Sanger high schools. His teams have a reputation for player development, discipline, recruiting connections and strong community ties.
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“Having been born and raised in the Valley, it was a goal of mine to come back home and give back to the community that helped shape my coaching profession over the years,” Alvarado said. “When I left College of the Sequoias for Hawai’i Pacific, the goal was always to return home. I have a strong connection with the city of Bakersfield, as many of our former student-athletes came from local high schools. I owe this basketball community a great amount. It is truly a blessing and privilege to lead Cal State Bakersfield women’s basketball. I’m thankful and honored to have the support of President (Vernon B.) Harper (Jr.) and Acting Director of Athletics Dr. Tuohy.”
While at COS, Alvarado developed one of the region’s most consistent junior college programs, establishing recruiting pipelines throughout the Central Valley while overseeing all aspects of the program, including scheduling, budgeting, scouting, fundraising, academic progress and community involvement. At Sanger High, he led the girls’ basketball program to a Central Section championship and a CIF State Tournament appearance in 2000. He later coached the boys basketball program at Sanger.
“I’ve always felt compelled that if I was going to expect much from my players, I wanted to make sure their effort would equate to success from all the hard work they put in,” Alvarado said. “Disciplined teams win in the long run. There will be no shortcuts to success. Over the years I learned from exceptional coaches that transformational relationships will take a program further than simply transactional ones.”
Alvarado has his work cut out for himself as last year’s CSUB women’s basketball team went 7-23 overall, 2-18 in the Big West. Wideman, who was hired in 2024, left CSUB with a 9-51 overall record, 4-36 in the Big West.
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Given his exposure to the Big West this past season on the sideline, Alvarado looks forward to seeing what the Roadrunners can do by adapting to his Central Valley-built coaching philosophy.
“Offensively we will have an open, up-tempo style. Defensively, we will model what the Valley is — hard work, blue collar, no excuses, and a relentless attack mentality,” Alvarado said. “Simply, I know no other way. I know our fans will appreciate our program and what we will represent. It will always be about a culture of toughness, physicality, family and unselfishness.”
