R.C. LaHaye

Title

Head Wrestling Coach
Email

rlahaye@lander.edu
Phone

602-909-9885

R.C. LaHaye is entering his seventh season as head coach of the Lander wrestling program. LaHaye became the Bearcats' first wrestling coach when he was hired in July 2018.

In 2024-25, with almost an entirely new starting lineup, LaHaye led the Bearcats to a 16-4 overall record including another perfect 9-0 mark in Conference Carolinas en route to Lander's second straight Conference Carolinas West Division Title. The Bearcats won their fourth straight conference title inside Horne Arena with a 29-13 win over Belmont Abbey and a 34-10 win over King in the Championship Match.

Lander sent eight wrestlers to the NCAA Division II Wrestling Championships, winning their third straight NCAA Super Region title in dominating fashion. Four Bearcats earned All-American honors at NCAAs including David Hunsberger winning his second straight National Title at 165. True freshman Christian Davis placed third and was named the NWCA Rookie of the Year. Isham Peace and Marvelous Rutledge each earned a spot on the NCAA Podium for the first time in their careers. Hunsberger and Davis were named the Conference Carolinas and NWCA Super Region Wrestler and Freshman of the Year, respectively.

LaHaye established the Lander Wrestling program as one of the top Division II programs in the country in the 2023-24 season as he led the Bearcats to a Conference Carolinas Western Division Title, the team's third straight Conference Title, their second consecutive Super Region II title, and a runner-up finish at the NCAA National Championship.

Lander went 17-3 during the season and had a second consecutive perfect 10-0 conference record, reaching as high as #1 in the NWCA Rankings. The Bearcats also won the prestigious Midwest Classic for the first time in program history. The historic season earned LaHaye his second straight Conference Carolinas Coach of the Year Honor and third straight NWCA Super Region II Coach of the Year award.

The Bearcats finished as the National Runner-Up for the second consecutive year at the NCAA National Championship in Wichita, Kansas behind six All-Americans, highlighted by David Hunsberger becoming the second Lander individual national champion as the sophomore won the 165-lb National Title. Zeth Brower became the program's first three-time All-American and was joined on the podium by James Joplin, Elijah Lusk, Anthony Yacovetti, and Juan Edmond-Holmes.

LaHaye led the Bearcats to new heights during the 2022-23 season that ended with the Bearcats finishing as the National Runners-Up at the Div. II National Championships.

Under LaHaye's guidance, Lander went 20-2 overall and a spotless 10-0 in the SACC. Lander was ranked as high as No. 2 in the country in the NWCA Rankings.

The Open Mat awarded David Hunsberger as the 2022-23 Div. II Freshman of The Year while also naming LaHaye as the Div. II Coach of The Year. David Hunsberger was named a finalist for the NWCA 2022-23 Rookie Wrestler of the Year award while Logan Hall was named a finalist for the NWCA 2022-23 Wrestler of The Year award. Hunsberger was also named the 2022-23 NWCA Rookie of the Year.

The Bearcats finished second overall at the NCAA Div. II National Championships with six Bearcats being named All-Americans. Zeth Brower earned his second consecutive All-American honor while James Joplin, Elijah Lusk, David Hunsberger, Logan Hall and Juan Edmond-Holmes earned All-American honors for the first time. Logan Hall also finished as the National Runner-up at 184

LaHaye was named the SACC Coach of The Year for the first time after the 2022-23 season while Zeth Brower was named the SACC Wrestler of The Year and David Hunsberger was named the Freshman of The Year, LaHaye and his coaching staff were named the Super Region II Coaching Staff of The Year for the second straight year.

Lander thrashed the competition at the Super Region II Championships, with Lander running away with a Super Region II record 164 points. Nine Bearcats became National Qualifiers with six becoming Super Region Champs. Lander won its second straight SACC Title after defeating No. 18 UNC Pembroke 30-7 at Horne Arena. The Bearcats also saw action at the NWCA National Duals for the first time in program history. Lander went 4-1 and finished in fifth place. The Bearcats also battled at the 43rd Midwest Classic. Zeth Brower finished first at 141 while the team finished 3rd overall.

The 2021-22 season saw the Bearcats go 10-3 overall and 8-1 in the SACC. The Bearcats went 8-0 in the SACC until the last week of the regular season. The 2021-22 season also featured the first SACC conference title for Lander, as the Bearcat posted a 19-13 victory over Belmont Abbey (Feb.12). LaHaye guided the Bearcats through the NCAA Super Regionals that saw a program-best four wrestlers (Zeth Brower, Elijah Lusk, Darius Parker and Cameron Coffman) qualify for the NCAA Div. II National Championships in St. Louis. Mo. Zeth Brower was named the SACC Wrestler of The Year while Lusk was named Lander's first-ever SACC Freshman of The Year. Brower and Parker also finished first at the NCAA Super Region II Championships. Going a perfect 4-0 at the National Championships. Zeth Brower became the wrestling program's first-ever All-American and National Champion. LaHaye was also named the 2021-22 Super Region II Coach of The Year.

LaHaye's squad went 7-4 in the 2020-21 season where they finished second in their first year in the SACC. The Bearcats narrowly lost to Newberry 22-21 in what would determine the SACC champion. The 2020-21 season also saw the first time Lander sent wrestlers to the NCAA Div. II National Championships. SACC Wrestler of The Year, Darius Parker and Cameron Coffman represented Lander.

In his first season at Lander, LaHaye led the Bearcats to four dual wins and four placers at the NCAA Super Region II Championships.

Before coming to Greenwood, LaHaye spent four seasons as the associate head coach at Newberry after serving as the first head coach for Grand Canyon's wrestling program for seven years.

LaHaye played a key role in developing Newberry into a championship contender, helping lead the Wolves to three ECAC championships and an NCAA Super Region Championship in four seasons. Newberry went 41-14 in dual matches during LaHaye's tenure.

Before arriving at Newberry, LaHaye built the Grand Canyon wrestling program into a national powerhouse. In 2013, LaHaye had the nation's best wrestler in NCAA Division II Wrestler of the Year, Tyrell Fortune, who became the Antelopes' fourth national champion in three seasons. GCU finished ninth in the team standings, its third straight top-10 finish. Mike Hamel earned NCAA II All-America status. LaHaye has coached 13 NCAA All-Americans. Along with the high marks on the mat, Kyle McCrite, who won a national title in 2012, was named the Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference Academic Wrestler of the Year.

In 2012, GCU had two national champions and finished third overall. Along with McCrite, Victor Carazo took the top spot at 174. Two other wrestlers, Bobby Ward and Celic Bell, earned All-America honors. The season also saw the team set a new school mark for dual meet victories with 19.

In its final four seasons in Division II, GCU compiled a 62-23 dual meet record. LaHaye also excelled as a recruiter at Grand Canyon, compiling a pair of top-five classes in 2011 and 2012.

The Antelopes finished seventh in the NCAA Division II championships in 2011, taking seven wrestlers to nationals that year, another program best. The team also won the 2011 Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference regular-season championship. The team finished 17-4 in duals -- second most wins in the nation -- and won the final 14 head-to-head battles.

LaHaye had a decorated wrestling career at Western State College (now Western Colorado University) in Gunnison, Colo . At Western State, he was a 2004 NCAA Division II All-American. He was also a three-time NCAA Academic All-American, three-time NCAA National Qualifier, three-time All-Rocky Mountain Athletic selection, as well as a Colorado Collegiate Champion. He was a member of the 2004 Western State squad that finished fourth in the nation.

Born and raised in Payson, Ariz., LaHaye wrestled for Payson High School under Hall of Fame coaches Dennis Pirch and Dave Lamotte. He was a three-time state champion and set a state record for career wins. LaHaye was a two-time High School All-American and team captain for three state championship teams.

LaHaye received a Bachelor of Arts in Business Administration from Western State College in 2005 and a Masters of Science in Leadership from Grand Canyon University in 2010.

Grand Canyon University (7 Seasons) 77-55, 29-26 RMAC
Lander University (5 Seasons) 74-24, 43-3 SACC/CC
Total: 151-79 Overall, 72-29 Conference Record