On Tuesday, Dec. 30, WSU Athletics announced they hired Ashley Herndon as an assistant coach for the women’s soccer team. Herndon follows her head coach, Chris Citowicki, to the Palouse after she spent five years at the University of Montana as an assistant coach.
During her Griz tenure, Herndon helped Montana secure five straight Big Sky Conference Championship appearances and two NCAA Tournament appearances.
Her first year in the Missoula Maroon was immediately productive, with the team scoring 27 goals and making the NCAA Tournament, where they were blown out 3-0 by the Cougs. That was WSU’s most recent tournament appearance.
The Griz offense flourished under Herndon, scoring 27, 25, 33, 29 and 31 goals in her five years, respectively. She and Citowicki created a Montana program that was lethal on offense and had repeated success in the Big Sky.
To conclude both Herndon and Citowicki’s time in Montana, they led the Griz to the NCAA Tournament in 2025, where they fell 2-0 to the University of Washington.
Having Citowicki and Herndon on the same staff was a recipe for success in the Big Sky, but they join the Cougs as they enter the new-look Pac-12. Whether that formula translates to the Palouse will be seen in 2026.
