Ashley Gauer enters her 12th academic year in the fall of 2026 as the Senior Associate Athletic Director for Internal Operations and 14th overall with the department. Gauer oversees the internal efforts of the department related to game staffing, technology infrastructure, publications and graphics, communications, and marketing. In addition, she serves as a sport supervisor, the athletics manager for all branding and licensing initiatives, and leads the management of the NSU Athletic facilities, while serving as liaison with the campus facilities department.
From 2021-23 Gauer served as the SID Chair for the Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference and was the Co-Chair of the Northern State University Staff Council from 2024-26. She was a member of the 2025 NSIC Strategic Planning Committee working to develop the league's
2025-30 Strategic Plan and involved with both the design and implementation phases of the Northern State strategic plan in 2025-26.
She is the primary media contact for the football and men's basketball, serving as the main statistician for the department. In addition, Gauer leads the game day live streaming and live stating efforts, and is the primary administrator of the NSU social media accounts and the webmaster for nsuwolves.com. She creates the departments print materials and publications including game-day programs, record books, and schedule posters/cards, in addition to general game and department promotional items. Gauer has been instrumental in the growth of the Northern State live streaming production through the NSIC Network launched with Hudl in 2020-21. In the summer of 2026, the NSIC Network found its new home with Midco Sports Plus.
In her tenure, nsuwolves.com has been transformed with two successful site re-designs, as well as the addition of numerous historical and informational pages. The department has also seen social media growth with the addition of Instagram and an increased graphic presence on both X and Facebook. Gauer has covered 14 NSIC Championship teams, 56 individual NSIC Champions, nine NSIC Divisional Champions, six NSIC Tournament Championships, 14 NCAA Tournament appearances, 79 All-Americans, and two NCAA National Champions. In the spring of 2020, she was honored by the AVCA as the Central Region SID of the Year.
In 2017-18, she administrated the launch of the updated Wolves mobile app through Sidearm Sports. Gauer covered three Wolves athletics teams that advanced to NCAA Central Region tournaments including volleyball, women's basketball, and men's basketball that season. The men's basketball team advanced to the second NCAA Elite 8 in school history and finished the season as the NCAA National Finalist.
In the 2016-17 season, Northern State helped facilitate three NCAA games of the week in partnership with ESPN3 and the WatchESPN App. Gauer was the primary contact for the Niles Media Group at the September 10 home opener versus Southwest Minnesota State. Northern State was honored in the summer of 2017 receiving the NACMA Silver Award for Single Day Attendance Promotion. Gauer was an integral part in developing the nomination, as well as implementing the graphics for the promotion which generated over 4,600 fans at the Northern State men’s basketball game.
In January of 2013, Gauer began her work as the primary contact for the soccer, women's basketball, swimming, and softball teams as a graduate assistant for the Wolves. In February of 2015, she stepped into an interim role as the primary media contact for all 15 NCAA Division II sports.
She is a member of the College Sports Communicators (CSC, formerly CoSIDA). Through her involvement with the organization 24 student-athletes have been named CoSIDA Academic All-Americans® including Rachel Krogman (WBB), Sasha Hovind (WTRK/XC - 2x), Anna Bondy (SC), Chad Stoterau (FB), Conner Doherty (FB), Tori Biach (VB), Joe Gomez (WR), DJ Pollard (MBB), Jamie Fisher (SB), Ashley Rozell (VB), Dakota Larson (FB - 3x), Zach Mohs (FB), Parker Fox (MBB), Chance Olson (FB), Sam Masten (MBB), Wyatt Turnquist (WR), Mia Zagorski (SC), Calista Kocmick (SC), Lilly Grebner (SW), Abby (Meister) Schauer (VB - 2x), and Miranda Ristau (WBB), the 2017-18 Women's Basketball Academic All-American of the Year®.
The Minnetonka, Minnesota native is no stranger to NSU, receiving both her Bachelor of Science in Sports Marketing and Administration and Master of Science in Education in Sport Performance and Leadership from the institution. As an undergraduate, Gauer was an outfielder for the Wolves softball team from 2009-12 starting all four years in center field.
Ashley and her husband, Jared, reside in Aberdeen with their children, Wyatt and Tayler, and dogs, Roscoe and Daisy.
