Conference Coach of the Year

The most impressive thing was that AK was still able to win the league without one of there top pitchers for the majority of the season.

Kids that nobody had heard of before were able to step in and get the job done because of all the work they had put in over the summer and fall. That is were they won the league this year. Those kids did not just go through the motions assuming that they would get very little opportunity to play because of the talent that was in front of them. They were trained and ready to perform.

Second, several seniors ended up taking back seats to freshmen and sophomores after working for three years and thinking going into the season that this was going to be "my year." Two things that happened within that dynamic were the young kids really came though, especially in the field, and the seniors that lost their jobs did not tear their team apart by gripping about no PT but stayed ready to perform what ever was asked of them to make their team better. In some of these situations, we are talking about seniors that can play at the next level.

Third, was that the AK kids never had a big letdown after a good win. For a high school athlete, one of the toughest things to do is to perform at or near your best level game after game. Physically it is nearly impossible just because of the physiology of the body and the effect of adrenalin. Mentally it is tough to continue to concentrate game after game. In a leauge that had no days off and a non leauge schedule full of top teams, that is outstanding. AK lost four games this season. All four loses came in the opponent’s final AB. Not one time was this team out of the game all season.

That is the part of coaching that is often overlooked by the non professional. A lot of people can debate and even do an excellent job with the X’s and O’s of the game, but there is so much more. Handling the psyche of a 17 year old that was told, sorry son but the freshman is better while persuading the freshmen that he is ready for the SW4A; convincing the sophomore pitcher that all the hard work that he is doing in the fall is critical for the team’s success next spring even though he sees 4-5 upper classmen that are ahead of him; getting the team ready for the next game almost immediately after the kids un-pile from a thrilling victory and then have them perform. That is coaching.

There are many excellent coaches in the league that work their tails off for their kids and teams. While you try to do your best every season, sometimes you just do not push the right buttons that work for that particular team or kid. This year, Hal Bagwell did.

 

Great Coach

I agree with Braves about Coach Hignight. His hard work and relationship with his players are second to none. I think he should be coach of the year because he has taken a team that lost great seniors last year but continues to win once he got his team chemistry together.

 

Coach Brown has done a great job in his rookie season and deserves the MECA7 Coach of the Year Award, but let’s not forget the men that support him, his coaching staff:
Assistant Coach Daniel Cole
Pitching Coach Peter Greenwood
Both have contributed countless hours to the program and also need to be recognized for their efforts and the success of this season. A coach is only as good as those that support him and these two young men have been there for the boys.

 

Greater Neuse 4A

Mike Jacobs at W. Johnston.

 

NW4a obvious choice is Parham but my hat is off to the Freedom coach. He kept his guys playing all year through tough circumstances.

 

Classy post

 

not a suggestion, rather a fact-based statement.

Darel Reese of St. Stephens (2nd year in a row) and Terry Henthorne of Hibriten shared the COY award in the CVAC. Both men did a tremendous job.

Coach Reese returned 3 starters after losing 8 seniors from last year including 2 college bound pitchers, and won a share of the CVAC crown back-to-back. He got the most out of all his players, some of whom not much was expected of. 18-7 overall, 14-4 in the CVAC and #1 3A seed in the playoffs.

Coach Henthorne had a group of kids who evidently work their butts off and shared the conference crown as well with Saint and Foard. They play with intensity every time out and never stop battling. He only has 2 seniors and a JV group that finished 2nd in the conference so these kind of results will probably become a regular with the Panthers. 20-5 overall, 14-4 in the CVAC, Tournament champs and the #1 2A seed in the playoffs.

One thing I will say is that Marcus Greer at Fred T Foard is one helluva coach and he deserves mention any time coaches are talked about in the CVAC or the state. He was not rewarded with the plaque, but those of you who know him and what he does realize how good he is. He returned 2 starters after losing 7 seniors from last year and led the Tigers to the 3rd piece of that CVAC title.

All 3 of these men, and all the rest in the CVAC for that matter, are classy guys and run great programs.

 

Best signs of a great conference

 

You can not

always base the type of job a coach has done by the w's and l's in a season. Did the players get better during the season? Did the team improve from the start to the finish? Did the players learn during the year? Are they better young men for being a part of the program this year?

Everyone is not dealing with the same level of players. Everyone is not dealing with the same cards in the deck. There are alot of coaches that work just as hard as others that never get any credit for doing an outstanding job with what they have. There are kids that end up after four years of hs baseball with alot of championships and maybe alot of wins that leave the program empty outside of baseball related stuff. Then there are kids that leave without alot of wins and maybe no championships that learn a tremendous amount not only about baseball but the game of life as well. To these coaches their reward is knowing that they made a difference in a young mans life.

These are my coaches of the year each and every year. Its alot easier to coach when you roll out a bunch of studs and know you are going to be in every game regardless of who you play. Its alot tougher to do it with the same enthusiasm and the right way when you are dealing with the deck stacked against you from the start.

There are alot of outstanding coaches that no one here will ever hear about. They will probaly never win any awards or be recognized by their peers. But they are champs in my book.