Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: SUNDAY, March 31, 1991 TAG: 9103310022
SECTION: SPORTS PAGE: C9 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: BOB TEITLEBAUM
DATELINE: LENGTH: Long
The Bobcats' girls' basketball coach announced this past week that she is applying for the boys' vacancy, which she hopes to add to her present duties. Since the girls play in the fall and the boys in the winter, it's possible to do both.
There are several questions concerning King's hopes for becoming the first woman to coach a boys' team at a public school in Virginia since World War II:
Is the community ready to accept a woman as a coach of the boys' basketball team?
Are the boys ready to accept a woman coach?
Can she coach both programs without a dropoff for a girls' program that has been to the Group AA final three years and won two state championships in her tenure?
"I'm sure there will be differences, but there are differences when men coach girls' teams," Lord Botetourt boys' basketball coach Don Meredith said. "I don't know how the guys will react to a woman coach, but I would think if the person - and I understand [King] is a very knowledgeable coach - has had success at that school, she would earn a lot of respect from the boys."
What does an administrator think of the move?
"I want to preface this by saying I'm not telling the folks in Radford what to do," Staunton River principal Bob Ashwell said. "Each individual school and community is different. What may be a good idea in one area of the state may not be a good idea in another area.
"If I had a person who was qualified and I thought [he or she] could do the type of job I wanted with our program, I'd give it to that person. We oftentimes see guys coaching girls' sports, and if we had a lady who was qualified and provided the type of teaching and direction required of our coaches, I believe I'd hire her [as a boys' coach]."
Salem's Dee Wright, who won a state championship at Radford before King, never has thought about making the same move.
"But knowing Brenda and her background, I think she's qualified. She handles herself well under pressure and she's a very strong lady," said Wright, whose teams play Radford each year.
Jo Ann Capling of Harbor Beach, Mich., was a nominee for the girls' coach of the year by the National Association of High School Coaches last year. She has coached girls' basketball at Harbor Beach for 18 years.
This past winter, Capling made the move King is attempting to make. She took over the boys' program and went 13-6 to finish second in Harbor Beach's league while continuing to coach the girls' team in the fall.
"Everything worked out smoothly as far as the relationship with the kids," Capling said. "I didn't get any bad comments directly. I'm sure there were some indirect remarks, not because I was a woman but just as there are with every coach."
Capling was the only one who applied for the Harbor Beach job.
"The first day, it was a little different. But everything went well. I had known all these kids since junior high and they knew me. The only difference was that I was their teacher and now I was their coach," she said.
How about coaching back-to-back seasons? Troy Wells, an assistant coach for the boys' and girls' programs at Martinsville, said it's tough if both teams do well in postseason as the Bulldogs have often done.
"But it's not that big a problem," Wells said. "It's more of a mental strain than anything. But if you're a coach who loves the game of basketball as most coaches do, that's a secondary thing. Coaches are in it because they love the game and working with the kids."
Capling had to go more than two weeks coaching both teams - the girls' team went a long way in the state tournament - and had no problems. "I'll continue to do this again next year," she added.
Meredith said that when he played junior-varsity basketball at the old Fincastle High, his team was coached by a woman when he was in seventh and eighth grades.
"She had good knowledge of basketball. I had no problems whatsoever. All the boys had a great deal of respect for her and we didn't lose a game for two years," Meredith said. "If there's any lady in the coaching ranks I'd like to see get a chance [like this], it's a person of [King's] caliber. She's always friendly, talks about the team and knows what's going on."
Wells said, "If men are able to cross over and coach in the girls' game, I don't see a big problem in terms of women coaching the guys.
"If they demonstrate a knowledge of the fundamentals and skills, there's no question they can do a very capable job with the guys."
Noting Timesland:
Patrick Henry's boys' basketball team will return to the Arby's Classic next December for the third time. Laurel Park, featuring Group AA player of the year Odell Hodge, will be the other Virginia team in the tournament at Bristol, Tenn.
Patrick Henry reached the final in its two appearances, winning the 1987 Arby's and finishing second a year later.
Northside's Patti Fisher is running track this spring and will continue to play softball. Unlike last year, Fisher says she won't give up on track after several weeks to concentrate on softball.
Fisher made the Group AA state meet as a sophomore with very little practice because of her interest in softball. This year, she has worked out all the conflicts and says she will devote a good amount of time to track.
by CNB