12/08/21- KHSAA Announces NFHS State Coach of the Year Honorees for 2020-21 Seasons

December 8, 2021 2021-2022 News Releases

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: December 8, 2021

As part of its annual awards program, the National Federation of State High School Associations (NFHS) Coaches Association recognizes Coach of the Year honorees from each state. Those named Coach of the Year at the state level then advance for consideration for Sectional Coach of the Year honors. Winners are chosen through a combination of their coaching accomplishments as well as their contributions outside of competition to help grow their respective sport. These awards are announced during the late fall following the recognized year.

The complete list of honorees from Kentucky for 2020-21 is:

Boys Baseball- Richard Arnold, Trinity (Louisville)
Boys Basketball- Kevin Listerman, Highlands
Girls Basketball- Aaron Beth, Marshall County
Boys Cross Country- Joe Buechler, Holy Cross (Louisville)
Girls Cross Country- Brian Allesandro, Highlands
Girls Field Hockey- Amy Elliott, Kentucky Country Day
Boys Football (11-Player)- Justin Haddix, Boyle County
Boys Golf- James Chaney, Trinity (Louisville)
Girls Golf- Aaron Beth, Marshall County
Boys Soccer- Tom Alexander, South Warren
Girls Soccer- Terry Quigley, Lexington Catholic
Girls Softball- Brittany Braun, Butler
Boys Swimming & Diving- Cole Pleasants, Paul Laurence Dunbar
Girls Swimming & Diving- Rick Stewart, Assumption
Boys Tennis- Tim Dethridge, Greenwood
Girls Tennis- Ann Tramontin, Lexington Catholic
Boys Track & Field (Outdoor)- Lad Dillard, Holy Cross (Louisville)
Girls Track & Field (Outdoor)- Dave Schuh, Bishop Brossart
Girls Volleyball- Molly McDermott, Notre Dame
Boys Wrestling- Bob Davis, Meade County
Boys Archery- Kim Worley, Pulaski County
Girls Archery- Brad Yearsley, Harrison County
Boys Bowling- Drew Ramage, McCracken County
Girls Bowling- Joe Deters, Cooper
Cheer- Beth Bruner, Somerset
Bass Fishing- Sam Castle, Knox Central
Dance and Spirit- Mary Brumley, Madison Central
Esports- Jacob Jury, DuPont Manual

The NFHS, which has been recognizing coaches through an awards program since 1982, honors coaches in the top 10 girls sports and top 10 boys sports (by participation numbers), and in two “other” sports – one for boys and one for girls – that are not included in the top 10 listings. The NFHS also recognizes a spirit coach as a separate award category. Winners of NFHS awards must be active coaches during the year for which they receive their awards.

The next award level after state coach of the year is sectional coach of the year. The NFHS is divided into eight geographical sections. They are as follows: Section 1 – Northeast (CT, ME, MA, NH, NJ, NY, RI, VT); Section 2 – Mideast (DE, DC, KY, MD, OH, PA, VA, WV); Section 3 – South (AL, FL, GA, LA, MS, NC, SC, TN); Section 4 – Central (IL, IN, IA, MI, WI); Section 5 – Midwest (KS, MN, MO, NE, ND, SD); Section 6 – Southwest (AR, CO, NM, OK, TX); Section 7 – West (AZ, CA, HI, NV, UT); and Section 8 – Northwest (AK, ID, MT, OR, WA, WY).

The NFHS Coaches Association has an advisory committee composed of a chair and eight sectional representatives. The sectional committee representatives evaluate the state award recipients from the states in their respective sections and select the best candidates for the sectional award in each sport category. The NFHS Coaches Association Advisory Committee then considers the sectional candidates in each sport, ranks them according to a point system, and determines a national winner for each of the 20 sport categories, the spirit category and two “other” categories.

– KHSAA –

About the Kentucky High School Athletic Association
The Kentucky High School Athletic Association was organized in 1917 and is the agency designated by the Kentucky Department of Education to manage high school athletics in the Commonwealth. The Association is a voluntary nonprofit 501(c)3 organization made up of 286 member schools both public and non-public. The KHSAA awards 215 state championships to 51 teams and 164 individuals in 13 sports and 6 sport-activities, funds catastrophic insurance coverage for its more than 106,000 rostered member school student-athletes, provides coaching education and sports safety programs for more than 12,000 coaches, and licenses and facilitates the distribution of training material for over 4,000 contest officials.