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I want to take a second and talk about coaches, especially the ones at the high school level who often pour their blood, sweat and tears into programs across the country.
They often don't get paid as much as they are worth, but they still continue to play major roles in their players' lives and spend a countless number of hours preparing their athletes for both games and life away from the playing field.
They often don't get the credit that they deserve and even when they do, they deflect it onto their athletes or to other parts of their program. They are most often truly selfless people who will do whatever to make sure their athletes succeed both on and off the field.
Recently, the relationships between players and coaches have been showcased throughout the Valley as some have accomplished milestones, gone through hardships or have been honored by players after their time with a program came to an end.
It's these types of situations that truly showcase how important high school athletic coaches are for their athletes.
It reminds me of my own situation.
I suffered a ruptured appendix during my senior season of baseball in high school. It was my last season as an athlete and before going in for surgery, my baseball coach was one of the first, outside of my parents, to see me in my hospital room.
The same coach played an important role in my life throughout my high school career and we still keep in touch to this day.
Throughout this past week, those types of relationships were on display in the Mahoning Valley. When the Chaney and Cardinal Mooney boys basketball teams came together to honor the late wife of Chaney basketball coach Marlon McGaughy, Bev Kester, the Cowboys players recognized McGaughy for how much he meant to them.
"We knew what she's been fighting for four years, and Coach Marlon being here every day still sacrificing and spreading onto the youth, that's what she wanted him to do," Chaney senior Jason Hewlett said. "So him taking his time out of his day, seven days a week, six days a week the last four years, when he could be spending it all with his wife, that means everything to us, and we're just thankful to him and her. Coach Marlon is just a great coach."
At Newton Falls, both basketball coaches, Roy Sembach (boys) and Mark Baker (girls) achieved milestone coaching victories. Sembach recorded his 500th win and Baker captured his 300th. After the victories, players for both coaches spoke about how important it was for them to help each coach reach their individual milestones.
"Coach Baker just really means a lot to us, this was really important to us, we've been looking forward to it all season," said Newton Falls senior Natalee Albert. "I've been working with Baker since I was in first grade. He's always had a huge impact on me. Him, and Coach Kay, his wife, she coaches volleyball at our school -- they mean a lot to me."
When it came to Sembach, the longtime Newton Falls boys basketball coach credited his players for winning 500 games, in true coach fashion.
"Yes, we're celebrating 500 wins for our program, but I haven't scored a point since 1980," Sembach said. "The players have done it all."
Then, there are coaches like Girard girls basketball coach Andy Saxon and South Range football coach Dan Yeagley, who both made massive impacts on their players and recently have decided to step away from their respective programs.
After 38 years at the helm of the Indians' program, Saxon decided he will step away after his team's run in the postseason. He was recently honored by the school in the team's final regular season game as several former players and assistant coaches came back to celebrate the occassion. He was also honored with a video ahead of the varsity game.
Yeagley decided to go out on top after 28 years at the head of the South Range football program and just a few months after capturing the program's first state championship. He told his players about his retirement on Friday and Raiders football may not be the same come the fall.
Lastly, I wanted to mention the three-year stint Dom Prologo put together at Kennedy. He recently announced that he was stepping down as the head football coach of the Eagles' program and it came at the tail end of a special run.
Since taking over in 2020, which was marred by the COVID-19 pandemic, Prologo led the Eagles to three regional championships, two state final appearances and a program-best 14-3 playoff record. It was quite the run for a special coach but it seemed as though Prologo made an even bigger impact off the field and that was showcased after their loss in the state championship game when senior Thomas Valent showed support for his coach.
"When I was a freshman, I didn't think I was ever going to see the field and I owe (Prologo) a lot," Valent said. "If you set the bar high, great things are going to come and it just speaks of our tradition and what Kennedy is because this program will be back (in the state championship game again) soon and it's because of (Prologo)."