IHSSBCA Coach of the Year
The IHSSBCA Coach of the Year Award is a group of individuals honored for their excellence in all forms of coaching. Criteria for winning this award can include having a successful season, program building, at-large community assistance, as well as upholding high standards of sportsmanship & camaraderie.[1]
History
The first class of honorees were in 2018. Each class is honored at the IHSSBCA Spring Banquet.
Selection
Every year three coaches are selected. One representing "Class A", one representing "Class AA", & one at-large recipient from either class.
Each award is individually named & dedicated after the following:
- Karen Niemeier Award (A): in the spirit of Karen Niemeier who over three decades coaching at Winnebago built a premier program, hosting several tournaments, & setting the standard for quiz bowl in Northern Illinois
- Tom Durbin Award (AA): in the spirit of Tom Durbin who founded the MacArthur program in the 1980's and built them into a powerhouse & leading program in the Illinois quiz bowl community during the 1990s & early 2000's
- Beth Young Award (At-Large): in the spirit of Beth Young whose award-winning tenure at Quincy created numerous coaching trees across the state in the activity's earliest years
Members
| Year | Award | Inductee | School | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2018 | A | Matt Hasquin | Southwestern | for building Southwestern into a small-school Illinois & national powerhouse |
| 2018 | AA | Mike Woolley | Sandburg | for driving student leadership & ownership within Sandburg's program |
| 2018 | At-Large | Mike Laudermith | Fenton | establishing Fenton as a competitive program nationally at PACE & HSNCT, statewide mentor & leader to fellow coaches |
| 2019 | A | Brant Trimpe | Williamsville | for leading Williamsville to multiple stop-finishes at both IHSA & Masonic while continously building up his program for the future |
| 2019 | AA | Mike Sorice | Centennial | for Mike's deep involvement within the quiz bowl community & successfully coaching Team Illinois as well as his own program at Centennial |
| 2019 | At-Large | Erin Limestall | New Berlin | for New Berlin's resurgence as a small-school power in the Springfield area including a Masonic State Championship |
| 2020 | A | Kristin Burns | Keith Country Day | for honorably filling the shoes of previous coaches and still delivering the passion required to maintain the program |
| 2020 | AA | D. Matthew Jordan | Lincoln-Way East | for elevating Lincoln-Way East to the top of the Southwestern Suburban Conference to compete against the likes of Homewood-Flossmoor & Sandburg |
| 2020 | At-Large | Josh Bartels | Lincoln | for enthusiastically taking on the hosting duties of many local & regional tournaments for mid-state teams including all IHSSBCA tournaments, SchoBowlFest, & Masonic |
| 2022 | A | Jorge Sanchez | Elgin Academy | for not only creating but building a quality small-school program at Elgin Academy |
| 2022 | AA | Jaime Pamatot | Granite City | for elevating the Granite City program to a frequent attendee in the regional Southern Illinois circuit |
| 2022 | At-Large | Jeff Price | Barrington | in recognition of Barrington's 2021 NAQT HSNCT national championship, Price's second national title |
| 2023 | A | Shanna Covarubbias | Metro-East Lutheran | in recognition of Metro-East Lutheran's emergence as a challenger in Southern Illinois |
| 2023 | AA | Nevagay Abel | Auburn | in recognition of leading Auburn to its third IHSA State championship & continuing the legacy of Hall of Fame mentor, Linda Greene |
| 2023 | At-Large | Mark Taylor | Walter Payton | in recognition of building Walter Payton into an emerging challenger out of Chicago Public Schools |
| 2024 | A | Kristin Strey | Winnebago | |
| 2024 | AA | Jenny Norman | East Peoria | |
| 2024 | At-Large | Trevor Stanley | Johnston City |
External Links
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