STATE AWARD WINNERS TO BE HONORED AT 2010 NCHSAA ANNUAL MEETING

CHAPEL HILL — Coaches, administrators and media representatives will be among those receiving awards on Thursday when the North Carolina High School Athletic Association holds its 2010 Annual Meeting.

The event is scheduled for the Dean E, Smith Center on the campus of the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, the day after the spring meeting of the NCHSAA’s Board of Directors has concluded.

The Association annually presents these statewide awards in several different categories, all based on those “who have done the most for high school athletics” rather than a single accomplishment or having an outstanding won-loss record.

The awards are named in memory or in honor of outstanding individuals in each category, five of whom are current members of the NCHSAA Hall of Fame. The state winners for 2010 include:

–Doris Howard Female Coach of the Year: Lindsey Linker of East Chapel Hill has been one of the state’s leading tennis coaches for a number of years. She coached at Chapel Hill High for 10 years and then has led East Chapel Hill’s teams since 1998, totaling 16 NCHSAA dual team state titles in two different classifications, counting the achievements of both men’s and women’s squads at both schools. She has earned 33 conference coach of the year awards and has a dual match coaching mark of 787-102. She was an outstanding tennis player herself at Myers Park High School and then earned four letters as a player at the University of North Carolina.

— Harvey Reid Male Coach of the Year: Jerry Winterton of Cary compiled one of the greatest records in North Carolina history in wrestling before his retirement as an active coach. He has an incredible record of 642-34 in dual team matches, including 620-16 at Cary. His teams earned 11 state tournament championships and eight dual team titles to go with seven second-place finishes in the dual team tournament. Winterton, who attended high school in Verona, N.Y., was the National Wrestling Coaches Association’s 2009 Coach of the Year.

–Dave Harris Athletic Director of the Year: Fred McDaniel of the Cumberland County schools retired earlier this year after an outstanding career as a coach and administrator. He was the director of student activities for the Cumberland County schools for 10 years after five years as athletic director at Cape Fear High School and six prior to that at Westover. He coached at Fayetteville Terry Sanford from 1974 to ’88, serving as head baseball coach and also coaching wrestling and football. A Vietnam veteran, McDaniel has also served on the Board of Directors of the North Carolina Athletic Directors Association.

–Bob Deaton Principal of the Year: Kathy Rogers of Jamestown Ragsdale has been principal at Ragsdale for over 17 years, only the third principal in the history of the school. She served a four-term on the Board of Directors of the NCHSAA, from 2002 through 2006, and has been involved with high school athletics and the NCHSAA in a number of different capacities.

–Bob McRae Superintendent of the Year: Robert Logan of Chatham County has enjoyed a great career in education of over 30 years. Currently the Chatham County superintendent, Logan came there from his role with the North Carolina Department of Public Instruction as the associate superintendent of innovation and school transformation. He was superintendent of the Asheville City Schools from 2001 until mid-2007 and prior to that worked in the Lee County school system, including four years as superintendent. He earned his undergraduate degree from Western Carolina University and his master’s at East Carolina.

–Tim Stevens Media Representative of the Year: George Phillips of NCPrepTrack.com has developed his website as a labor of love for 13 years, providing a central location for a wealth of information about cross-country, indoor track and outdoor track. An outstanding runner himself at R.J. Reynolds in Winston-Salem, he earned degrees from both Appalachian State and the University of Oregon. He worked 13 years as a teacher and coach, coaching at R. J. Reynolds, Independence and Myers Park, and now is a programmer and system analyst in the Research Triangle Park.

–Elton Hawley Athletic Trainer of the Year: Tracy Hefner of East Burke has been the athletic trainer there for 17 years. A North Carolina Board Certified Athletic Trainer, he is a member of the Board of Directors for the North Carolina Athletic Trainers Association. He has taught workshops at the North Carolina Coaches Association clinics and is the athletic trainer for the North Carolina team at the Shrine Bowl of the Carolinas. A graduate of N.C. State, he has developed several innovations for sports medicine that have greatly benefited the students at East Burke.

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In terms of background of the award’s names, here are some highlights:

Doris Howard of Fayetteville was one of the state’s most successful female coaches during a 41-year career at Hope Mills, Central and Cape Fear High Schools, winning 533 games in basketball, and is in the NCHSAA Hall of Fame.

Harvey Reid, also an NCHSAA Hall of Famer, is the state’s all-time winningest basketball coach with over 800 victories, most of which came at Wilson Fike.

Dave Harris was the athletic director of the Charlotte-Mecklenburg schools from 1967 to ‘91 after an excellent football coaching career, primarily at Harding. He was a charter member of the NCHSAA Hall of Fame.

Bob Deaton was one of the state’s outstanding high school principals during a long career in education, primarily at Winston-Salem R.J. Reynolds, and was president of the NCHSAA in 1977-78.

Bob McRae is the former superintendent in Randolph County after a long career at Kings Mountain and was president of the NCHSAA in 1997-98. He has served as chair of the Realignment Committee as well as in other NCHSAA capacities.

Tim Stevens is the long time prep sports editor at the Raleigh News and Observer and has been recognized nationally for his work covering high school athletics.

Elton Hawley is a native of Dunn who for many years was the athletic training coordinator for the Charlotte-Mecklenburg schools. He was the initial inductee into the North Carolina Athletic Trainer Association Hall of Fame.