One of the most extensive alterations of the Chillicothe High School sports head coaching roster in a single year in many years is set to occur in the 2008-09 school year, ironically exclusively involving spring sports.
    According to CHS principal Tony Perry and new athletics director Matt Brownsberger, five of the six CHS spring sports programs, including two of the school’s most successful programs of the past decade-plus and both track and field teams, will have new head coaches when their 2009 seasons roll around. There are no changes in the head coaching ranks for fall or winter season sports.

    Topping the list of changes are Vickie Garrett, coach of the very-successful girls’ track and field team since the mid-1990s, switching from that to boys’ golf and the decision of volunteer co-coaches Ed Douglas and Ron Keith, who have led the boys’ tennis team to great heights the past 12 years, to step down in favor of former CHS Lady Hornets tennis standout and college player Amanda (Hardie) Marsh.
Garrett now will be coaching both CHS golf programs.
    Stepping into the girls’ track and field vacancy will be Brad Cavanah, son of Brookfield High football coach Shane Cavanah.
    Also next spring, veteran boys’ track and field assistant Ken Stull will step up to the head coach’s role replacing Bill Shaffer, who stepped aside after being hired as the new CHS assistant principal to replace Bryan Copple, who becomes the middle school principal.
    The fifth spring sports change will have volunteer coach Bill Allison adding the girls’ soccer reins to the boys’ soccer duties he handled in the boys’ program’s inaugural year last fall. He replaces Margie Lowe, who guided the Lady Hornets kickers in their second year after assisting Jeff Wolfe in the program’s first campaign in spring 2007.

    The CHS head coaches list for 2008-09 will be:
    (FALL) Football - Phil Willard; Boys’ soccer - Bill Allison; Boys’ and girls’ cross country - Tim Riekena; Girls’ tennis - Amy Baker; Girls’ golf -Vickie Garrett;
Volleyball - Karen Jackson; Softball - Stan Baldwin; (WINTER) Boys’ basketball - Matt Brownsberger; Girls’ basketball - Jackson; Wrestling - Dave Kinen; (SPRING) Baseball - Dave Mapel; Boys’ track - Ken Stull; Girls’ track - Brad Cavanah; Boys’ golf - Garrett; Boys’ tennis - Amanda Marsh; Girls’ soccer - Allison.