Staff Spotlight: Damron receives Coach of the Year award
0By Katelyn Simpson
Ron Damron, women’s bowling head coach, recently received his fifth career coach of the year award. Damron has three coach of the year awards, which were awarded in 2004, 2008, and 2011. He also has one other conference coach of the year award (2013) in addition to this year’s award.
Damron has been coaching for a total of 15 years. Damron is responsible for starting both men’s and women’s programs. He started coaching the men’s team in 2000 and stayed with them until 2004 when Kyle Wilson took over the men’s team. Damron has been coaching the women’s team since he started the program in 2001.
“I was at a high school bowling banquet just making conversation with some of the juniors and seniors about where they were going to school. I started talking to some of the parents to see if they would let their kids come to Pikeville if I started a program. The parents told me they would only let their kids bowl at Pikeville if I was their coach. There were very few colleges with bowling at the time, and I wanted to give kids another choice, so I agreed to coach for the first few years,” Damron said.
Fifteen years later, Damron is still coaching the women’s team to victory. In Damron’s career, he has won national championships in 2004, 2008, and 2012 and was runners up in 2013 and 2014.
Damron said that the students that he gets to work with are his favorite part about coaching at UPIKE. Damron has certainly influenced many lives, as four former players for Damron are now coaches themselves.
Chelsea Gilliam, class of 2012, currently coaches the men’s and women’s bowling teams at Union College.
Gilliam said, “Ron taught me a lot. Not only about bowling but about myself during my time at Pikeville. One thing was to never give up. I went through some rough patches throughout my career but he didn’t let me give up and in the end everything came together. I’ve also learned that winning is great and everyone’s goal but the most important thing is helping prepare our student athletes for life after college. Ron was always there for me while I was his athlete and he still is there for me as a fellow coach.”
As for the current season, not only did Damron win his fifth coach of the year title, he is also coaching his team to another great season.
Damron said, “I have a special group. They have already accomplished things no one has ever accomplished at this school. This team ranks in my top three teams of all time. If we can play to our ability and get a little bit of luck, we can accomplish things no other college bowling team has done.”
Fifth-year senior Kaylee Magazine reflected on some important values Damron has taught her throughout the years.
“He has taught me how to be patient and that the game is not over until the last ball is thrown. He has given me a different outlook on the game. There is more to it than just individual bowling. It is something special having a whole team behind you. Ron would do anything for his players to make them happy and he is a well deserving candidate of this award,” Magazine said.
Taking a trip down memory lane, Damron recalls two of his favorite memories as a coach.
“To see a student graduate that people said shouldn’t even be in college and that I would dismiss them from my team in a week, was something special,” Damron said.
Damron also said one memory that will be hard to forget is watching the ball go down the lane in 2004 and knowing they only needed five or six pins to win the school’s first national championship.
Damron said, “It’s been a very rewarding few years.”