GIRLS HOOPS: Little Giants hire Parrish

Waynesboro High School introduced its new varsity girls basketball coach on Thursday afternoon.

Katharine Parrish will take over the Little Giants’ program this season, filling a spot vacated after Secrett Stubblefield left the team after two seasons.

“I’m looking forward to meeting the players and I’m very excited about meeting the team and I’m very excited because it is a young team,” Parrish said.

This will be Parrish’s first appointment as a head coach. She served as an assistant varsity basketball coach for seven years at Massaponax High School years. Parrish also was an assistant coach for varsity field hockey and softball at Massaponax.

“People tell me we have good potential,” Parrish said. “I’d love to be competitive in the district and move on to tournaments, if we can this year. My understanding is that is a good possibility. If that doesn’t happen that is where we are going to build to.”

Waynesboro City Schools Superintendent Robin Crowder said that Parrish’s leadership skills were key to her selection.

“She has great leadership skills, what I assume comes from her coaching background,” Crowder said.

Parrish said that she hopes to get to know the players during the next couple of weeks and also conduct open gyms to help prepare the Little Giants for the upcoming season. After Stubblefield’s resignation in June, Waynesboro did not hold any summer workouts.

“I would have like to had some open gyms in the summer and I’m also a fan of summer camps,” Parrish said. “Next year I’d like to get some of the girls to go to team camp and get some of the coaches to go as well.”

Last year the Little Giants did not qualify for the Southern Valley District tournament, a season removed from a Group AA runner-up finish.

The Little Giants had no seniors on the team last season and only three juniors.

Parrish said that she isn’t locked into an offense but likes the running game that the Little Giants played during the previous two seasons but she hopes to add an element of defense.

“I like the running and transition, but for a set offense it will depends on the personnel,” Parrish said. “I don’t even know what most of the schools around here play … that’s the type of stuff that I will be learning. “

After playing four years on varsity at Gloucester High School, Parrish went on to play college ball at Randolph-Macon College in Ashland. Parrish was named a freshman All-American and was named to the all-conference team for three years. She also played soccer and tennis at Randolph-Macon.

“All the different sports I’ve played, I’ve had a variety of different coaches,” Parrish said. “There are some that I didn’t respect quite as much. I learned about myself in those situations, I learned what I like and didn’t like and I hope that carries over to my career.”