Both the Palestine baseball and softball teams will have new faces leading from their respective dugouts next season, but neither face will be an unfamiliar one.
PHS Athletic Director Lance Angel tabbed two local products to lead the respective teams, headed by the move to bring former Grapeland head basketball and softball coach J.J. Johnson to Anderson County.
Johnson replaces Lisa Hampton as the Ladycats coach. Hampton will continue to be the Palestine volleyball coach and will return to lead the Ladycat track team.
“I think it was just a situation where he’d been here before and had some success in softball and we just saw an opportunity to get him back,” Angel said. “We thought coach Hampton did a great job. Her strength is the track program and now we can work her back into track.”
For Johnson, it was an opportunity to return to the place where his coaching career got started.
“I started my career here and I started coaching softball here so I’ve always had a spot for these kids,” he said. “I like the way the program was going here now. Coach Angel and I became pretty good friends. It’s a great opportunity for advancement.”
In Grapeland, Johnson leaves behind a boys’ basketball team that he’s led to two-straight regional tournaments, ending the season in the state’s top-10 both years.
He also leaves behind a softball team that, for much of the year, was the top-ranked 1A team in the state.
“When you start talking about achievements there at Grapeland, the winning mentality we instilled, its hard to leave that behind,” he said. “It was tough...I turned it down at first. It was just to good opportunity for to me pass up.”
After leading the Palestine baseball team back to the postseason for the first time since 2005, former PHS baseball coach Joey Mason is making the move into administration.
But, Palestine didn’t look far for Mason’s replacement, promoting pitching coach Austin Evans to the position.
“We feel fortunate that we have Austin already here,” Angel said. “Someone who knows our kids and somebody that we can roll right into that position.”
Evans, a graduate of East Texas Baptist University, starred for Elkhart before going on to play college baseball at Stephen F. Austin, Lon Morris and ETBU.
He takes over a program that he’s more than familiar with, and is ready for the challenge it brings.
“The advantage is there’s no getting used to knowing the kids,” he said. “The kids that are now juniors, the core of our pitching staff, I’ve been working with them since they were freshman.
“It’s going to be continuing what we’ve done the last two years, just building upon that. They’ll understand how we run out practices and how we do things.”
For Evans, getting his first head coaching job in the area he grew up was the most important part.
“I love the area, want to be in the area,” he said. “I feel like I’ve found a home at Palestine.”
Also, PHS boys soccer coach John Absalom will take over the girls’ program as well, replacing Tiffany Cooksey.
Local makes cut at PGA tourney
Former PHS golfer Ricky Arnett, a 1983 graduate of Palestine, played in the 45th PGA Professionals National Championship this week, making the cut at the event held in Seaside, Calif.
The former Wildcat and Lon Morris star shot a four-over 148 to make the cut, before finishing the tournament with a 75 Tuesday and a 78 Wednesday to finish tied for 71st.
Arnett is currently the head golf professional at the Great Hills Country Club in Austin and has been a PGA professional since 1994.
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Sports editor Justin Rains can be reached via email at jrains@palestineherald.com
Local Sports
Local Roundup: Johnson to take over PHS softball program
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