Rex Parker not only retired as a physical education teacher at Lebanon High School, but also relinquished his position as head girls basketball director, a position he had held since 1996. After spending so long on the sideline making shots for the Pioneers, what will Rex do next?
“Golf, fishing, and watching my son.” [Chance] Play baseball,” Parker said.
It's a natural departure for a man who was popular among his players and fellow competitors.
“Rex Parker has been a staple at Lebanon High School for 40 years,” Lebanon Principal Ryan Potts said. “As a coach, he has been a great representative of our school and community, and you would be hard-pressed to find a better person in Southwest Virginia. Coach Parker has truly left his mark. [the program] He will be greatly missed by students and players alike. ”
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Parker, a native of Lebanon who played hoops for the Pioneers, served as an assistant for eight seasons before replacing Kim Hooker in 1996 (when VHSL Group A and Group AA women's basketball were held in the fall). I took it.
“We went 0-21 our first year and lost our first nine games our second year,” Parker said. “But we started to make some progress and the next year we made it to the regional tournament for the first time in over 20 years. We never expected to stay this long.”
His best season was the 2005-06 season, when the Pioneers went 21-8, losing to Floyd County in the Region C runner-up and eventual state champion Gates in the Group A state quarterfinals. – Lost to City.
Lebanon, which finished second to George Weiss in the Hogohagee District that winter, lost 53-5 to the Narrows in the regional semifinals as guard Kari Jackson scored Lebanon's final 27 points in a dramatic win over Virginia High School. A memorable postseason run highlighted by 52 overtime wins. Bearcat Den.
As Lebanon changes leagues frequently, bouncing back and forth between the smallest and second-smallest divisions in the state, Parker has coached in the Highland, Hogohygee, Clinch Mountain and Southwest districts. served as
Despite all this, Parker remained positive.
His team went 4-15 this winter, losing to Richlands in the first round of the Southwest Regional Tournament.
What will he remember about his long stint leading the Pioneers?
“Just being able to turn the program around and being competitive most years and being around all the different players over the years,” Parker said.
Among all active coaches in Southwest Virginia, only Wise County Central's Robin Dotson had a longer tenure coaching women's hoops.
Dotson and Parker's teams met multiple times.
“Rex is one of the great guys in the coaching world,” Dotson said. “He was always smiling, always talkative, and a good friend. We played quite a few times over the years, and his team seemed to execute their offense perfectly, so They were always difficult to defend. Also, of all the teams I played with over the years, his teams were the most difficult to press.”
Parker will be attending many baseball games in the future, as his son Chance is a senior at Lebanon College and one of the area's top batters who is committed to playing the sport at the University of Virginia at Wise. You'll see it.
There are very few people who have the coaching career path that Parker has.
“I was able to stay in it for a long time because it never got too high or too low,” Parker said. “Through good times and bad, I have remained the same. I will definitely miss you come November 1st.”