Holly Hamilton has accepted the job of head coach of the softball programs at East Hamilton Middle and High School.
Carol McCance coached the programs the school's first year and was assisted by Jenni Oliver. Principal Pam Dantzler said McCance has "stepped up and will take on a lot of things with the curriculum." She said Oliver had to relinquish her coaching duties when she became an assistant principal at the middle school.
Hamilton was a multisport athlete at East Ridge and an all-conference basketball and softball player at Lee University. After serving as a graduate assistant at Lee, she spent three seasons as an assistant coach at Cleveland High and Middle School.
She came to East Hamilton from Rockdale County, a Class AAAAA high school in Conyers, Ga., where she was head softball coach. She guided the team to the state sectionals her first season and had three of four seniors sign full athletic college scholarships.
Hamilton will retain her role as girls' basketball head coach at the middle school and assistant coach at the high school. She no longer will be the high school's junior varsity volleyball coach.
"She has really done very well here in her coaching," Dantzler said. "I was told, 'You think she's good with basketball; wait until you see her with softball.' She's done a great job with both girls' basketball programs, at the middle and high school levels, but I know softball is really her sport."
Hamilton said she took the Rockdale job because it was an opportunity to be a high school head softball coach, but she returned to the Chattanooga area to be closer to her family. She said she knew the softball position was filled when she moved back, so she hadn't been thinking about it. But when her principal called her in for a meeting earlier this month and offered her the chance to take over the program, Hamilton said she accepted right away.
East Hamilton did not have a senior class in 2010. Additionally, Hamilton said she's expecting to add a few others who didn't play last season for various reasons. Some were injured. Others were ineligible.
"I think we'll be pretty good," Hamilton said. "I think we'll be competitive. Freshmen getting varsity experience is kind of like throwing them to the wolves, but in the long run the experience they're gaining from that will pay off. We've got everybody back, so I see nothing but gains ahead for us. Last year we finished fifth out of eight teams in our district. I hope to think we can improve into the top three in the district at least. That's our major goal."
Hamilton has two sisters who also are high school coaches in Hamilton County. Hillary Hamilton was hired last spring as head volleyball coach at Grace Academy. Heidi Moses is an assistant softball and volleyball coach at Ooltewah.