High school notebook: Former pro becomes Holly Springs girls basketball coach
New Holly Springs High girls basketball coach Peace Shepard Easton looks back on her professional basketball career and wonders what she was thinking.
Easton played in Italy, Greece, Brazil, Ecuador and Finland during her three-year career. She remembers being homesick.
“What an opportunity I had,” she said. “It was wonderful, but I was young and homesick. I wish I could go back.”
Easton was named the Hawks’ varsity girls coach Friday. The coaching position is her first in high school, but the 6-foot-3 Swansboro native has been active in club and recreation basketball for years.
Easton helped N.C. State and Coach Kay Yow to the NCAA Final Four in Kansas City in 1998. The Wolfpack, , which also included Tyneshia Lewis, Jennifer Howard and Chasity Melvin, lost to Louisiana Tech in the semifinals.
Tennessee beat Louisiana Tech in the title game.
Easton had been a standout at Swansboro High and played with Lillian Purvis, who later played at the University of Maryland.
“Peace is the type of person that I would want to coach my child,” said Andy Wheeler, the Holly Springs athletics director. “She knows basketball and is a great person. She has worked helping young players develop their skills and refining their abilities.”
Easton said she looks forward to working with high school players.
“I’ve worked with younger players for years,” she said. “It will be good to work with players who have a little more experience.”
Chatham Charter wins: Chatham Charter claimed its first win in varsity boys’ soccer last week when it topped Chatham Central 3-0. Logan Shoun scored from 35 yards out, Jason Foulks had a tap in and Ben Lineberry scored on a 25-yard free kick for the victory.
Thursday game: Ravenscroft will play Concord Cannon in football next Thursday because Yom Kippur, a Jewish holiday begins on Friday. The Ravens did not practice last Thursday for the start of Rosh Hashanah.
The Ravens have had an unusual schedule recently. Their Friday, Sept. 12 game at Charlotte Latin was postponed to Monday, Sept. 15 because of rain. Three days later, the Ravens played Raleigh Word of God on a Thursday night.
Last week, heavy rains interfered with Wednesday’s scheduled practice and there was no practice on Thursday because of the religious holiday.
“But at this point of the season, we know what we are supposed to do and how we’re supposed to do it,” said Ravens coach Ned Gonet. “You make adjustments and you handle it.”
Online scores: The N.C. High School Athletic Association will use the online high school site MaxPreps to do seeding for several sports this year. Conference presidents have reported records and conference finishes to the NCHSAA for seeding purposes in the past.
Que Tucker, an associate commissioner of the NCHSAA, said the league presidents will still report the league order of finish to the association, but records would be taken from the web site, which is a corporate sponsor of the NCHSAA.
Grace runner: Raleigh Grace Christian finished fifth in the Hare and Hounds Southeast Race in Charlotte. The field included teams from North Carolina, Alaska, Georgia, Virginia and South Carolina.
Grace was led by senior Alex Dolwick (16:35, who finished 16th.
The title was won by Atlanta (Ga.) St. Pius.
This story was originally published September 29, 2014 at 7:41 PM with the headline "High school notebook: Former pro becomes Holly Springs girls basketball coach."