Amanda Bailey a tough volleyball act to follow at CV

Central Valley athletic director Butch Walter is busy these days.

Not with having to reschedule spring sports that get rained out – though, with any typical spring that’s seemingly a never-ending prospect. No Walter must find two head coaches.

Applications are being accepted right now to fill the wrestling position vacated by John Owen. Walter knew he’d have to find a coach. That didn’t surprise him. The one that caught him off guard was the resignation from volleyball coach Amanda Bailey.

Bailey resigned because her husband, based at Fairchild, accepted a promotion and has been assigned to Shaw Air Force base in Columbia, South Carolina.

She knew something could happen when she took over at CV two years ago. Her husband was on a two-year contract.

“Amanda did a great job,” Walter said. “She was a very good communicator with parents and athletes. She was outstanding in terms of her skill and game knowledge. She will be missed tremendously.”

What Bailey accomplished in the short two-year window included some firsts for CV. The Bears went to state both seasons and captured the first state trophy – eighth place – in school history this year. CV also bagged its first league, district and regional titles.

“The volleyball here was very good,” Bailey said. “It was definitely the highest skill level I’ve coached in a long time. I’ll definitely miss that. This whole region is strong.”

The move gets the Baileys closer to their roots.

“Hopefully this should be the last move,” she said.

Bailey plans to pursue a coaching job in South Carolina.

She leaves behind a good nucleus for the next coach.

“We lost four seniors, three of them starters, but there’s a big core group coming back,” she said. “That will be a good team next year. Whoever gets lucky to coach them is coming into a good situation.”

Owen coached at CV twice and had a stint at West Valley. But he’s now headed to retirement.

“He got the program back to where it was in the late 1990s,” Walter said. “He got the freestyle club going, and it’s paid dividends the last few years. His dedication to the sport of wrestling and the kids goes way above and beyond. He’d often give out of his own pocket.”

• Mt. Spokane must fill its boys and girls basketball coaching positions. Dan Smith resigned from boys basketball and Melissa Allen has stepped down as girls coach.

Both cited family and following their kids in sports as their primary reason for resigning.

Mt. Spokane athletic director Paul Kautzman applauded Smith and Allen for their efforts and understands that family should be first. He’s in the midst of sorting out applications for both positions.