From top to bottom, no team better prepared than O'Neal's Campers
Allegany coach selected as
PhDispatch.com Girls Coach of the Year
By Kevin Spradlin
The Potomac Highlands Dispatch
CUMBERLAND, March 4 -- Allegany coach Jim O'Neal has been selected as the PhDispatch.com Girls Coach of the Year after leading the Campers to a 21-3 season and a berth in the Class 1A West Region west sectional title game.
The award is sponsored by Trophy Expressions in Cumberland.
Expectations fell short of being realized for O'Neal's squad, but the general consensus around Appalachian Mountain Athletic Conference players and coaches alike is that no team arrived better prepared for an opponent. The team entered each game "fundamentally sound and well-coached," according to one PhDispatch.com contributor.
After each game, seniors Leah Wormack and Brooke Wharton hammered home the message that O'Neal and his assistants had the team ready not by blind faith alone, but by allowing each player to develop the skills and knowledge necessary to be at their best for the next game.
It's a big part of why the Campers won 19 straight games and finished the season with a 21-3 record, including a 20-1 regular season mark. Two of the three losses were to Northern Garrett, including the March 3 loss to the Huskies in Cumberland.
Wormack said O'Neal is simply "amazing."
"He puts so much time in on and off the court," Wormack said. "He always, always keeps us prepared no matter who our opponent is. He always goes and scouts and makes sure we know (the opponent) better than they know themselves."
Northern Garrett coach Steve Fratz, whose Huskies beat Allegany 72-57 in the Class 1A West Region west section title game and split the regular season series with the Campers, finished second overall in the selection process. Keyser coach Joshua Blowe, who stood at the helm of an up-and-coming Golden Tornado squad, was third.
A total of 1,458 online votes were logged for PhDispatch.com Girls Coach of the Year. All nine AMAC girls coaches received at least one vote in the online fan voting, which lasted from Feb. 15 to Feb. 22. The entire selection process was based only on regular season results and did not consider playoff wins or losses.
Online fan voting counted for 50 percent of the overall selection process. The second half of the decision-making process came from consulting with coaches and PhDispatch.com staff and contributors.
The Potomac Highlands Dispatch
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A total of 20,373 votes were received, including write-ins. Later this week, a schedule will be released on this page notifying when award winners will be announced. A breakdown:
* Boys Player of the Year: 13,665
* Girls Player of the Year: 4,072
* Girls Coach of the Year: 1,458
* Boys Coach of the Year: 1,178
Thank you for being a part of this initiative to include YOU - the fans - in local sports coverage.
Top three
Overall selection (online fan voting counted 50 percent towards the final selection).
1. Jim O'Neal Jr., Allegany
2. Steve Fratz, Northern Garrett
3. Joshua Blowe, Keyser
Jerry Meeks photo