Patty Evers has a 635-151 record in 29 seasons as a high school basketball coach.
Kenneth Armstrong / kenarmphoto.com
Patty Evers decided at the end of last season to step down as the only girls’ basketball coach East Bladen High School has ever known.
That decision lasted for about seven months.
Monday night, at the Bladen County Board of Education meeting, Evers was approved to be the Eagles’ girls’ basketball coach. The decision was made after interviews had been held with candidates, including Evers, who chose to apply for her previous position as the new school year began.
“I care about the girls and I care about the direction that the program is heading,” Evers said Tuesday afternoon. “It’s more about the girls than the wins and losses, and that’s why I took it back.”
Evers, who will continue as the school’s athletic director and Bladen County Schools athletic director, has compiled a 635-151 record in 24 seasons at East Bladen and five seasons at the former Tar Heel High School. The Eagles have reached the state championship game five times, including last season, although have never won the title. East Bladen has reached the Final Four nine times. The Eagles have made 22 appearances in the regionals under Evers, which is second in the state behind Bishop McGuinness High School.
Alan West, Megan Kirby and Asha Graham also are expected to return as assistant coaches, Evers said.
“With over 600 career wins, multiple state championship appearances, and a long-standing tradition of excellence, Coach Evers has built one of the most respected programs in North Carolina,” East Bladen Principal Dr. Christopher Carroll said in a statement. “Beyond the victories, her greatest impact lies in her dedication to teaching and mentoring young women – both on and off the court.
“We are thrilled to welcome Coach Evers back home to Eagle Nation, where the legacy continues and the future shines bright,” Carroll said.
The basketball court at East Bladen is named Patty Evers Court.
Evers’ desire to return to the bench after planning to concentrate on her administrative duties came after enjoying her summer and when students returned to campus in Augusst.
“I am surprised I am back,” said Evers, who is 54 years old. “Getting back on campus and seeing the girls and just being around the kids, you miss it. I didn’t know if I would miss coaching, but evidently there’s a part of me that still has it in me or I wouldn’t have interviewed.”
Basketball teams officially can begin practice Oct. 29 and can play their first games as soon as Nov. 14.
“I got up this morning and I was excited,” Evers said. “I almost feel like it’s a new season of life.”
East Bladen has won at least 20 games in 16 of the past 18 seasons, not including the COVID-shortened 2020-21 season and won at least 30 games in three seasons dating to 2006-07.
The Eagles lost to Cherokee 84-48 in last season’s 1A state championship and fell to conference foe East Columbus 76-66 in the 2023-24 1A state semifinals.
NeNe Ward and Lalia Smith, who each scored more than 1,000 points in their four seasons playing for East Bladen, graduated, but the Eagles should return starters Ariel Cromartie, Niyah Wooten and Cabria Baldwin along with several other players as well as players who are expected to move up from a junior varsity squad that had a winning season.
Sonny Jones can be reached at [email protected].