In their short time so far at their respective schools, both Dustin Howard and Mark Dronet have put their basketball programs back on their winning ways.
Howard’s Oakdale Warriors took home the parish tournament championship for the first time in 11 years, and Dronet’s Reeves Lady Raiders made it the tournament formally known as the Top 28 for the first time in 46 years.
For their efforts, both coaches were named as Allen Parish Coaches of the Year.
“It’s definitely an honor anytime you get recognized,” Howard said, “but Coach of the Year is a team award. You can’t be Coach of the Year unless your team performs.”
Equally humbled by the honor was Dronet. “I couldn’t even tell you how many basketball games I’ve won during my coaching career,” he said. “That’s not why I coach. I don’t coach for any award or anything like that. I just coach for the satisfaction I get knowing I’m having an impact on the girls who I coach.”
Dronet continued, “I guess it’s nice to be recognized as Coach of the Year, but I want to be an impactful person on these girls’ lives forever.”
His impact on his Lady Raiders started being felt the first day he walked onto campus two years ago.
“I said winning is going to start with your mentality,” Dronet stated.
“I’ve had so many people who have come watch us tell me that we play so hard, and the people who have come watch us practice said we practice so hard.”
“From day one,” he continued, “we’ve never gone half speed. You’re either going to be a pitbull or a poodle, and we’ve embraced that pitbull mentality.”
Dronet’s coaching style also changed the basketball culture in Reeves by changing one of the intangibles which is team chemistry.
“We love each other,” he said. “We’re a family. We sit in the locker room everyday to talk about family type things, and we frame it in basketball things.”
Before this season started, some close to the program said it was going to be a rebuilding year for the Lady Raiders. That feeling picked up steam when Claire Dunnehoo went down with an injury.
At that point, everything that Dronet instilled into his team from the beginning seemed to come together for Dronet’s team as they ran through the season on its way to playing for a state championship.
“This year exceeded my expectations for sure,” said Dronet. “We hadn’t gone to the state championships in 46 years. Those things don’t come around every day. To have a young team like this and then to lose our best player, I couldn’t be happier.”
As for Howard in Oakdale, his Warriors also got back to their winning glory not only in the parish tournament as his team finished with a winning record for the first time in at least six seasons.
“A goal coming into this season was to win the parish tournament for the first time in 11 years,” Howard said. “You could look during the tournament and realize how much our team wanted that.”
“We had a winning season and made the playoffs,” he continued. “It all adds up our program being headed in the right direction.”
While winning the parish tournament and a winning record were highs, Howard also had to coach through some low times on the year.
“We started off really hot coming in, and that was a big key for us,” he said. “The fact that we won a couple close games early allowed us to start out with some momentum, and the parish tournament happening before Christmas finished off that momentum.”
He continued, “We came back and got punched in the mouth in our first game in district. It was a wake up call. I feel like we could have done a little bit better in district, but we did respond.”
With all the highs and lows, Howard saw his young team become more battle tested for next year.
As he said, “With a young team to compete at that high level and us bringing almost everyone back next year, we hope to build on this season. And, we hope it translates to a district championship.
Howard also knows having a winning basketball team on campus is felt throughout the rest of the Oakdale athletic programs.
“Oakdale is a school with great pride in all of our athletics,” he expressed. “I was happy we could have a positive season and a winning record and gain some excitement. Anytime we can do something positive for our school, the whole athletic department can benefit from it with the momentum going to baseball and softball and right into football next year.”
Howard concluded much of the credit of being selected Coach of the Year goes to the people who are mostly behind the scenes.
He said, “Behind every good coach are great assistant coaches, and I have two good ones in Allen Parish legends Shaun “Rookie” Johnson and Jacob Stark. They volunteer their time to help coach our guys and better our program. I also have to thank Brad Soileau for being the most athletic supportive principal I’ve ever worked for.”
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