Girls Coach Of The Year: Berry Keeps Churning Out Wins

 STAFF PHOTO ANDY SHUPE Charlie Berry, longtime Huntsville coach, and his wife, Deanna, are joined by former players Thursday at Huntsville High School. Berry completed his 53rd year in coaching and his 46th year at Huntsville.
STAFF PHOTO ANDY SHUPE Charlie Berry, longtime Huntsville coach, and his wife, Deanna, are joined by former players Thursday at Huntsville High School. Berry completed his 53rd year in coaching and his 46th year at Huntsville.

HUNTSVILLE -- "This is my first, and probably last state championship."

Huntsville girls basketball coach Charles Berry said those words after his Lady Eagles won the then Class AA state girls basketball championship 17 years ago.

By The Numbers

1 — Berry is the only girls coach in Huntsville’s history.

2 — State championships won by Berry-coached teams.

4 — State title game appearances.

21 — Number of seasons Berry coached the Huntsville boys.

38 — Number of years Berry has coached the Huntsville girls.

He was 62-years old at the time, and the statement seemed reasonable. After all, Berry had been a basketball coach since 1961, and winning it all is difficult. He definitely enjoyed the moment in 1997, especially after a runner-up finish in 1984.

But the 79-year-old Berry has only gotten better as the calendar has continued to turn.

He won another state title in 2008, and as the coach nears his 80th birthday, the success hasn't slowed any.

In his 53rd year of coaching -- his 46th at Huntsville -- Berry took his fourth Lady Eagles team to the state title game earlier this month, but they came up short in a 56-48 loss to Paragould in the Class 5A title game to finish the year at 21-8.

For his efforts this season, Berry is the All-NWA Media Girls Coach of the Year for schools Class 5A and below.

"We had a group of kids this year that were just a bunch of overachievers," he said. "They had played well all year, and they were tremendous competitors. I don't think we had one problem all year. These kids all run around together."

In a career that has spanned more than half a century, Berry has been more than just a coach to many of his players.

A Player's Coach

While his accomplishments are well documented, his former players remember a softer side to their coach than a tall man who often stomps his foot on the court during games to get their attention.

Jaren Walker is a case in point.

Walker, a 2000 Huntsville graduate, was part of a conference championship team her sophomore year and the Lady Eagles again made the state tournament her junior season. She was getting college looks her senior year, but she didn't know if she wanted to accept an academic scholarship, or pursue a basketball scholarship after a "bad season."

"When you were winning, it's fun," Walker says now. "But when you are losing, it's not fun."

After the basketball season ended, she decided she wanted to continue to play basketball, and was invited to a tryout at College of the Ozarks in Branson, Mo. The coach at the time, George Wilson, scheduled the tryout for a weekday afternoon so that Walker could practice with the team.

But Walker's parents couldn't get off work to make the drive to Branson, and she thought her chance to play there were likely over.

"I was devastated, I had my heart set on this," Walker recalled.

Berry could sense something was wrong with Walker that day at school and called her into his office.

"I went into his office and he asked, 'What is wrong with you?'" Walker said. "I started crying and I said, 'Coach, I am not going to be able to play college ball because I can't make it to the tryout.' He said, 'That's an easy fix, I will take you to the tryout.'"

Walker said the ride from Huntsville to Branson was a productive one.

"I remember asking coach Berry for pointers, like what I needed to do, and not do," she said. "My senior year, I was the tallest girl on the team and I played inside. I remember him saying, 'If you don't have a shot, kick it out.' In high school, it was my job to get it in the basket. He told me there would be other players on the team that can make it."

Despite the pressure of auditioning for a scholarship, Walker said she had one of her better performances on the court that day.

"The tryout was hard work, and I played the whole time," she said. "Everybody was feeding me the ball to see what I would do with it. When I took shots, I could not miss during that practice. Coach Berry said that if I wasn't offered a scholarship, then the coach was a fool. That made my day."

But Walker's day only got better as later that night she received a full scholarship offer. She played two seasons at Ozarks before eventually transferring to another school to complete her education.

"Coach Berry has always been dedicated to his players," Walker said. "He wants the best for his players."

First of Two Titles

In his 35th year as a coach, Berry won the first of two state championships when the Lady Eagles defeated Pulaski Academy 45-42 in a thriller at the Pine Bluff Convention Center.

"It's so hard to get there, but it is easier today" Berry said. "When I first started coaching, we had 34 teams in our district and only one went to state."

Huntsville had the ball against Pulaski Academy with about a minute left and the game tied at 42-42 when then-sophomore guard Staci (Hatfield) Evans said the unexpected happened.

"Coach Berry decided not to take a time out, which we sometimes did," she recalled this week. "We were holding for the last shot and we had some strong post players that year. They were our primary scorers, and we knew that is where we were supposed to look to get the ball."

But Pulaski Academy was thinking the same thing. So with no other options available, Evans found herself with the ball and the clock nearing zero. So she let it fly, and drained a 3-pointer with one second left to give Huntsville its first state championship.

"So, in the end it fell to me because I was open," Evans said. "It was just crazy. It was 17-years ago, but I remember it like it was yesterday. Making the game-winning shot was amazing."

Berry said after Huntsville got the ball back with a minute to play that he thought back to a similar situation several years earlier.

"We called time out and we never got the ball back because we didn't get the ball inbounds," Berry said. "I just let them play because they knew what to do. We have talked about those situations at the end of quarters. We try to get the last shot at the end of every quarter. Staci hit that and didn't bat an eye.

"Staci didn't know what pressure was, and she was a tremendous shooter. We enjoyed the one in 2008 very much, but that was the first one, boys or girls."

Evans also went on to play at the College of the Ozarks, and she took many of Berry's lessons with her.

"Looking back, coach Berry is a great coach on and off the court," she said. "You always wanted to play hard for him. It's amazing that he is still coaching, and competing at the level that he is."

Special Moment

Berry's 1983 team advanced to the state championship game and that tourney run will always be special for the family. Huntsville faced Wynne on its home court, and Berry's daughter, Liz Berry Law, hit a 20-foot jumper to end an overtime marathon and give the Lady Eagles the win.

"I wasn't a very good player," Law said. "I was like the fifth starter, and for me to do that was big for him. I was trying to get the ball into Shelia Burkes because she was a great player, but I couldn't get it in to her. I saw the clock was running down, so I shot it. I think that was the only time I saw my dad run. He ran all the way to the dressing room, and he ran all the way back.

"Dad was so excited."

Not Done Yet

Berry said he expects to be back on the Lady Eagles' bench, and in the classroom teaching geometry next season, and Law is not surprised by that.

"I think this is what keeps him healthy," Law said. "I have not seen another man that loves his job like he does. He loves it. Me and my mom (Deanna) worry about it because we are not sure what he will do if he retires. He has some cattle, but now he doesn't enjoy that as much. He has always loved what he does."

One indication that Berry is planning to return is that he is already talking about some of next year's nonconference games, and Huntsville will be dropping down to Class 4A. One of first games next year will be a home game against 7A-West Conference member Rogers High. Lady Mounties coach Preston Early said Rogers will have it's hands full.

"Coach Berry has been running the same two base offenses for 30, 40 years," Early said. "They execute so well. They are good when they have less talented kids. When you throw in talented kids, they are unbeatable."

Despite the season being over, a Huntsville player was in the Charles H. Berry Gymnasium late in the day last week getting individual work with an assistant coach. Next year can't come quick enough.

"I love the game, and I love school," Berry said. "I've taught geometry for the same number of years. I love to teach. If I had to choose between coaching and teaching, it would be a tough choice for me. I love to teach math. If my health holds up, I will be back coaching and teaching.

"But at 79, you can't count on too much. But, I'm still in pretty good health, and I can still see doing a pretty good day's work."

Sports on 03/23/2014

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