Parkersburg High School’s O’Donnell receives Coach of the Year honor

CHARLESTON -- Unlike last season when the Parkersburg High School boys track and field team scored 110 points and won a Class AAA state championship, this year tested the Big Reds' patience.

Despite scoring five points and placing 19th last week at the Class AAA High School State Track Meet in Charleston, PHS remained in the spotlight with coach Rod O'Donnell receiving the NFHS Coaches Association's 2020-21 Coach of the Year award for the state of West Virginia.

"This is very, very special in the fact there are a lot of great coaches in the state of West Virginia," O'Donnell said. "To be included with them is really an honor."

"This season has been unlike any season I've had in 51 years. We graduated just about our whole crew last year. If you love something, you have to live through the bad times as well as the good."

WVSSAC officials Wayne Ryan and Bernie Dolan presented O'Donnell with a plaque during Friday's schedule of events at Laidley Field. The inscription on the award states: "In grateful appreciation of outstanding service and unselfish devotion to interscholastic activities."

"We have a great group of freshmen, and probably the best group of eighth graders I've seen coming up," O'Donnell said. "Plus, we should get cooperation from our other sports at PHS."