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BELPRE -- Basketball has been a big part of Austin Cunningham's life.
From a standout high school career at Warren to a decorated tenure at the NCAA Division II level with Ohio Valley and Shepherd, Cunningham accomplished a lot as a player.
What people may not realize is that Cunningham has spent the last couple years working behind the scenes as a coach with the Parkersburg High School girls program.
Now, Cunningham's taking the next step as he's been named the head coach for the Belpre girls basketball team.
"Basketball is definitely a love and a passion for me," Cunningham said. "Taking over a program is a big step in general with any sport. I've been helping Chris Murray at Parkersburg the last couple years, helping with preseason workouts, skill development and also working with their feeder league and youth programs."
Cunningham becomes Belpre's third head coach in as many years. Chris Fennell took over for Murray in 2021 and guided the program for two seasons, and Regina Leftwich coached the team last season.
"We met with the girls the last day of school as a staff to let them see what we're about," Cunningham said. "We had a parents meeting the week after and kind of explained our philosophies and how to attack the offseason. It's their third coach in three years, so we talked about the past and how to attack new challenges."
Cunningham is excited about the team he is inheriting and what the future holds.
"I believe they only graduated one, and they bring back a lot," Cunningham said. "They were super young last year, so that's a good thing. We want to try to have a JV team as well. That's a big part of any high school program."
Among the key players expected to return for the Golden Eagles are Haley Alloway, Gracie Bills, Julia Way, Shy Miller, Chey Parsons and Liv Harrington.
Cunningham's top assistant will be his wife, Jordanna Cunningham (Rauch). She played high school ball at Warren and collegiately at Marietta, and was previously the JV coach at PHS.
"We definitely want to play up and down," Austin Cunningham said. "We want to play a fast-paced game and play some pressure basketball, get the other teams uncomfortable and out of rhythm. Back when I played, I always enjoyed playing fast, and that's the style we want to play at Belpre."
As a player, Austin Cunningham developed his skills in the Warren youth leagues. Once he got to high school, he helped lead the Warriors to back-to-back district finals appearances, which at the time was the furthest Warren had ever advanced in the tournament.
"The Warren feeder program is a pretty big thing," he said. "Rod Padgitt has been the junior high coach for a long time and helps you get started with the fundamentals. Coach (Mark) Duckworth, coach (Terry) Coffman and obviously coach (Blane) Maddox, that whole staff has been there at the high school for a while now. I learned a lot from them."
Cunningham also listed Tennessee women's basketball coach Kim Caldwell as an influence. Caldwell played at Parkersburg South and went on to win an NCAA Division II national title at Glenville State before moving up to D1 with Marshall. She spent one season with the Thundering Herd and led them to the most wins in program history before taking the Volunteers job.
Cunningham is also grateful for Murray, who helped get him into coaching.
"Coach Murray's been a big asset to us as a family," he said. "He's helped me get back into the game. When we moved back here from Florida, he asked Jordanna to help him at Parkersburg and got me involved. Give coach Murray a big shoutout."
As the offseason continues in full swing, Cunningham can't wait to experience everything that comes with being a head basketball coach.
"I'm super excited for this opportunity," he said. "I want to thank Belpre for giving me that opportunity. I'm ready to get after it and get to winter here."