Jim Walker

jim.walker@irontontribune.com

 

PEDRO — Sam Gue is still coaching. He’s just going back indoors.

After going from coaching girls’ basketball to girls’ softball, Gue is now going back to the gym and this time he’s coaching boys’ basketball.

Gue was named the new Rock Hill boys’ basketball coach after spending the past three seasons as the Redwomen softball coach.

“I decided to get back into basketball because it’s always been a dream of mine. So many coaches have influenced my life in a positive way. Coach (Norm) Persin, coach (Mark) LaFon, coach (Ryan) Davis, coach (Steven) Ater to name a few. All of those guys have really been instrumental in different ways in my time at Chesapeake, but they’ve all had an impact on my life,” said Gue.

“I’m thankful God has placed this opportunity in front of me. At the end of the day, I came back to the game because I wanted to give back and hopefully make a difference in kids’ lives, building men of character. Much like the way others have made in my own life.”

As the Rock Hill softball coach the past three seasons, Gue has guided the Redwomen to Ohio Valley Conference championships the past two seasons. He had an overall record of 59-11 including back-to-back 20-win seasons.

“I absolutely loved my time on the field, so it is tough to walk away from that. The kids really taught me a lot, to be honest,” said Gue.

“Their commitment to excellence was second to none. Anytime you are able to work with a group looking at everyday as an opportunity to be great, it’s a blessing. Those girls certainly approached each day with that mentality.”

Gue is facing an uphill battle. Rock Hill failed to win a game in 23 attempts last season but is taking a positive approach.

“The record can’t really come into my mind if I’m doing my job. The goal is always to be better today than we were yesterday. I’m incredibly grateful for the opportunity to lead this group of young men,” said Gue.

The biggest challenge for Gue is changing the mindset of the players and getting them to buy into his system quickly.

“Obviously, I feel like we have to work on things we can control. We’ll need to sell out on the defensive end of the floor to give ourselves a chance to progress as a program,” said Gue.

“If our kids can’t buy into that mentality, we’ll continue to come up short. We will also need to focus on attention to detail. Good teams don’t beat themselves so we have to understand how to value every possession, eliminating turnovers.”

Gue was an All-Ohio basketball player for the Chesapeake Panthers under Persin.

After college, Gue returned to his alma mater where he was an assistant boys’ coach under Persin while also serving as the Lady Panthers’ head coach for two years.

He had a 29-13 record overall including 17-4 in 2009.