Wednesday, May 19, 2010
By TOM WILLIAMS
SALEM
Some of Renee Farina’s best basketball memories came during the 2003-04 high school season when she was a major contributor to Salem’s state-bound team.
Salem’s administration is hoping some of the magic from that 25-2 season continues as Farina has been hired as the Quakers’ girls basketball coach. She takes over for Jeff Andres, who resigned after the Quakers finished Division II district runners-up in March.
“It’s going to be a challenge, but I look forward to a good challenge,” said Farina who went on to play at West Liberty University before graduating in December 2008 with a degree in elementary education. “The support system in Salem is unbelievable.”
Farina, who grew up in Boardman and transferred to Salem as a junior, said she wants to coach because “basketball has been such a great experience in my life.
“I’ve been playing since I was 7 and just felt that the next step was to start coaching,” Farina said.
Farina’s teammates on Steve Stewart’s state team included Alyson Cotter, Lauren Teal, Lizzie Jesko and Katherine McGarry. They swept the Metro Athletic Conference en route to Columbus.
As a Hilltopper, Farina played four season and set the school record for career 3-pointers (324).
One of her teammates was West Branch graduate Evelyn Woods.
“We lost the first game to West Branch, then won 25 straight before losing in the state semifinals in overtime to Hamilton Badin,” Farina said of the 2003-04 season.
Two days later, West Branch defeated Hamilton Badin for the Division II state title.
“Our [West Liberty] coach used that rivalry to inspire us,” said Farina of her roommate Woods. “Evelyn was great, I wouldn’t have scored so many points without her screens.”
After graduating from college, Farina was a substitute teacher in the Salem system for the remainder of the 2008-09 school year and a volunteer basketball coach.
Last fall, she was hired by Austintown Fitch to work in the high school’s intervention program.
This past basketball season, she was the Fitch junior varsity coach and assistant to Stacie Cepin in her first season guiding the Falcons.
Farina said Derryck Van Cobb and George Spack, who has been coaching basketball for decades, will be assistants.