Girls basketball coach Brandon Parker was waving his players toward the locker room after they finished celebrating a big win over Ottawa Friday night. Instead, they all took a seat on the bench — there was still something left to celebrate.
Parker had just notched his 100th win at the helm of the program. The crowd applauded as his accomplishments were read out, accompanying a slideshow of photos. Players, current and former, joined him on the court.
“I’ve never won a game here,” Parker said. “All the players have. I’ve been fortunate to be able to work with some incredible young people who really cared and really gave it their all. And those 100 wins are on them.”
Parker has been in charge of the girls program since 2019. During his tenure, the team has notched three 20+ win seasons, two undefeated Frontier League titles, three substate championships and a state runner-up finish. The Cardinals during his time as coach have dominated at home. Their most recent home loss came nearly three years ago.
“To see former players, to see our team, the kids, that means as much to me as anything,” he said.
Parker thanked his assistant coaching staff for their hard work to help make the team’s success possible. The girls basketball team has four assistant coaches: Kristin Stueve, Justin Mayer, Kyle Deterding and Jeremy Thomas.
“I’ve been blessed to work with an amazing staff that really cares about kids and love being a part of this, and they give everything they have,” Parker said. “Those wins are theirs, too.”
Sophomore Avah Dye said Parker knows when to push the team, but also when to have fun with them.
“He is a huge inspiration to us,” Dye said. “He’s a great coach. He makes all of us better. He makes us just have fun at practice, have fun at games, and he’s literally just the team, like, he’s so there for us.”
Sophomore Jayla Colter said Parker is someone the team can always rely on.
“He’s just an amazing person, an amazing coach,” Colter said. “He’s like a father figure. He’s just someone we can count on, but also go to for advice and basketball stuff.”
Kenzie Yoder graduated in 2024 after playing for Parker for four years. She was at the game Friday to celebrate the milestone.
“Getting to be there for him to celebrate him and, like, this big accomplishment for him was just really special because, I mean, obviously, he’s done so much for me and helped me as a player and even more as a person,” Yoder said.
Yoder is currently playing softball at Johnson County Community College.
“He always pushed me to be the best version of myself, and so I really don’t think I’d be where I am without him today and just getting to learn from his leadership,” Yoder said. “It was honestly some of the best four years that I’ve had from a coach, so I don’t have enough words to describe everything that he did for me.”
Reach reporter Cuyler Dunn at [email protected]
