Capital City High School and Jefferson City High School have each named three new coaches to their athletic staffs for the 2019-20 school year.
For Capital City, Ryan Madison will be the girls basketball head coach, while Scott Gschwender will serve as boys and girls track and field head coach. Mitchell Werdehausen has also been named as wrestling head coach.
"As progress continues at Capital City High School, we feel great about the activities team we are putting together," CCHS principal Ben Meldrum said. "When we open doors this fall, I am confident these new hires will help positively impact the learning environment for our students."
At Jefferson City, David Franks will be the boys golf head coach and girls golf assistant coach, while Caitlin Phoenix will be the girls golf head coach and the boys golf assistant coach. Paige West was also named as the cheer head coach.
"We are tremendously excited for our new coaches to join the JCHS team, and look forward to seeing the positive impact they will make in their new roles," JCHS principal Bob James said.
Madison coached the Bolivar girls basketball team this season. Prior to that, he coached the St. Joseph Lafayette girls basketball team for eight seasons and at Stanberry for seven seasons. He also has experience coaching boys basketball during his career.
"Ryan Madison brings high energy, a wealth of experience and a tremendous record of success which fits perfectly with what we are looking to accomplish with our girls basketball program," CCHS activities director Robert Ndessokia said. "We are very fortunate to have a coach of this caliber to establish the new program. I am confident that Ryan will lay a solid foundation and will quickly establish the program to play at a competitive level."
Gschwender has served as the Jays and Lady Jays track assistant coach since 2004. During that time, he has coached football at Lewis and Clark Middle School, as well as being an assistant coach for the Jays football team.
"Coach G's knowledge, energy and passion are exactly what CCHS needs to start our track program," Ndessokia said. "He's a son of a Hall of Fame coach, so he is no stranger to hard work, dedication and establishing positive relationships with our student-athletes, it is in his DNA."
Werdehausen has been the wrestling coach at Thomas Jefferson Middle School since 2013.
"Coach Werdehausen is an extremely hard worker and brings a great deal of positive energy to the job," Ndessokia said. "He will have an excellent rapport with the athletes on the wrestling team. Mitch takes pride in everything he does and is committed to doing things the right way, which gives us great confidence in him for setting the foundation of our wrestling program."
Werdehausen began teaching at JCHS in 2011.
Franks has coached basketball, cross country, golf and track at California, Eldon and Russellville. He has been a teacher for 25 years.
"David has been around golf for most his life and taught at JCHS for years," JCHS activities director Chad Rizner said. "He is a student of the game and really understands what it takes to compete at the highest levels. We look forward to David sharing this experience with JCHS golfers in his new role."
Phoenix currently teaches eighth-grade math at Lewis and Clark and serves as an assistant coach for the seventh-grade girls basketball team. A California High School graduate, Phoenix golfed at Bradley University from 2007-11.
"Caitlin was a standout athlete in high school and college and has competed and succeeded at the very highest level," Rizner said. "As an assistant for the Jays and Lady Jays she showed a great rapport with our athletes and showed an ability to use her experience to help the team. We look forward to working with Coach Phoenix in her new role."
West is a University of Missouri graduate and currently teaches at JCHS. She has previous teaching experience at Rock Bridge and Battle high schools.
"Paige has been a great teacher at JCHS for several years," Rizner said. "She is always willing to step up to challenges and be successful. Her past experience in cheer will help her create a strong and successful team. We are excited about continuing to work with her in her new role."
JCPS and CCHS administrators are continuing the process of hiring a full slate of head coaches for 2019-20, with more announcements expected in the coming months.