Dillon Tenholder accomplished plenty in his first basketball head-coaching job, leading the St. Elizabeth Hornets to two Final Fours in three seasons.
Less than a week after guiding the Hornets to a Class 1 runner-up finish, Tenholder has decided to step down as head coach.
"It was something that, ultimately, I felt the time was right," Tenholder said. "It just felt like it was time to make the move and see what was next for me."
Tenholder announced Thursday his decision on social media, saying he had made it official Wednesday, just five days after St. Elizabeth lost to Dora in the Class 1 state championship game.
"I'm still trying to wrap my head around the fact that we were just in the state championship game," Tenholder said. "All the memories over the past three years, and what we were able to accomplish together, it's pretty surreal."
In three seasons at St. Elizabeth, Tenholder compiled a 64-24 record, leading the Hornets to Show-Me Conference championships in 2018-19 and 2019-20. St. Elizabeth's 8-0 record in 2018-19 led to the program's first conference title in the Show-Me.
Tenholder said there was not a specific reason for his decision to step down.
"For me, at the end of every year, it's just a matter of determining where things are at, how I feel about everything," Tenholder said. " I know most people will look toward the seniors graduating, but like I told the young guys, that wasn't it."
Four of St. Elizabeth's five seniors this past season were starters. Brock Lucas will be the Hornets' lone returning starter next season.
Other key returners who came off the bench and played in 20 or more games this season are Carson Kesel, Dylan Wobbe and Caleb Oligschlaeger.
St. Elizabeth lost in the district championship game in Tenholder's first season. By the middle of his second season, he said that's when the Hornets began to take off.
"That year, it was learning what it took to build upon that foundation from the first year," he said.
The Hornets took third in state in 2018-19. Dora beat St. Elizabeth in the semifinals that season and is the only Class 1 team to defeat the Hornets in the past two seasons.
Tenholder, a graduate of Adrian High School, was an assistant coach for three seasons with the Leeton boys basketball team prior to taking over at St. Elizabeth. He helped under Hall of Fame coach Rick Mills at Leeton while attending school at the University of Central Missouri.
"He's coached for over 40 years and taken three different schools to the Final Four," Tenholder said. "I learned a ton there, and that set the foundation for my own coaching career."
Tenholder said he plans to coach somewhere next season. The former entrepreneur said he wants to "find a coaching job first, then find a source of income second."
"Ultimately, it's about finding that next right fit for me," he said.
In his announcement on social media, Tenholder thanked St. Elizabeth "for taking a shot three years ago on the 21 year old kid who looked more like a transfer student than he did a coaching candidate."
"I just want to thank the St. Elizabeth community, the players, the parents, the fans, the surrounding communities," Tenholder said. "They were incredible all three years. Everybody made those three years special."