Bearcats find new girls basketball coach across town

By Barry Byers - bbyers@heraldonline.com

It didn't take Alicia Thompson long to consider if she would apply for the varsity girls' basketball coaching vacancy at Rock Hill.

It took her even less time to accept.

Thompson attended practice on Tuesday to observe and trade introductions with her players. She conducted her first practice Wednesday afternoon and got the full attention of her new players.

“I have some rules,” she said with the girls gathered around her after the balls had been put away. “If you don't come to practice the day before a game, you don't play. The only way you'll play is if you are excused by me, or if you have a very good excuse for not being here.''

She sounded like a coach who knows her stuff. When Eric Rollings stepped down last week to replace Bobby Stevens as the boys varsity coach, Thompson said she was in the right place at the right time.

That place is South Pointe, where she teaches biology and was beginning her second season as an assistant girls coach under Brett Childers.

When Thompson met with the Lady Stallions to tell them she was going to Rock Hill, they thought she was joking.

When they realized she wasn't, the tears started flowing.

“A bunch of them stopped by my room the next morning, and they are fine,'' she said. “I really love South Pointe, but this was a position I had to pursue. I wanted to be a head coach again, and this fell into place for me. The players know I still love them and that life is filled with opportunities.''

Thompson, 31, grew up in Ninety Six and starred in basketball and volleyball. She accepted a basketball scholarship from East Tennessee State and ranks in the women's top 10 for career rebounds. She also played volleyball and was a student coach two seasons after her eligibility was up.

“I became a head coach at 22 when I was hired at Newberry High School, then went home to coach at Ninety Six,'' Thompson said. “From there. I went to Spaulding High School in Georgia. We were 13-13 my first year and 15-9 the second.

“I also coached AAU ball, and one of my former players, a senior this year, is committed to Old Dominion. Another, a 6-foot-4 junior center, has committed to South Carolina. I want to continue the tradition here that coach Rollings and the coaches before him established. And I want to help my players reach their potential.''

Thompson left Georgia to move back to the area and be closer to her family. She moved to Charlotte, where she has relatives. Thompson said she had several teaching and coaching opportunities in Charlotte but wanted to find employment in the Rock Hill school district.

“When I was in high school, we played in a volleyball tournament against Rock Hill's coach (Cindy) Elder and her team,” Thompson said. “And everybody in the state knows about the level of excellence in Rock Hill's schools have in sports.

“I'm a defensive coach; a firm believer that defense does win games. Offense takes a lot of work, dedication and practice to get better. If a team plays good defense, it can compete until the offense comes around.''