By Bob Sutton
Special to The Alamance News
The Burlington School is reinstating girls’ basketball after a one-year hiatus.
Jerry Haith, who was an assistant coach for the two state championship teams, has taken the head coaching position.
“He has been a staple,” TBS athletics director George Marshall said. “We want to get the program reinvigorated. The interest has come about. I think the hiring was a big part of that.”
Haith said he’s excited about re-establishing the Spartans into a strong program.
“It’s actually going great,” he said. “I was able to get a lot of girls to apply once I got the job.”
The TBS roster might include up to a dozen players, some formerly playing for other area schools.
Alaiyah Mitchell and Kamryn Russell have come from Williams. Haith also listed Kennedy Harrelson of Clover Garden, Nariah Booth of Cummings and Lawryn Harris of Roxboro Person as joining the TBS program.
Haith, a 1996 Cummings graduate, was on the TBS coaching staff when it won 2019 and 2022 North Carolina Independent Schools Athletic Association state championships and were runners-up in 2020 and 2021.
“We kind of built the platform,” he said. “The name kind of means something.”
The 2022-23 team had a 7-21 record. After coach Porsha Graves left to become an assistant coach at Greensboro College, TBS players splintered and there was no team last season.
The Spartans should end up with a schedule of about 25 games this season, Haith said.
“I’m happy to have a full slate,” he said. “I’m ready. I appreciate having the opportunity.”
Haith operates Lady Phenoms, an Amateur Athletic Union team based in Burlington. He lives in Gibsonville and works remotely as a building engineer.
