Coming home: Amherst graduate Kevin Collins takes over as girls hoops coach

SPECIAL TO THE MORNING JOURNAL The Comets filled their head coaching vacancy with Amherst graduate Kevin Collins, who inherits a team that went 18-6 this past season.

Amherst didn't have to look very far for a new varsity girls basketball coach.

The Comets filled the head coaching vacancy with Amherst graduate Kevin Collins.

Collins, who graduated from Amherst in 2000, replaces John Rositano after Rositano left to become the Lorain High boys varsity basketball coach.

Since 2003, Rositano had coached the Amherst girls' team, going 147-75. He guided the Comets to three Southwestern Conference championships and a district championship and regional final appearance in 2005.


When Collins saw the opening at Amherst, it immediately gained his interest.

"Any time you have the chance to go back to where you grew up and where you went to school, that's an opportunity thats pretty special," Collins said. "To take over a program that has been successful for a number of years plays into it as well."

In the past three seasons, Collins has been an assistant coach for the Rocky River girls basketball team, including the past two years as a varsity assistant. After graduating from Cleveland State in 2005, Collins moved to Tampa, Fla., and became involved with the YMCA and coached AAU basketball.

Collins inherits an Amherst team that went 18-6 this past season and appeared in the district semifinal before losing to Elyria.

"Rositano left his mark on this program and left some really talented players for me to work with," Collins said. "Having a post player like Brooke Wallace and some younger players that got some varsity experience is a very positive thing when you look at a program."

Wallace was named an All-Ohio Honorable Mention (D-I), averaging 11.5 points and 8.8 rebounds per game last season.

Collins is excited to begin his first head coaching stint and is already impressed with what he has seen from the players.

"Just seeing the work ethic that the team has had in open gym and what they have been working on on their own, that's the thing I am the most excited about is how hard they work and how excited they are to get started," Collins said.