Yvette McPherson was not exactly pining away to be a basketball coach again. She has been too busy over recent years being the mother of three boys and teaching civics and world history at Washington School.
But, when she was offered the job this summer to be the next girls basketball coach at Washington School, she realized it made sense to get back into the game she loved.
McPherson graduated from Washington School in 1989 and was an all-star player for the Generals. She later went on to play basketball at Mississippi Delta Community College College and then coach the sport at Greenville Christian School and Delta Christian Academy.
“I really loved coaching, but I just became so busy that I could not do it anymore,” McPherson said.
Along with basketball, McPherson is also an accomplished tennis player. She has even been to Palm Springs, California, a number of times to play doubles in a national tennis tournament.
McPherson said she decided to take the Generals’ coaching job because she planned on spending many hours in the Washington gymnasium this winter watching two of her sons play the sport. Her son, Peyton, is a junior on the Washington School varsity team while her son, Luke, in an eighth grader on the junior high team. McPherson and her husband, Russ, also have a 24-year-old son, Tyler.
“What I like about Washington School is how family oriented it is,” the coach said. “Everyone really works well together. The school really supports the faculty.”
In her playing days, McPherson was a fierce competitor; however, she describers her coaching style as more relaxed.
“I am a laid back coach, but I expect a lot from my players. I expect them to work hard and listen to what I am telling them,” McPherson said.
Two of McPherson’s main players this season will be senior post player Jordan Hays Middleton and senior guard Abbigail Jennings. McPherson said she is also expecting players like Meg Giachelli, Louise Word, Sloan Lackey, Leanor Warrington and Lane Walker to be key contributors.
“I expect them to work together as a team and for all of them to give maximum effort,” McPherson said.
