By Anvil Welch

awelch@joplinglobe.com

Rusty McDermott will be back prowling the sidelines as a basketball coach in 2008-09.

McDermott, director of facilities for the Granby East Newton School District, has been given the additional duties of girls basketball coach at East Newton High School.

Jamey Gilion, who remained at East Newton to assist boys coach Todd Dana, stepped down as girls coach after last season in hopes of getting more opportunities to watch daughter Ashley, a freshman, play basketball at Neosho High School.

But Gilion’s replacement as girls coach recently resigned for personal reasons.

“I’m excited,” McDermott said on Monday. “I’ve been itching to get back into coaching. It’s been difficult to get coaching out of my system.”

Dana, also athletic director, said David Prather will continue as the girls’ basketball assistant.

“We should have a good group of players returning,” McDermott said.

McDermott anticipates the return of four players with starting experience — seniors Courtney Mann and Chelcie Sheeley and juniors Lindsey Bragg and Katy Cooper.

They helped Gilion’s third edition finish 15-11 overall and 4-3 in the Big 8 Conference. Cooper and Mann received honorable mention all-league.

McDermott, who’d been assistant principal at East Newton High School the past three years, has considerable experience in basketball. That includes stints at different levels at McDonald County and McAuley Catholic as well as East Newton.

McDermott, who was born at Neosho, will be 37 on Feb. 6. He’s a 1990 Diamond High School graduate and attended North Arkansas Community College in Harrison before securing his degree from Missouri Southern. He began gaining coaching experience by helping Bill Presley at Diamond while attending Southern.

McDermott’s wife, the former Jennifer Cook of Bergman, Ark., also is employed by the East Newton School District. They have three children.