Coach Wolf headed to Murray State
Barton County Community College men's basketball coach Ryan Wolf is headed to Murray State University (Kent.) to become an assistant coach at the NCAA Division I school. Wolf will be an assistant under new head coach Mick Cronin.

Coach Wolf said the timing seemed to be right to move on and coach for Cronin, someone he has known for several years.

"The situation under a new coach that is 31 years old and a guy I've known for eight or nine years just seemed to be the right opportunity," Coach Wolf said. "I really like his enthusiasm to make the school one of the top mid-major D-I programs in the country again."

Wolf spent four seasons at the helm of the Cougars' program, posting a 111-25 mark, good for 3rd on the all-time wins list. He recorded his 100th victory this past season. During his four years at Barton, the Cougars earned a spot in the 2001 NJCAA National Tournament, losing to eventual national champion Wabash Valley in the opening before winning the rest of the their games and placing 7th.

"This move is definitely a step up for me," Coach Wolf said. "I have really enjoyed my time at Barton. The support the community and Dr. (Veldon) Law have given me has been great.

"I'm really going to miss (boosters) Jimmy and Betty Lawson and (athletic administrative assistant) Dana Foss. They have been great to me while I've been here. This is really a special place to coach on game night. This is a great program and will remain just that."

Coach Wolf was an assistant under Ryan Cross at Barton the season prior to taking over the program. The Cougars placed 2nd at the NJCAA tournament that season. He spent time as an assistant at Howard Junior College in Texas before coming to Great Bend. Coach Wolf played collegiately for the University of Minnesota.

During his time at Barton, Coach Wolf coached five All-Americans in the NJCAA. This past season Robert Whaley was a 2nd team pick after being a 1st team selection his freshman season. Ebi Ere (2nd team, 2001), Eric Bush (2nd team, 2000) and Jamal Davis (3rd team, 2000) were also tabbed. The Cougars also spent much of their time ranked in the NJCAA Top 20, including some time at No. 1 in three different seasons.

The Cougars will begin their search for a new coach as soon as possible.

"We appreciate the work that Coach Wolf has done for the college during his tenure here," Barton County Athletic Director Neil Elliott said. "I think he has an excellent opportunity in front of him and we wish him well with his new position at Murray State.

"We plan to move as quickly as possible with a nation-wide search to bring in the best possible candidate. We want to make sure he is the right fit, so we won't rush the search, but we do want to do it as quickly as possible in order to complete the recruiting and talk to the players we have coming back."

Elliott said Barton County hopes to have a new coach in place in about two weeks.

-30-

Check out Barton County Men's Basketball Online at www.bartonccc.edu/sports