Page 48 - October 2017 The Castle Pines Connection

48 CastlePinesConnection.com
Rock Canyon High School has a new
baseball coach
By Jack Hibbett, RCHS intern writer; photo courtesy of Makenna Allen
BRE enjoys some
back-to-school
revelry
Cutline and photos by Kathy Fallert
A great time was had by all at the annual Bu alo Ridge Elementary (BRE) back-to-school carnival on Friday, August 25. A dessert walk, jumpy castles, food trucks, a dunk tank and more were on hand for everyone to enjoy.
Garrett Duman, the new head baseball coach at Rock Canyon High School.
Moving from Cherry Creek High School (CCHS) to Rock Canyon High School (RCHS), Garrett Duman was not expecting a warm welcome when he entered his former rival school to start coaching baseball. What he got instead was a group of young men who bonded over the sport and who were ready to put in the work in order to create a tight-knit team with a lasting legacy.
Duman was recently announced as the head baseball coach for RCHS, and players could not be happier about it. Not only did Duman have a great track record from being a coach at CCHS, but he also was fortunate enough to work under
the famous Marc Johnson. Duman refers to Johnson as a vital mentor to him, and he has been learning his ways for many years, awaiting the right opportunity where he could use those tactics on a team of his own.
Johnson is most well-known for his legendary coaching of the 1988 Junior Olympics gold medal team and his award of “National Coach of the Year” in 1996. Duman has learned
many applicable skills from Johnson, and he said his biggest takeaway from his experience was, “Throughout all of his success, he has
had other opportunities to coach in college or professionally, but he has been committed to staying in his community at Cherry Creek.” A good hint for players and coaches that Duman is here to stay as well!
Duman was not just picked for his accolades though, he also has an unmatched passion for teaching the sport. Duman wants great baseball players and great players in the game of life as well.
As Castle Pines resident and baseball player Daniel Scholz said, “My favorite trait of the new head coach is that he is all about focus and intensity.” Scholz also mentioned that Duman is very down to earth, and he allows for time to be taken o for appropriate reasons, including “faith, family and education.” In general, Duman is an intelligent coach who realizes most players will not take up baseball as a career, therefore learning new baseball techniques should always go hand in hand with learning new real-world skills.
Moving schools is not easy, but Duman and the players will not let that get in the way of their progression as baseball players and contributing members of society. As Scholz said, “We are happy to have him here at RCHS,” and everyone knows that their legacy begins now.