ROCHESTER — For the second straight year, Rochester Community and Technical College will not have a women’s basketball season.
That decision was made in late June. It came after former Lewiston-Altura High School girls basketball team coach Sam Barnes was hired on May 15. It was deemed one month later that there wasn’t enough time to cobble together a team at that late date, with the vast majority of girls basketball players already having committed to colleges.
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Barnes, 26, wanted a season but certainly understood the reasoning behind waiting another year to put one together.
Barnes is a former RCTC men’s basketball player and also spent one year coaching under Yellowjackets men’s coach Brian LaPlante during the 2019-20 season
“I wish there was a season this year,” said Barnes, a Stewartville native who spent the last three years as Lewiston-Altura’s girls basketball coach, including last year directing the Cardinals to their first winning season in 24 years.
“It’s never an easy decision to cancel a season, but with the lack of numbers coming in, it’s what we had to do,” Barnes said. “But for me, someone who loves the sport and coaching so much, it’s tough.”
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