Former Pineville coach among inductees into the Louisiana High School Sports Hall of Fame

Former Pineville High School Coach Jackie LaBorde-Monkhouse got quite a surprise when she answered the phone recently. She learned she is among the class that will be inducted into the 2023 Louisiana High School Sports Hall of Fame on April 18 in Baton Rouge.

“That is something I never really expected,” LaBorde-Monkhouse said. “There’s just so many things involved in that, being nominated, having to go through the selection committee and that kind of stuff.”

As a student teacher Pineville High in 1974, then-principal Eugene Millet offered her a coaching position in addition to being a physical education teacher. At the time, Pineville had no sports programs for girls.

“At that time a lot of the small schools had girls sports but a lot of the large schools did not," LaBorde-Monkhouse said.

LaBorde-Monkhouse was tasked by Millet with starting a girls basketball and softball programs. She headed both programs for the next 33 years. In 1983, she guided the girls basketball and softball teams to their first state championships. The softball team went on to win state titles in 1984 and 1985.

In basketball she complied a 642-295 record, taking the Lady Rebels to the playoffs 26 times and to the Sweet 16 state tournament four times.

She was honored as State Coach of the Year and All-Cenla Coach of the Year and was an eight-time District Coach of the Year.

'She got the most out of her players'

Despite the accolades, she kept her focus on the players.

"There’s never been anybody inducted into a Hall of Fame unless they had good players at some point in their career. They’re the hub that makes the wheel spin,” she said. “My big thing other than the game, I kept close tabs on grades. And not only for eligibility purposes but to encourage good grades in the classroom.”

“She got the most out of her players because she loved them, and her passion for the game, yet her coolness under fire, was contagious,” said former Town Talk sports writer Bob Tompkins. “She loved coaching, she was meticulous in her teaching and she cared about each of her players as if they were her children. She prepared them not only for games but for life.”

“Coach LaBorde pretty much gave me the green light, but most importantly, she taught me how to be a leader,” said former player Kisha James, winner of the Miss Basketball Award in Louisiana in 1997 and 1998.

The value of discipline

James said some of the best times of her life were playing for LaBorde-Monkhouse.

“I always appreciated Coach LaBorde for her discipline, her toughness and her coaching us in the best way and taking it serious. I am so glad that she is being recognized,” said Katrina Hackney, who played for LaBorde-Monkhouse from 1996-2000.

As a player, Hackney felt LaBorde-Monkhouse was too hard on them. It wasn’t until she became an adult that she realized the value in the coach's discipline.

“I messed up my senior year and I always regretted it and didn’t even realize it was my fault until years later,” she said.

You've probably seen her Christmas lights

LaBorde-Monkhouse, who retired in 2007, said she mostly stays away from attending high school games but is an avid college basketball fan.

“There’s a lot of hard times in coaching as well as well as fun times,” she said. The competitiveness and being around students are what she misses most.

LaBorde-Monkhouse and her husband, Walter, are known for the Magic Christmas display they have been doing for over 20 years now. It gained national attention after being featured on HGTV.

“A lot of people, especially young people, today know Jackie for the well-thought-out, meticulous, fine-tuned Christmas display that she and her husband, Walter, showcase nearly every year on Versailles Boulevard at Christmas time," Tompkins said. "The same descriptions would characterize her strengths as a coach.”

This article originally appeared on Alexandria Town Talk: Pineville coach among La. High School Sports Hall of Fame inductees