Mitchell set to host South Dakota high school coaches clinic once again in July
Jul. 7—MITCHELL — Plans are coming together for the South Dakota High School Coaches Assocation's Summer Clinic, which will be held July 17-19 in Mitchell.
Kicking off the week will be the annual SDHSCA awards luncheon and hall of fame event at 1 p.m. on Sunday, July 17 at the Highland Conference Center. Six notable South Dakota coaches will be honored during the event, including:
* Anita Boeck of Arlington in volleyball
* Laverne Diede of Freeman in track and field
* Richard "Doc" Michel of Rapid City in track and field
* Jerry Rhodes, Sr. of Philip in track and field
* Bob Sittig of Baltic in basketball
* Mark Wendelgass of Huron in track and field
Diede, who graduated from Scotland in 1956, was a pioneer in South Dakota high school girls sports and was a leader in establishing girls' sports in the 1970s and beyond. She was a teacher, coach, and administrator for more than 40 years in Delmont, Marion, and Freeman. She is already a member of the South Dakota Sports Hall of Fame.
The clinic will include educational sessions on the Dakota Wesleyan University campus and at nearby L.B. Williams Elementary School. It is being held in Mitchell for the first time since 2019, with Rapid City hosting the event in 2021 and no clinic in 2020 due to COVID-19.
The event is sponsored by the SDHSCA and the South Dakota High School Activities Association, with support from the Mitchell Sports and Events Authority. Mitchell High School football coach Kent Van Overschelde is the SDHSCA's current president.
The SDHSCA Foundation will hold its annual golf tournament at 1 p.m. on Monday, July 18 at Wild Oak Golf Course, followed by a 6 p.m. social at the Highland Conference Center.
On Tuesday, July 19, conference activities will begin at 8 a.m., with the South Dakota Beef Industry Council's Holly Swee providing a keynote address at 10:30 a.m.
Some of the clinicians scheduled for the event include Dakota Wesleyan University coaches Lindsay Wilber (volleyball) and Martin Mueller (wrestling), the cross country and track and field coaching staff at South Dakota State University, Pierre football coach Steve Steele and Southwest Minnesota State University men's basketball coach Brad Bigler.
