NEW WASHINGTON — Abram Kaple set the bar high at Buckeye Central.
Kaple resigned this week after five seasons as head girls basketball coach for the Buckettes, having won 115 games, five district championships, three Northern 10 Athletic Conference titles and a trip to the state tournament in 2022.
“I met with the superintendent and principal and everyone yesterday so they could move accordingly,” Kaple said Wednesday afternoon. “Ultimately, I have a job outside of the school district in sales and sometimes that makes things tough.
“At the beginning of the year some things changed at work, but it was to where I was able to finish this year. But from a time standpoint and being able to be fair to both parties, ultimately it led to the decision that unfortunately sometimes work has to take priority over fun.”
This past season Buckeye Central fell 34-28 to New Middletown Springfield in the Division IV Regional final at Massillon Perry High School.
His teams averaged 23 wins per season during his tenure.
“It was awesome. We had a lot of success, and I was blessed with a lot of talent. The teams hung together and created a lot of memories, not only for the kids and us as coaches, but for the community as well,” Kaple said.
“I thought our girls basketball program provided something to look forward to for the community of New Washington. Our fans were great and them following us was something they looked forward to.”
Kaple, a 2009 Buckeye Central graduate, said he approached the job with excitement.
“I went in and wanted to demonstrate my love and passion for the game, hoping that would kind of be contagious and rub off on our kids. We had really good buy-in from them and they worked extremely hard.
“That was my only goal, to share my love for the game, and that was reciprocated by our kids. They worked their tails off and did what we asked, and it amounted to a lot of team success and a lot of fun.”
Having success, including the Final Four run in 2022, will remain with players, coaches, and fans for years to come.
“This group, last year’s team, was special. A lot of doubt we had coming in, with some of the talent we lost with Claudia (Pifher), Emily (Siesel) and Julia (Evak). The five seniors we had and the kids who came off the bench did a really good job of embracing carrying the torch.
“For me, this was the most rewarding team for what we were able to do. I think we had nine wins under 10 points or less and that’s a credit to the kids, paying attention, grinding in. It wasn’t by any means our most dominant team, but everybody knew their role. For that reason, this team was special to me.”
Being a graduate of BC, returning to coach at his alma mater also had significance.
“I told Phil (athletic director Loy) that being a graduate and not really leaving the community other than for college and to have this opportunity, with zero varsity experience, and being given that opportunity to lead a program was a blessing in its own right.
“I’m thankful to anybody who had a say in giving me a chance to take on that role and having friends and family come and support us, that was something that was really cool. And where everybody knows everybody, it creates a buzz, and that is the beauty of small-town high school sports.”
Kaple said he coached his team hard, but with love.
“I felt like I had a rapport and a relationship with every single one of those kids to where they knew ultimately, I wanted to do what was best for them and put them in a position to win a basketball game,” he said.
“We held them accountable, and we loved them first as a kid and a person, then basketball came second. I was blessed to have a ton of talent for five years and they were willing to be coached.”
Kaple said the door isn’t closed for a future coaching job.
“The door still will be open. My passion is basketball and I love working with the kids and being involved with them and being close to the sport,” he said. “At some point, if the right opportunity presents itself and everything aligns itself, yes. Right now, it’s not the right time.”