Caldwell County High School is in the market for a new girls’ basketball coach. Malissa Thomas has stepped down from that post after nine seasons on the job. She told her team on Sunday during the team’s annual postseason banquet.
“There are seasons for everyone and everything,” said Thomas. “I’ve been blessed to be the head coach for nine years and blessed to be part of the Lady Tigers as a player, assistant coach and head coach. It’s time for somebody else to be the head coach and do their thing.
“The team is in great shape for next season,” she added. “They’re going to be fantastic whoever the head coach is. It was a good time for me to step away.”
Thomas, a former standout player at Caldwell County, compiled a 120-137 record as head coach of the Lady Tigers. She led the team to 7th District championships in 2012, 2013, 2014 and 2018.
Caldwell went 13-16 this past season and was district runner-up to Madisonville-North Hopkins before falling to Webster County in the first round of the 2nd Region tournament.
Despite playing just two years at CCHS, Thomas scored over 1,000 points at the school. She finished with 1,081 points as a Lady Tiger, still good enough for 16th on the program’s all-time scoring list. She is 14th on the rebounding list with 545.
Thomas was a starter at the University of Memphis before returning to Caldwell County, where she spent three years as an assistant basketball coach.
A former all-state softball player at Caldwell, Thomas was also an assistant softball coach for the Lady Tigers under Al Giordano, and took over as head coach of that program in 2004 after Giordano stepped down.
But Thomas left later that year to became girls’ basketball head coach at Lyon County. There, she compiled a 74-66 record and led the Lady Lyons to the regional tournament on four occasions.
Thomas has not ruled out coaching again.
“I just may have been promoted to fifth-grade coach,” Thomas laughed. “But I will still be involved with basketball and other sports at Caldwell County for as long as I can. I love it. I’ll always be part of Caldwell County sports.”
