Bartlett wins coaching award

Randy Bartlett

The honours continue to come in for Randy Bartlett, the godfather of Chatham-Kent volleyball.

As part of the 2023 Mustangs Honours Breakfast, the Sports & Recreation Department recently announced the winner of their Assistant Coach of the Year Award.

The Fran Eberhard Assistant Coaching Award, named in honour of the legendary trailblazer was first introduced in 2018, this years recipient is Randy Bartlett of the Mustangs Women’s Volleyball team.

“I am humbled to receive an award dedicated to the legacy of Fran Eberhard. Her achievements in sport as a player, coach and advocate are indeed legendary,” said Bartlett in a Western Athletics release.

“We are today, as coaches, blessed with the opportunity to work with some of the most amazing student athletes in the country. The dedication these young people have to their sport, while keeping academics their priority, is something that I respect at the highest level.”

A former Mustangs student-athlete himself in the late 1970’s, Bartlett has been with the Women’s Volleyball program since 2013, alongside his daughter, Head Coach Melissa Bartlett.

Prior to Western, Bartlett coached and taught at Chatham-Kent Secondary School and was a standout player at thr former Merlin High School. At CKSS. Bartlett won seven OFSAA gold medals, three silver and one bronze.
He founded the Kent County elementary schools volleyball league, the Volleyball Kent Camp and the Chatham Ballhawks youth travel program.

Within the program, Randy plays many roles. Two of the roles that have the greatest impact are taking the reigns as the setters dedicated positional coach as well as serving as a mentor for all members of our coaching staff.

“Randy’s wealth of experience and deep understanding of the game are invaluable assets when it comes to helping us setters coordinate our offense,” said Hannah Joo, 4th Year Setter “Genuinely, he is one of the most approachable and insightful coaches I have had, and being able to go to him to vent frustrations or to pick his mind for ideas has been crucial to our success as a team.”