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Rochelle, Rochelle: West's Vaughn takes the helm as head coach at Boyd
BY Kevin Hageland, khageland@starlocalnews.com
Plano West JV girls basketball coach Rochelle Vaughn will see the Lady Wolves plenty next season, but it will be from the opposing sideline as Vaughn has been named the new varsity head coach at McKinney Boyd.
"It was an awesome feeling when I got the call," Vaughn said. "I did my happy dance."
Vaughn takes over for former Lady Broncos head coach Bretagne Galbreath.
Vaughn was brought in for an interview with Boyd athletic director Don Drake (also the football coach) and assistant athletic director Kelly Quinn (the volleyball coach).
The only concern for Vaughn: she had never interviewed for a head coaching job.
Vaughn got a crash course in that area as she met with John Paul II about its opposition on a Friday and then interviewed with Boyd 72 hours later.
"I think the interview with John Paul ended up being good prep for my interview with Boyd," Vaughn said. "And I felt good about my answers because I really believed in what I was saying, so even if the people I talked to didn't agree, I at least got to tell them my vision for Boyd."
Vaughn got an interview with Pratt and MISD assistant athletic director Valerie Little before finishing her tour by meeting the principal.
"The next day I got a call while I was napping," Vaughn said. "They offered me the job and obviously I was excited. I have a great support group and I felt confident about my chances, but you always have that small part of doubt in your head."
The process of getting the Boyd job was swift, with the decision coming last Tuesday and Vaughn signing her contract last Thursday, but the genesis of Vaughn becoming a head coach was a much lengthier process.
It started at West, where Vaughn played from 1999-2002.
"Even when Rochelle was a player here you could see how smart she was," said Don Patterson, West head coach. "She had the makings of a coach."
Vaughn has a photographic-like memory of that time period as she can recall the Lady Wolves' lengthy losing streak when the school opened in 1999, the donuts that were brought to celebrate the team's first win and the sub-par performance she turned in at the regional tournament as a senior.
"I played horribly in Waco," Vaughn said. "My sister (Brittney) came up after the game and said, 'if you would have played like you normally do, we would have won.'"
But the way Vaughn's varsity career ended didn't change her view of high school.
"I started at Jasper (High School), which used to split into Plano (Senior) and West," she said. "And looking back on it, going to West was one of the best decisions I ever made. I had a lot of fun, we played good basketball and that led me to meet coach Patterson."
Patterson paved the way for Vaughn to get into coaching in 2007.
But before that, Vaughn had other aspirations.
"My fantasy for the longest time was to be [general manager] for the New York Yankees," she said.
Those dreams didn't manifest, but Vaughn did get a job with the Dallas Cowboys in 2007 after playing collegiately at Arkansas, where she also received a Master's degree, and in Europe.
Vaughn went to West practices in 2007 and sat in the stands keeping stats and scouting several Lady Wolves games. When an actual position opened on staff the next season, Vaughn was brought on as the JV coach, where she led the Lady Wolves to an undefeated season in her first year and lost only seven games in four seasons.
Vaughn also got insight into what it takes to be a head varsity coach.
"Coach Patterson does a great job using his staff and he really values our opinion," she said.
Patterson was quick to return the compliment.
"[Vaughn] knows basketball and she knows how to handle kids," he said, "so I know Boyd is going to get better."
Though Patterson is no doubt hoping that improvement doesn't come too soon as West and Boyd are both in District 10-5A starting this season.
"I don't like having to coach against someone I know so well and have known for so long," Patterson said before sarcastically adding, "I just won't look at [Vaughn] or talk to her when we have to play each other."
But Vaughn will look to her experience at West as a template for the future.
"West has set a standard as being one of the best girls basketball programs in the state," she said. "So yes, I want Boyd to be like West. But I'm also a competitive person, so I want us to be better than West."
Vaughn will get that chance quickly as Boyd opens district play against West.
"Yeah, I might need a one-year grace period there," she said with a laugh. "It might take a little while to get the players on board, but I truly believe if you can relate to your players, you can get them to buy into your system. And I am coming in with the expectation that playing Boyd basketball will mean playing hard every night."
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