LaMont nets milestone

Pennsville tennis coach gets his 300th coaching win with the Eagles girls team in a 5-0 sweep of Millville

By Al Muskewitz
Riverview Sports News

MILLVILLE – Pennsville tennis coach Dan LaMont isn’t big on talking about undefeated seasons, winning streaks or personal milestone, but he hit one Wednesday that was too big to ignore.

The Pennsville girls team swept Millville 5-0 to give LaMont his 300th career coaching victory with the program. He has 333 all-time girls tennis coaching wins when you add in his 33 in three years at Schalick (1998-2000).

“It’s cool, especially having Brynn Buechler, one of my players, coaching with me now,” LaMont said of the milestone. “It’s nice as a get a little older (thinking) about all the great girls that I’ve had. Oh my gosh, it’s just been phenomenal.”

He figures he has just as many wins with the Pennsville boys, just don’t ask him the total.

“I’m not good with numbers,” he said. “We got something this year about active high school tennis coaching records and it made me kind of think of what I do have. I knew it was coming up, but it wasn’t any kind of countdown, because I’m horrible with numbers.”

Within those 300 Pennsville girls wins are two state titles, two runner-up finishes, seven sectional titles. The Eagles played in the South Jersey Group I sectional final for the tenth time on LaMont’s watch Tuesday at Pitman.

“This is a well-deserved achievement for Coach LaMont,” Pennsville athletics director Jamy Thomas said. “There are not many coaches around that put in the time and energy to high school sports as he does and his record proves that hard work truly does pay off. Hopefully he sticks around for 300 more wins.”

LaMont’s coaching tenure goes back to 1992 when he was an assistant the first time at Pennsville. His first year as the Eagles’ head coach was 2006; he was an assistant there for two different stretches beforehand. He doesn’t remember his first head coaching victory, but he does recall that first season.

“I don’t know if I remember the first win, but I do know it was the year after Donna Martin won a state title and we lost a lot from that team, but we still had a nice year,” LaMont said. 

PENNSVILLE 5, MILLVILLE 0
Megan Morris (P) def. Rebecca Lore, 6-1, 6-2
Regan Witt (P) def. Jasmine Negron, 6-1, 6-4
Lily Edwards (P) def. Ryleigh Sharretts, 6-0, 6-0
Emma Cornette-Izzy Schrenker (P) def. Isabel Kefer-Brigid Humphreys, 6-2, 6-1
Naomi Hess-Morgan Holt (P) def. Sydney Ambrose-Aria Jacquet, 6-0, 6-1
Records: Pennsville 17-1, Millville 7-14