The echo of bouncing basketballs resounds through the Val Matteotti Gymnasium, a chorus punctuated by the squeal of rubber on hardwood and, occasionally, brought to heel by the maestro’s whistle.
Brad Karren, coach of the Kodiaks women’s basketball team, is running another practice, this time with playoff intensity. His team is in the post-season – again, as it has been year after year since Karren took the coaching helm – and although the ladies haven’t been unbeatable, they’ve nonetheless been formidable opponents for anyone they’ve faced.
Kodiaks basketball has been part of Karren’s life for as long as he can remember. Attending games as a young boy with his father, who was then coach of a sprouting women’s team, had a profound effect on him. Now, as coach of that same team for more than a decade, Karren is carrying on his father’s legacy.
Karren, originally from Magrath, has been head coach of the Kodiaks Women’s basketball team since 1999. He says he has always had an interest in sports because of his upbringing, and knew he wanted to pursue basketball early on.
“I grew up in that kind of family,” says Karren. “My dad pretty much started up the basketball team here at the college way back in the 60s. That’s how I grew up: coming to games. So, I’ve always been involved.”
After high school, Karren played college basketball for four years, and as time went on, eventually settled into coaching. Soon, a coaching position at the college became available, and he has been here ever since.
For years, the Kodiaks have produced winning results. In the 2008-09 season, they spent most of the year ranked first in Canada and came home from the Canadian Colleges Athletic Association national championships with a bronze medal. The team made it to the national championship again this year, and while it didn’t come home with a medal, it kept Kodiaks basketball in the limelight.
“I just know that I like to win and I don’t like losing,” he says. “I try to put good players on the floor all the time, and I’ve recruited really hard over the years to try to get the best players I could. But, most importantly, I had good assistant coaches who were willing to be part of the team and put in an effort. So, if you surround yourself with good people, you’ll do good things.” anene Hooper played for Karren from 2005 to 2007, and lauds his ability to work with each player.
“He was an extremely dedicated coach,” says Hooper, now a teacher in Medicine Hat. “He always pushed us to do our best and was always there for us. He has had a successful program for a lot
of years and I’m proud to have been a part of that. I had the opportunity to go to nationals twice, and I’ll never forget that experience.”
When hunting for players, Karren looks for the proper drive and the ability to fit into the team dynamic.
“They have to have a desire to play,” he says. “It’s not so much based on just talent or size, because one of my best players is 5’2”. They know that our team has a certain style, so we look for people that can fit into the program, and not necessarily just the best players.”
Although the Alberta Colleges Athletic Association has chosen Karren its Coach of the Year five times in the last decade, he explains he gets more satisfaction out of the results the team produces.
“There’s no greater reward than seeing what you’ve worked for all year come out to an end and see the goals you’ve accomplished,” says Karren. “I like to win, but it’s the progression of seeing the players evolve from where they started to what they are now. They mature and they get more confident,
and that’s what you like to see.”
Although it doesn’t lose often, Karren says the team tries to take each loss as a learning experience.
“Those things are going to happen and you’re never going to be perfect; you’re going to lose games no matter what,” he says. “You try to keep it to a bare minimum.
“We were ranked first in the nation all year last year, and that’s a tough place,” he says. “I’d rather be third, fourth or fifth where you cannot be the big target for everyone to beat you. We still have some work to do, but in all reality we’re right on track.”
Karren notes he’s unsure of the future, but knows the team and his years at the college will always be a part of his life.
“I really don’t know what the future’s going to bring, but I’ve been here a long time and I’ll always have the Kodiaks tattooed on my heart.”
