Three athletic coaches from Star Valley High School have been nominated by their peers to receive Fall Sports Coach of the Year honors. The Wyoming Coaches Association (WCA) announced that Ty Draney is the 2024 4A Boys Cross Country Coach of the Year, McKay Young is the 2024 3A Football Coach of the Year and Assistant Coach & Defensive Coordinator Kelly Merritt is one of two Assistant Football Coaches of the Year.
According to the WCA, “awards are voted on by fellow WCA member coaches, ensuring that the recipients truly deserve this honor.” All three coaches will be recognized during the WCA Hall of Fame and Awards Banquet in July 2025 in Casper.
This is the third consecutive year that both Draney and Young have received the Coach of the Year award. The two coaches led their respective programs to their third consecutive state championship. During the season Coach Young became Star Valley’s all-time wins leader in program history.
Look for more details in the upcoming December 31 edition of the Star Valley Independent.
Below are the complete Coach of the Year honors for the 2024 Fall sports season.
Cross Country:
2A Girls – Tim Maze, Tongue River
3A Girls – Maggie Kirkham, Cody
4A Girls – Sean Wilde, Cheyenne Central
2A Boys – Caleb Her Many Horses, Wyoming Indian
3A Boys – Tanya Kienlen, Worland
4A Boys – Ty Draney, Star Valley
Assistant – Brenna Abel, Worland
Golf:
2A Girls – Lisa Dutton, Sundance
3A Girls – Chase Plumb, Douglas
4A Girls – Jerry Carroll, Evanston
2A Boys – Brandon Deromedi, Thermopolis
3A Boys – Anthony Nichols, Wheatland
4A Boys – Bryan Young, Campbell County
Assistant – Travis Robinette, Evanston
Tennis:
Girls – Garrett Seamans, Cheyenne Central
Boys – Garrett Seamans, Cheyenne Central
Assistant – Lisa Esquibel, Cheyenne Central
Girls Swimming & Diving:
3A – Erik DeClue, Lander
4A – Tamara Bretting, Laramie
Assistant – Heather Moses, Buffalo
Volleyball:
1A – Jenny Evans, Little Snake River
2A – Alli Nikont, Big Horn
3A – Angela Rhoades, Douglas
4A – Jeff Barkell, Kelly Walsh
Assistant – Rachel Nichols, Big Horn
Football:
1A-6 man – Jack Cobb, Little Snake River
1A-9 man – Will Gray, Pine Bluffs
2A – Kirk McLaughlin, Big Horn
3A – McKay Young, Star Valley
4A – Jeff Mowry, Sheridan
Assistants – Raith Durham, Sheridan & Kelly Merritt, Star Valley
Jr High/Middle School:
Tony Yerkovich, Rock Springs
Dick Smith, Cody
