Readance Raises the Stakes

Don Readance brings new intensity to the girls basketball team

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Molly Lewis

“I want to teach them a work ethic,” Readance said. “If you want to achieve something, there really is no shortcut for hard work.”

Don Readance, the new girls basketball coach, is excited about building up the team. 

“I have been coaching softball here for two years going on three, and when the basketball position opened up and Mr. Peters approached me,” he said.

Athletic Director Ryan Peters is eager to see the impact Readance will have on the program. 

“I learned very early on that he was a phenomenal basketball coach,” he said. “There were a lot of people ranting and raving about how great of a girls basketball coach he was.”

Junior Arianna Preston, who has played for Readance on the softball team, says she has made dramatic improvements under his coaching.

“Coach pushed us to the best of our abilities and challenged us at every practice, which prepared us for games,” she said. “I’ve learned a lot from him in the two seasons he’s coached me.”

Peters also stresses how Readance stood out in his interview.

“He was also highly regarded by some of the best girls basketball coaches around,” he added.

I’m excited about trying to get the girls to play at another level, getting them to believe more in themselves and having more confidence

— Coach Don Readance

This season will be Readance’s ninth year as a head coach for girls basketball, and he is grateful to have the opportunity to coach for Beachwood.

Readance was an assistant coach for Cleveland Heights from 1985-94 and then head coach from 1995-97. He was head coach at Shaker Heights from 2005-2009.

 “I had been looking to get back into coaching girls basketball in the right situation, and Beachwood was one of the places I had been wanting to explore coaching,” he said.

Readance is also a Physical Education teacher at Shaker Heights High School and enjoys attending sports events, traveling and being outside in his free time. 

On the court, he hopes to utilize everyone’s strengths and to teach his team that self confidence is key. 

“I’m excited about trying to get the girls to play at another level, getting them to believe more in themselves and having more confidence,” he said. “I think it’s always exciting to get new players and meet new players and see what they’re capable of.” 

Readance hopes to bring another level of competitiveness to this team.

“I’d like to make the program more competitive to where other teams know if [they’re] playing Beachwood, it’s going to be a tough game,” he said. “Within the community, I’d definitely like to build some enthusiasm and grow the program so we can get more participation.” 

“The team is making a lot of progress and I’m very happy at how things are going right now,” Peters said. “I’ve had a few people make comments to me about how the team looks so much better, and I agree, I can tell already.” 

He has a great mindset, he’s very patient, but he wants to be successful. He also had a very impressive resume. He has coached some of the most successful teams in the state, including Shaker.

— Athletic Director Ryan Peters

Coach Readance feels strongly that athletes need to learn and support one another.

“In sports, it’s important to recognize that not everyone has the same skill set and may be suited for different roles,” he said. “That’s why teamwork is essential in order to help the team be stronger as a whole.”  

He also emphasizes that team bonding off the court can affect the players’ performance on the court.

“Team bonding can help, I think, especially with a smaller group,” he said. “Just being able to be cohesive as one unit with a bunch of individuals working together, so it’s definitely important.” 

Players who spend time together can also communicate more effectively.

“We’ve talked a lot this year about how we communicate with each other, and making sure we do so in a positive way,” he said. “Communicating with each other and not talking at each other and barking at each other is important.” 

Senior player Taylor Blackwell is happy with how Readance has directed the team away from positionality. 

“In previous seasons, there had been a lot of bickering and people thinking they’re better than everyone, and Coach has really nipped that in the butt from day one,” she said. “I was really glad that he took care of that from the beginning, and [it’s good that he’s] stopping it before it becomes a problem.” 

Readance hopes he can influence the players beyond just basketball skills.

“I want to teach them a work ethic,” he said. “If you want to achieve something, there really is no shortcut for hard work.” 

He says that sports can prepare us for the challenging moments in life.

Coach D. pushes us a lot. He’s tough on us, but at the end of the day, it’s what we need to be better.

— Senior Taylor Blackwell

“Playing a tough opponent in basketball or suffering a tough loss prepares you for some difficult moments down the road,” he said. “A lot of what you do in high school sports translates to real life in terms of helping you develop coping mechanisms and handling situations that don’t go your way.” 

Readance acknowledges that the team has to adjust to his approach.

“Everyone has different coaching styles,” he said. “I think I am a little more intense in how I approach things to get the girls to play a little faster pace.” 

“Coach D. pushes us a lot,” Blackwell said. “He’s tough on us, but at the end of the day, it’s what we need to be better.” 

“Him not being afraid to yell at us when necessary, pushes a lot of us in different ways because we all need to improve on different things,”  she added.

Peters explained that Readance’s experience really made him stand out.

“He has a great mindset, he’s very patient, but he wants to be successful,” he said. “He also had a very impressive resume. He has coached some of the most successful teams in the state, including Shaker.” 

Readance has been a Beachwood resident for eight years, and he is happy to help out on the Bison court.

Blackwell feels that this year’s coaching staff will serve the team well.

“Everyone wants to score and win, and teaching us different skills that we haven’t learned before is very helpful,” she said. “We have a lot of diversity in our coaching staff when it comes to skills, and I think that is very helpful as well.” 

At publication, the girls basketball team is 2-4. They have a home game against West Geauga on Tuesday, Dec. 13 at 6:00 p.m.