Houston County Sharks camp features University of Missouri coach

The Houston County Sharks held their basketball camp this week conducted by University of Missouri head wheelchair basketball coach Ron Lykins.

Sharks head coach Christy Jones invited Lykins out to help the team gain more skills and strength for the upcoming season. Lykins has been coaching wheelchair basketball for 35 years.

“I started out at the University of Kentucky as a graduate student and moved on from there,” Lykins said. “I worked in Atlanta during the Olympics and Paralympics and was also a part of the American Association of Adapted Sports. During my time with the league I helped train coaches, and from there I was hired on to the University of Missouri in 2009 and been there ever since.”

Lykins said he originally didn’t go to school for coaching, but as part of his graduate curriculum in college he needed volunteer hours.

“We had a wheelchair basketball team so I decided to volunteer my time there and I really enjoyed it,” Lykins said. “I enjoyed it so much that it wasn’t until my last year of my graduate assistantship that I got into coaching and it became my passion and career. But I’ve known Christy a long time and she has invited me out before back in 2013, and then last summer she brought the team to our camp at University of Missouri.”

“During this camp, which is a three-day camp we teach basic fundamental skills and concepts along with developing new plays for the team,” Lykins continued. “Christy has got some pretty talented kids that range from seniors in high school to fifth grade. She does a great job with them and they’ve have done excellent in this camp.”

Perry High School junior and Sharks player, Annabelle Putnam said she has been a part of the team now for five seasons.

“I love our team and we’re more than a team, we’re a family,” Putnam said. “Everyone comes from different backgrounds and has different personalities, but we all come together and blend very well. During the camp we’ve strengthened our bond in teamwork. Basketball is definitely not a one-player sport. So in the camp we have learned picking and setting ourselves in different positions instead of being selfish and going straight for the goal.”

Putnam said she has really enjoyed learning from Coach Lykins.

“He’s very calm and doesn’t complicate things,” Putnam said. “This season I’m excited to see what we can do because most of our better players did graduate this year. So it will be kind of a transition year for us, but we have some good players and we’re going to come back strong and we’re not backing down. We’re not going to stop.”

Northside Middle School student and Sharks player, Ca’ron Harris has been a part of the team for three seasons and said he is ready for the new season.

“The plays that coach Lykins has taught us are really good,” Harris said. “I really like everyone on the team, and I’m looking forward to going to the championship game again.”