COACH OF THE MONTH: SEPTEMBER
Josh Kerr, Head Baseball Coach
South Salem (OR) High School
Coach Josh Kerr leads by example, displaying a love for baseball while possessing an outstanding work ethic and providing life lessons that reach the student-athletes he coaches.
Following two uneventful seasons as head coach, in 2008 Coach Kerr guided the Saxons to a Central Valley Conference winning record of 16-2 and 20-9 overall. South Salem advanced to the third round of the state playoffs. He was honored as both Conference and Regional Coach of the Year.
“Coach Kerr’s first two seasons at the helm of the Saxon baseball program tested his spirit, commitment, faith, and determination while winning only five games each season,” said Rick Lacey, head strength and conditioning coach at South Salem, who nominated Kerr. “They say that tough times don’t last but people do. Nothing could be truer in Coach Kerr’s case.”
Coach Kerr is active in a wide variety of activities at South Salem H.S., including 11 years an assistant football coach and 11 overall with the baseball team. In addition to the team’s accomplishments and his personal honors, Coach Kerr oversaw the selection of a first-team all-state player, Matt Cox, who was also named the Conference and Regional Player of the Year. The Saxons also had four players named to the all-league first team and two to the second team, two players tabbed for the all-region team, and two chosen to the State 6A All-Star Series.
“Coach Kerr has taken the baseball program from the basement to the penthouse in just three short years,” Lacey said. “As a 25-year veteran educator and coach, I would be hard pressed to think of anymore deserving of recognition.”
