White Plains, AL White Plains, AL Wildcats”year of transformation continues Muncher as the permanent head coach of softball. Sprayberry the permanent coach for girls’ basketball.

Note from the Editor: This story was first published on May 23 and is currently being revised following Tuesday’s meeting of the Calhoun County Board of Education. Updates are listed below.

by Joe Medley

White Plains’ big year of coaching change continues this week, with changes to the softball team, which took part in the state championship this week.

Lex Hull-Muncher who worked as an assistant coach during the season, is now interim head coach. He will be taking the reins from the former Head Coach Tiffany Williams.

An interim head coach will be likely to be decided in the June 6 Calhoun County Board of Education meeting. Similar to Girls’ Basketball team which will have Clay Sprayberry serving as interim head coach since Matt Ford stepped back from coaching in March.

White Plains has witnessed the head coach of the varsity team change in volleyball, football girls basketball, baseball and softball over this school’s 2022/23 year.

The Calhoun County Board of Education has approved the former Donoho and Sylacauga head coach Jamie Clendenin’s hire for volleyball in the last week. Blake Jennings, a long-time football assistant as well as baseball the head coach of Ohatchee has been named White Plains’ new head coach in both sports.

“In all the years that I’ve been an administrator, it’s likely not seen so many modifications (in the span of one calendar year),” White Plains director Andy Ward said. “I think that with change comes an excitement as well but that’s not a knock on those who have been coaching these sports. They’re all wonderful individuals, and I’ve been enjoying working with them.”

Transitions started about one year ago as long-time softball head trainer Rachel Ford, for whom the field’s name is derived has announced that she will quit coaching to devote more time to the sports career of her children.

Williams got promoted to take over Rachel Ford and guided White Plains to a record of 31-16 in 2023. The Wildcats have won regional and area championships, and also overcame three injuries that ended their season in order to make the finals of the State Tournament for the first time since 2019.

Williams will also teach math, and will move from the high school to middle school.

“The situation was that, within our community she was required to travel to the middle schools in order to tutor math students,” Ward said. “When you’re on a completely different campus, it’s a lot harder to keep track of the training and activities that need to be completed in order to be a successful head coach.

“Coach Williams understands that. This isn’t a situation in which she performed poorly or was in any way softball-related to softball in any way. This is a situation in which she was required elsewhere and I think she’s aware of it, and is comfortable with the change.”

Update

As we reported on Tuesday The Calhoun County Board of Education accepted the promotion of Sprayberry and Muncher from interim head coaches to permanent head coaches.

“I am thrilled for the chance to continue serving members of the White Plains community,” Muncher declared.

Muncher has graduated from Ballard High School in Louisville, Ky., where she was the 2015 class 3A Player of the Year. She was also a four-time all-state pick. She was a two-year player playing at the University of South Carolina and completed her professional career in Jacksonville State.

Muncher was named to an appearance on the 2016 SEC All-Freshman Scholar Athlete Team. She was twice-time SEC academic all-American.She was instrumental in helping JSU achieve their first title in the year title in the 2018 Ohio Valley Conference title and the regular season OVC title.

She was an assistant coach of an elite travel team called the Tennessee Mojo-Cherry, and started an online travel clinic. She was an instructor full-time in the school Top Gun (Oxford), and also started a student-athlete mental health awareness program known as, “I am, I play.”

She is the co-founder of GRIT Softball Academy in Anniston.

“Coach Muncher has been around softball for a long time whether either playing, or as a coach” Ward said. “She has the drive to succeed as a coach and hopes to see our program keep being as good as it was previously.”

Sprayberry is about to complete his 18th school year White Plains. At the varsity level, he’s served as an assistant coach for football and basketball for boys. When he was offered the opportunity to coach basketball for girls He said that”I “jumped at the chance with both feet.”

“I advised the junior high girls following the county championship the next time I got the chance to coach them once more I would certainly like to do it,” he said. “With the seniors that we have coming into the future, it’s an exceptional group. The privilege to coach them will be a blast.”

Ward was awed by Sprayberry’s dedication to his job.

“He is coach in three sports and gives an enormous amount of his time to the WPHS students,” Ward said. WPHS!” Ward said. “He has been involved with our programs for years as an ex- WPHS student and as a coach. He knows the elements needed to be successful.”