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Terrific Tonya
Published December 19, 2009
Boaz varsity girls basketball coach Tonya Littleton suspected something was up when she noticed more of her former players than usual attending Tuesday’s game against Southside at Pirate Gym.
The former players gathered for a surprise tribute to Littleton, celebrating her milestone 300th victory.
The Boaz Halfcourt Club and school officials organized the event to recognize their coach, who was selected for induction into the Marshall County Sports Hall of Fame in 2010.
“I had a suspicion, but I didn’t know it was going to be that,” Littleton said.
“I’m just overwhelmed. I’m speechless that all these people would go to this much trouble for me.
“To everyone that put this together and would go to all this trouble for me, I’m really thankful and appreciative.”
But no one involved in planning the event — which included an on-court presentation of gifts and a reception in the girls gym — believed it was any trouble.
“Tonya is as good as any coach — men’s game, women’s game — that I know of,” said Boaz Principal Lowell Smith.
“She’ll compare with any basketball coach I know. She’s a pleasure to work with.”
Jacie Scott is a senior member of Littleton’s 2009-10 team.
“We helped Coach Littleton get her 300th win and that meant a lot to her, but it meant something to us too because we got to help her reach that,” Scott said.
“She’s tough in practice, I’m sure all coaches are, but deep down she loves all of us, and she’s fun to be around.”
‘We’re very, very lucky to have her’
Tim Whitt served as president of the Boaz Halfcourt Club for five years.
His daughter, Caitlin, is a sophomore player for Gadsden State. Whitt led the Lady Pirates to a 29-4 record and a runner-up finish in the Class 4A Northeast Regional during her senior season in 2007-08.
“I can speak from my child’s experience with her, and she’s a better person and certainly a better player for playing for Tonya,” Whitt said. “We’re very, very lucky to have her here in Boaz.
“If you’re going to play for Tonya, you’re going to be tough and you’re going to play defense, or you’re not going to play.
“She stresses that from day one, and I think that’s a characteristic of every team she’s ever had. Good teams or bad teams, they’ve all been tough and played hard.”
‘It was like family’
Devin Smith’s senior class compiled a 117-13 record under Littleton’s leadership. That record included winning regional championships in 2001 and 2002, as well as bringing home the 5A state crown in 2001.
“I think the work ethic that was demanded by her was countered by us also, that we always wanted to give her 110 percent because it was like family,” Smith said.
“She had watched us in games from the time we were in the sixth grade and she followed us, and most varsity coaches don’t do that.
“So having her be there from the sixth grade up watching us play and encouraging us, kind of critiquing us on how we were doing, by the time we all joined back together on varsity, it was kind of family so we bonded together.
“When there were two-tenths of a second left in the state finals in Birmingham and the coach called that timeout, it was almost like a bittersweet moment because everything we had worked for … we all just crashed over there and hugged all together, because it was something that we really had worked for since the time we were in the sixth grade and dreamed about.
“She’s the reason we dreamed about it, because she pounded in our heads ‘You’re going to be good, you’ve just got to work at it.’
“I think it’s great, the 300th win. It’s definitely an honor for her and an honor to be a part of playing for her.”
Always a champion
Patrick Williams and Littleton have been life-long friends.
Williams is a former assistant coach under Littleton. He now coaches the Boaz junior varsity boys.
“Tonya and I started kindergarten together, and except for only a very few years of our lives, we have gone to school together and worked at the same place,” Williams said.
“I remember when we won the state championship while at Snead State in 1990, when Coach (John) Kitchens took her out of the game and the game was secure, she came over to the bench, and we just celebrated with an embrace.
“That was the first championship of that caliber that either of us had won. It was a great feeling.
“She is and always has been a champion in everything she has tackled. Most of all, after all these years, I’m still proud to call her my friend.”
Praising his sister
Littleton’s brother, Brian Hinton, has served as her assistant coach for 12 years.
“It’s really been amazing,” Littleton said. “I’ve learned so much by coaching along side her for 12 years now.
“She knows kids and she loves her kids through thick and thin, and she makes sure they know that. I think that’s the main thing I take from watching her coach in practice and hearing her talk before and after the games.
“She never loses faith in her teams, she never accepts anything other than their best and she always finds a way to pick the girls up when things take a wrong turn.
“That’s what makes her a great coach, and that’s why I love coaching along side her.”
Littleton is thankful for the opportunity she’s received to invest in the lives of so many young women since she became head coach in the 1994-95 season.
“I’ve been very fortunate in the 16 years that I’ve been here that I’ve had the opportunity to coach some wonderful, wonderful kids,” she said.
“And I’ve had great parental support, and I mean that’s huge.
“I’ve had some great players too, and that makes my job a lot easier when you have players that are capable of playing.
“I can’t believe it’s been 16 years. It doesn’t seem like it’s been that long actually.”
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