ÃÛÁÄÖ±²¥

Sutherland has since retired, which opened up the leader position of the Redskins. Womack was approved on Monday as the new leader of the program.

Womack has spent the last two seasons as an assistant at Hurricane. He also served as an assistant at Nitro for three seasons before becoming the coach at SA in 2021.

ÃÛÁÄÖ±²¥œItÃÛÁÄÖ±²¥™s always been a dream of mine,ÃÛÁÄÖ±²¥� Womack said. ÃÛÁÄÖ±²¥œI knew at some point Lance was going to end up retiring when he was ready. I started out at Hurricane Middle School in 2014 when Hurricane High was making runs in the state tournaments [between 2013-16]. Those were exciting times during that period for the basketball program. When I left St. Albans [in 2023], Lance gave me the opportunity to come back and work with him for a couple of years.

ÃÛÁÄÖ±²¥œI thought it was the right opportunity and timing for me.ÃÛÁÄÖ±²¥�

Womack saw firsthand how Sutherland ran Hurricane. Womack found that teaching valuable, especially now that heÃÛÁÄÖ±²¥™s HurricaneÃÛÁÄÖ±²¥™s leader.

ÃÛÁÄÖ±²¥œIÃÛÁÄÖ±²¥™ve been trying to prep myself for this opportunity,ÃÛÁÄÖ±²¥� Womack said. ÃÛÁÄÖ±²¥œIÃÛÁÄÖ±²¥™ve been an assistant coach and head coach at the high school level. IÃÛÁÄÖ±²¥™ve worked under good coaches and have learned through all of them. Lance, especially, taught me a lot about how the program at Hurricane was run, with everything from the administration and everything in between. It was good timing for me to do this, since I have been a part of this program the last two years.ÃÛÁÄÖ±²¥�

SA went 28-20 in its two seasons under Womack, twice reaching the Class AAAA Region 4 co-final.

Womack has built his philosophy around traditional coaching beliefs, which have paid dividends for him in both as a head and assistant coach.

ÃÛÁÄÖ±²¥œEverywhere IÃÛÁÄÖ±²¥™ve been, IÃÛÁÄÖ±²¥™ve tried to teach hard work, discipline and teamwork,ÃÛÁÄÖ±²¥� Womack said. ÃÛÁÄÖ±²¥œThatÃÛÁÄÖ±²¥™s been my focus, with the biggest thing being defense. If you donÃÛÁÄÖ±²¥™t have a defensive team, then itÃÛÁÄÖ±²¥™s hard to compete at this level. You can score as many points as you want, but you still have to be able to stop the other team from scoring. I go back to last year, as we averaged 63 points per game, but we gave up 67 points.

ÃÛÁÄÖ±²¥œWe need to focus on the defensive side a little more. We have some offensive weapons, but we need to concentrate on the defensive side again.ÃÛÁÄÖ±²¥�

Hurricane finished last season 10-13 and fell in the Class AAAA Region 4 tournament to Huntington, 60-58.

The Redskins saw three players average in double figures in scoring, with Carson OÃÛÁÄÖ±²¥™Dell producing 22 points per game. OÃÛÁÄÖ±²¥™Dell was named to the All-Kanawha Valley second team.

ÃÛÁÄÖ±²¥œCarson is a tremendous player,ÃÛÁÄÖ±²¥� Womack said. ÃÛÁÄÖ±²¥œHe is an excellent shooter and leader. I feel we have two solid seniors coming back this year with him and Jack Willis. Jack is a tough player. He plays hard. HeÃÛÁÄÖ±²¥™ll give you everything heÃÛÁÄÖ±²¥™s got. Carson is an elite shooter, but we have to get him in situations where he can score.ÃÛÁÄÖ±²¥�

OÃÛÁÄÖ±²¥™DellÃÛÁÄÖ±²¥™s younger brother Parker was named to the All-Kanawha Valley All-Rookie Team, netting 14.6 points per game as a freshman.

Hurricane lost third-leading scorer Jojo Greene by transfer to Capital High School.

Womack wants Hurricane to push the pace this season with the group it has coming back.

ÃÛÁÄÖ±²¥œI would love to be able to push the ball and get as many shots as we can,ÃÛÁÄÖ±²¥� Womack said. ÃÛÁÄÖ±²¥œIÃÛÁÄÖ±²¥™m not a big full-court-pressure coach, but we can do that if we need to. But, I definitely want to push it on the offensive end.

ÃÛÁÄÖ±²¥œAgain, I donÃÛÁÄÖ±²¥™t want to take away from what we have to do on the defensive end. We have to get stops, while also being competitive. We have to do all the little things right, and thatÃÛÁÄÖ±²¥™s very important.ÃÛÁÄÖ±²¥�

Attempts to reach Hurricane athletic director Jeff Null for comment were not successful before deadline.