Steps Down After 23 Years as Eagles' Mentor

BRIDGEWATER, Va. --- Bridgewater College head basketball coach Bill Leatherman has announced his retirement after 23 years at the helm of the program.

Leatherman was hired as the head coach at Bridgewater College in 1985.

In just his second season, Leatherman led the Eagles to the Old Dominion Athletic Conference regular season title with a 17-9 record. A year later, Bridgewater won the 1987-88 ODAC championship and earned a berth to the NCAA Division III tournament - the College's first-ever appearance in postseason play. That team finished with a 24-5 record, the best record during the Leatherman years.

Bridgewater made two more trips to the NCAA tournament. The 1995-96 team earned an at-large bid and finished with an 18-10 record. The next season, the Eagles finished with a 21-8 record and advanced to the Round of 16 in the NCAA tournament.

Leatherman was named the ODAC Coach of the Year four times - 1987, 1989, 1996 and 2005. He was named the South Region Coach of the Year in 1987, 1988, 1996 and 2005. Following the 2005-06 season, Leatherman received the National Association of Basketball Coaches (NABC) Guardians Award for Advocacy. The honor is one of the top awards a coach can receive from the NABC.

During his tenure at BC, Leatherman coached three All-Americans - Ramsey Yeatts, Dan Rush and Kyle Williford. His players earned recognition on the All-ODAC first team 17 times and the second team nine times.

Leatherman's 1989 team led all divisions in the NCAA in field goal percentage, making 55 percent of its shots. In 1992, the Eagles led Division III in shooting percentage.

Leatherman finishes his career with 335 wins and 262 losses at Bridgewater. He has the most wins of any men's basketball coach in the College's history. He earned his 300^th career win during the 2004-05 season when the Eagles defeated rival Eastern Mennonite. His final team at BC finished with a 13-13 record.

Leatherman started his coaching career in 1966 at Staunton River High School and began his college coaching career in 1979 as an assistant coach on Lou Campanelli's staff at James Madison University.

In his six seasons at James Madison, the Dukes competed in three consecutive NCAA tournaments, notching first-round wins over national powers Georgetown, Ohio State and West Virginia.

This release is courtesy of the Bridgewater College sports information department.