Lakewood Ranch girls basketball coach steps down

The thing Tina Hadley is most proud of from her 10 years at Lakewood Ranch High is turning the girls basketball team into a full-fledged program, with lofty expectations and a win-now mindset. 

That is the legacy she is leaving behind.

Hadley has accepted the girls basketball head coaching job at McEachern High in Powder Springs, Ga. She has family in the Atlanta area, and she and husband Carlton Hadley Jr. have thought about moving to the state for a few years.

Now that their son, Chris Hadley, is headed to John Carroll University for football, the time is right. 

"It was a tough decision," Hadley said. "I accepted the offer and hung up the phone, and I was like 'Oh, my God, I'm leaving these kids.' I'm leaving behind a lot of valuable relationships. It's bittersweet." 

She believes the girls basketball program will be OK without her. There's a strong foundation, she said.

Hadley coached the Mustangs to the 2016 Class 7A championship game, the school's first-ever district championship in 2013, and another last season, before a string of injuries caused the team to fall in the regional finals. 

"I enjoyed my time there," Hadley said of Lakewood Ranch. "The school was great to my family. The administration was great. I'm going to miss it." 

No successor has been announced, though Hadley said no current assistants plan to apply for the position. 

Carlton Hadley Jr. has also left his position as the Lakewood Ranch football team's defensive coordinator.