SMCC names Gossom new girls basketball coach

St. Mary Central Catholic has its new girls basketball coach. Bobby Gossom will lead the Panthers beginning with the 2022-23 season. He most recently was the JV boys basketball coach at Margaretta. "My goal is to lead a program that the church, school, parents, administration and community will be proud of," Gossom said in a release. "I want to help these young ladies develop as individuals, students and basketball players." Gossom takes over for Leslie Millis, who stepped in as SMCC's coach last season. He brings more than a decade of coaching experience to the Panthers' bench. A Lucas High School grad, Gossom began his coaching career in college as the women's coach of the Mansfield Mavericks, which draws players from Ohio State-Mansfield and North Central State College. Gossom then coached the men's team there before shifting into the high school ranks. Gossom has been a varsity head coach at Galion (boys), Crestline (girls) and his alma mater Lucas (boys). He has a bachelor's degree in business administration from Mount Nazarene University and a master's degree in business administration from Capella University. "We are both excited and fortunate to have Coach Gossom take over leadership of our girls basketball program," SMCC athletic director Steve Ruthsatz said in a release. "He has a lot of great experience coaching both boys and girls at the high school level." Gossom coached Galion most recently, in 2019-20 and 2020-21, before moving to Erie County to be a business teacher at Margaretta. The Panthers concluded the 2021-22 season with a loss to Monroeville in a sectional semifinal to finish with an 0-22 record. Senior starting guards Brittan Kromer and Charlotte Hoover-Thomas both graduate from that team. Among the returners Gossom will likely lean on are forwards Natalie Peugeot and Amanda Millis. Peugeot was second on the Panthers with a 6.3 points per game average. SMCC did show improvement as the season went on, playing tighter contests in six of their eight SBC River Division rematches. "I'm looking forward to meeting the girls and getting in the gym to work with them this summer," Gossom said. "We want to start building a culture where we focus on our effort and attitude, and that process begins in the offseason."