Following up on a rumor that HoopDirt.com posted earlier today (DII DIRT: Walker Resigns at Malone University). The official statement was just released by the university regarding Walkers resignation…
Malone University Men’s Basketball Coach Tim Walker has announced his resignation to accept a position in the business sector. Walker informed his players of his decision earlier in the week as the team returned from a service-learning trip to the Dominican Republic. Malone Athletic Director Charlie Grimes announced on Wednesday that Pioneer assistant coach Casey Kaufman will serve as the program’s interim coach during the 2015-16 campaign. Malone will then proceed with a search for a new head coach following the conclusion of the season.
In six seasons as head coach, Walker led the Pioneers to an 83-86 record including a final four appearance in the Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference Tournament in the 2013-2014 season.
“This is bittersweet for our community,” said Grimes. “We’re enormously happy for Tim to have this opportunity to transition to a new career path. At the same time we’re sorry to see him step away from a position in which he provided inspired leadership. Tim is an outstanding coach and an even better mentor for our student-athletes. He cares deeply for his players and always took seriously his role to model Christian leadership and a life of service to others. We’re delighted that Tim and his family will remain in the Greater Canton community and a part of our lives.”
The transition is also bittersweet for Walker. “I am very thankful for the opportunity to have coached at Malone for the last six years,” said Walker. “I am grateful to Dr. Chris Abrams and Charlie Grimes for giving me the opportunity to coach here and for the support they have given our program. My family has been blessed by the players and families that have been a part of our program over these last six years. It is truly difficult to express how much they have meant to us. We are also grateful for this new opportunity in the business sector and for the chance to stay in the Canton area. This past week of traveling with our guys in the Dominican Republic was a perfect ending to my time here and I am so thankful for the way our players have embraced my family through this transition.”
Kaufman, in his first year on the Pioneer coaching staff, spent the previous three years as an assistant men’s basketball coach at the College of Wooster, helping the Fighting Scots to three consecutive NCAA Division III National Tournament appearances and a combined record of 73-21. His coaching resume also includes significant camp experience, having previously served as co-head trainer/director of FULL40 Basketball Training – a program conducted at various local schools, spanning Ashland, Delaware, Holmes, Richland, Stark, Summit, Tuscarawas and Wayne counties.
Kaufman, a graduate of Heidelberg University, is a native of nearby Sugarcreek, Ohio and helped Berlin Hiland High School reach the Division IV state semifinals in 2007.
“I am extremely honored by the opportunity afforded me from Malone University,” said Kaufman. “I’d like to thank first and foremost Jesus Christ. I truly believe this is where he wants me. Additionally, I’d like to thank Coach Walker for not only the influence he has had on me in a short time but also the example he has set for the players here at Malone. I’d also like to thank Coach Moore, Coach Cline, Coach Schlabach, my parents and Jason Mishler for the influence and opportunities they have given me. Malone’s platform as a Christian school makes this an outstanding opportunity and having spent time with the guys in the Dominican Republic, I am thrilled to be able to work with this group of young men.”
http://malonepioneers.com/news/2015/8/19/MBB_0819152643.aspx
Photo Courtesy: Malone Athletics
