Pistner earns 400th career victory as head coach of Lady Crusaders
Ken Pistner has been at the helm of the Lady Crusader basketball team since the 2002-2003 season, and on Wednesday evening he recorded his 400th career victory as head coach of the squad in the team’s 49-19 victory over the Coudersport Lady Falcons.
The win came at the perfect time as the Lady Crusaders played their first two games of the year at home, meaning Pistner was able to his 399th and 400th career wins in front of the team’s home fans. ECC will now be on the road for their next three games.
Prior to taking over the Lady Crusaders, Pistner was involved with the Lady Cavaliers.
“I coached five or six years in the Lady Cavalier program,” Pistner said.
Pistner shared that before he took over at the varsity level, former ECC headmaster John Kowach was the Lady Crusaders’ head coach.
“John Kowach was moving on, and John approached me and we had talked about the position of head coach,” Pistner said.
When he took over as the Lady Crusaders’ head coach, Pistner admitted that he did not give much thought this far into the future of his career and reaching a 400-win milestone two decades later.
“I did not (think I’d still be head coach this far in the future),” Pistner said. “I told John originally that I was in it for the long haul, but I never really anticipated 21 years.”
In his first season as head coach, Pistner led the Lady Crusaders to a 19-6 record.
The following year was the first of only three seasons where Pistner’s squad did not finish with a winning record. In all three of those occasions, the Lady Crusaders’ loss total only exceeded their win total by one. In 2003-2004 the team went 12-13, in 20152016 they went 14-15, and in 2018-2019 they went 11-12.
Pistner attributed the team’s success over the years to a variety of factors.
“Number one, we’ve had a lot of good coaches throughout my tenure up here,” Pistner said. “We’ve had a lot of good coaches that have been able to help me out and the feeder program. The Lady Cavaliers, they start in third grade and go up to sixth, and then our junior high program goes seventh and eighth, and then high school is ninth and on. We have a good feeder program and a lot of good coaches at the grade school level and a lot of athletes. You need players.”
Among the coaches who Pistner has worked with over the years have been his own brothers: Alec, Rex, and Glen. Alec is a current assistant coach for the varsity team.
“Alec started off originally when I coached, and he took a few years off. I would say he took four or five years off, but both of my other brothers have also coached,” Pistner said. “Glen and Rex have also coached, and all of them have coached at the grade school level as well. Rex and Glen coached the Lady Cavaliers, and Alec coached with the boys’ program.”
Pistner now has a career record with the Lady Crusaders of 400144 and has been averaging 21 wins per season. He has also led the team to three District 9 titles. Discussing the secret to his success, Pistner shared that it has a lot to do with treating his players with respect.
“Over the years, players and society have changed quite a bit,” Pistner said. “I think you have to have a lot of respect for the kids, and if you show them respect, they’ll work their tails off for you.”
As for why he has stuck with coaching the Lady Crusaders for so long, Pistner cited his desire to give back to the community and his enjoyment of coaching at Elk County Catholic.
“I always think it’s good to give back to the community, and Elk County Catholic is such a good, family community up here and it’s a very easy place to coach at,” Pistner said. “The kids are all very coachable, and the school is very supportive. The school makes it easy to be a coach at Elk County Catholic.”
Pistner also expressed his gratitude to ECC Athletic Director Aaron Straub for all of his help and support throughout his tenure as head coach of the Lady Crusaders.
“Aaron, as the athletic director, has been very supportive over the years, and again, that makes it much easier to coach at this school. I want to give thanks to Aaron for being so supportive,” Pistner said.
While the milestone win will be credited to Pistner’s career total, he stressed that the success of the Lady Crusader basketball program goes far beyond his role as head coach.
“(It is) all of the help that I’ve had over the years with the coaches, and our parents of the players have been very supportive along the way, and the school,” Pistner said. “It takes a lot to have a successful program. It’s not just the head coach. It’s the whole school system, the whole coaching system, and the players as well.”