Fort Collins hires Mountain View's Patrick Huddleston as new girls basketball coach
Fort Collins didn't have to look far for its new girls basketball coach.
Patrick Huddleston has been hired to lead the Lambkins' girls program after four seasons at Mountain View in Loveland, FCHS athletics director Kyle Tregoning confirmed Tuesday.
"I didn’t know I was looking for a new job, but the allure of getting to work in Fort Collins at a place that has a tradition like FCHS with the support of the community is amazing," Huddleston said.
He took over a struggling Mountain View program in 2020 and went 45-43 in four years, including a 16-9 season this past year that featured a 5A Sweet 16 appearance. Mountain View was 12-34 in the two seasons prior to his arrival.
Prior to his time at Mountain View, Huddleston was a girls softball head coach and varsity basketball assistant coach in Andover, Kansas.
He succeeds Kerstin Young, an FCHS alumnus who took over midway through the 2021-22 season and went 43-21 with three 6A playoff appearances in her first head coaching gig.
The school parted ways with Young last month, and she said the reasons given involved game management and issues around handling multi-sport athletes.
"Patrick's enthusiasm and willingness to put in the time and work with all the girls really stood out," Tregoning said. "We trust him to keep building the program."
Similar to the boys side, the Lambkin girls lose five of their top eight players from last season. However, they do return rising senior standout Avery Alcaraz at guard.
Huddleston said he will always adapt to any team's personnel but hopes to continue Fort Collins' tough, defensive-minded style of play.
"My philosophy is to do what’s best for the kids you have, so I’m flexible," he said.
"Something I've brought with me from (Kansas) is a hard-nosed defensive mentality. We’ll make sure that we can guard teams well and give ourselves a chance to win."
This article originally appeared on Fort Collins Coloradoan: Fort Collins High School hires Patrick Huddleston as girls basketball coach
