Tony Jones Named Head Coach
Vallejo, CA –California Maritime Academy's Athletic Director Marv Christopher has announced that lead assistant coach, Tony Jones, has been elevated to fill the women's basketball head coaching vacancy. With this promotion, Jones becomes the third women's basketball coach in the program's young history.
Christopher remarked on the hiring, "Tony Jones has been an Assistant Coach for the Cal Maritime Women's team for the past two years. He has been exposed to collegiate recruiting, scheduling and coaching. Tony has proven that he can make a difference at this level. His ambition to work hard and to set high goals will make him a valuable asset to the program. Cal Maritime is proud to name Tony Jones as the new Head Women's Basketball Coach."
In his two years as Mike Warrington's head assistant, Coach Jones helped lead Cal Maritime on a steady path of growth. In 2013-14, Jones' first season on staff, the lady Keelhaulers finished the season with a 10-16 record and a fifth place finish in the conference. Jones worked closely with two All-Conference performers from this team, Tatjana Pitts (1st team) and Shante Sands (2nd Team). In his second season with Cal Maritime, the team showed great improvement, finishing with a 13-10 overall record, a second place Cal Pac Conference ranking and qualifying for the Cal Pac Conference Tournament. Coach Jones played an integral part in the Keelhaulers accomplishing their most successful season in school history, which included their first ever winning season. Jones assisted in developing three all-conference performers from this team, Karissa Booker and Joie Camalo (1st Team), and Toni Anaya (2nd Team). With Coach Jones' assistance, previous head coach Mike Warrington earned the 2014-15 Cal Pac Conference Coach of the Year honors.
Prior to arriving at Cal Maritime, Coach Tony Jones started his coaching career at Lewis & Clark College in Portland, Oregon as a student assistant coach. In the following years Jones made stops at several Portland Metro Area high schools, with his most successful stop being a four year stint at The Portland Waldorf School. As the head coach at Portland Waldorf, Jones led his team to a conference championship and a #2 state ranking, earning Jones a Conference Coach of the Year award. Jones was also named a head coach for the OSAA 1A all-star championship series for the 2009-10 season. With the upcoming 2015-16 season, Coach Tony Jones begins his first year as a collegiate head coach, with 22 years experience as a high school head coach or collegiate assistant coach.
When asked about being named the new head coach for the Keelhauler women's basketball team, Jones commented, "I am extremely honored and excited to have the opportunity to coach this incredible program. Cal Maritime is a special place with fantastic people that are willing to have a little faith and take a chance on me. I plan to work tirelessly to prove to this great institution and especially the outstanding and supportive Athletic Department that they made the correct choice in hiring me! I look forward to the opportunity to continue building upon the success that we have started to generate with the women's basketball program," said Jones.
A Vallejo native, Jones graduated from St. Patrick-St. Vincent's High School in Vallejo and then attended the Naval Academy Prep School in Newport, Rhode Island. Following his year at Navy Prep, Jones attended Lewis & Clark College in Portland, Oregon and graduated with a Bachelor's Degree in Psychology, in 1998. Jones returned to California in 2013 in hopes of advancing his coaching career. Being a Vallejo native he sought out an opportunity to coach at Cal Maritime, while simultaneously pursuing and earning his Master's degree in Coaching and Athletic Administration, from Concordia University, Irvine.
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