Bruce C. Bryan: My guest today on Naturally Curious is Coach Emily Dunton. She took over the women's basketball program at Hollins University almost 10 years ago. The season that just ended finished with the Hollins team having their first winning record in their NCAA era. That means that for the first time since Hollins University joined the Old Dominion Athletic Conference almost 45 years ago, Coach Dunton led the Hollins team to that winning record.
Not only that, but her dad's an assistant coach with the team, and that adds some spice as well. This is going to be a brilliant show chock-full of people stories, leadership lessons, family conversations, and so much more. All the good stuff in one episode. Plus, I get to talk basketball, which is one of my favorite subjects.
We'll hear all about how Emily became a head coach, what she's done to fuel this turnaround, and how this resume boost plays into building a back-to-back success program. Get to know Coach Emily Dunton coming up next on today's episode of Naturally Curious
Dunton Segment 1
Bruce C. Bryan: Coach Emily Dunton, thank you for being my guest on the show today.
Coach Emilee Dunton: Absolutely. I'm excited to be here.
Bruce C. Bryan: So let's talk hoops first of all. What kind of offense do you employ to drive your success, Coach?
Coach Emilee Dunton: We like to play up-tempo and transition, and then obviously in the half court we like to take advantage of mismatches.
Bruce C. Bryan: Oh, so it's all about being on the move and being on the go, right?
Coach Emilee Dunton: Absolutely.
Bruce C. Bryan: So, tell me a little bit more about you. I know you played point guard- Mm-hmm ... and then you played all three levels of college too. That was kinda interesting.
Coach Emilee Dunton: Yeah, so I always like to say before the transfer portal was a big thing, I actually kind of experienced the transferring.
And so my freshman year I played at Longwood University, which was Division I, and then I transferred. My coach... I had three different head coaches- Oh, wow ... during my freshman year, so that was an experience. That's a lot. Yes. And I ended up transferring to a Division II school, Francis Marion University in South Carolina, and they have a really rich history of women's basketball.
I knew I always wanted to be a basketball coach, and so Francis Marion was a great next stop. And then after that experience, it was, like, 13 out of the 16 girls transferred. It wasn't the best, and so I ended up, coming back home to Randolph College, and my high school coach was at Randolph, and they were growing the program, and ended up playing Division III.
Bruce C. Bryan: So they ended up reconnecting you, or you ended up- Yep ... reconnecting with your coach in college then too.
Coach Emilee Dunton: Yes, absolutely.
Bruce C. Bryan: And you, you were in, you were in the Lynchburg area in high school- Yes ... right?
Coach Emilee Dunton: So my dad was a Division I men's college basketball coach, so I grew up, around Division I, and that's kind of what my ultimate goal was out of high school.
But then, playing at the Division III level really found like, just immersed me in a new culture that I loved.
Bruce C. Bryan: So talk for a second, 'cause we're gonna have a lot of listeners who are not as familiar with basketball- Mm ... and we're gonna have the diehard hoopsters. So we wanna talk about- ... all parts of this, but talk about D-I, D-II, D-III, and you're at Hollins, which is a Division III institution.
Yes. So maybe talk a little bit about the differences, and then, and then a little bit about Hollins.
Coach Emilee Dunton: Yeah. So Division I is, a lot of times a full-ride opportunity, and so you're playing against some of the bigger universities. You have to go to summer school. It's really a year-round commitment. And then Division II, it's a little bit less of a commitment, but it's still all year.
You're on full-ride. And then Division III, what I love is that you still get to play the game of basketball, but you're going more academic scholarships, um, and you get to compete for championships, but you get to kind of immerse your whole self instead of just being a student athlete. A, a
Bruce C. Bryan: little more maybe well-rounded-
Coach Emilee Dunton: Yes
Bruce C. Bryan: experience. I do know a lot of, Division III athletes who probably work as hard as the Division I- Absolutely ... programs, right? But, without all the Bells and whistles, I guess- Yes, yes ... so to speak. So, from what I know, like I said, you were a point guard, so tell our non-basketball people what that means and how that plays into your approach with life and as a coach.
Coach Emilee Dunton: Yeah, so as a point guard, you're kind of the, coach on the floor. You're the g- general, um, you get everyone organized, so there's five people out on the court, and you're setting up the offense, communicating the defense. And since I was a little girl, that was my position, and I feel like that's kind of led me to where I am today as a head basketball coach.
Bruce C. Bryan: And does that impact the way you lead and how you approach even your players?
Coach Emilee Dunton: Absolutely. I think as a coach, it helps you be able to see all five players on the court and how to best put them in a situation. And then once again, you're, as a head coach, you're leading every day, by being in front of a group, and as a point guard, that's what you're doing in the game.
Bruce C. Bryan: So I'm Bruce Bryan. This is Naturally Curious. You're hearing from Coach Emily Dunton. She's the head women's basketball coach at Hollins University. But also, you're in administration, too. Did I see that somewhere? You have some other ancillary o- Responsibilities, which I think is probably oftentimes part of what happens in a Division III program.
Coach Emilee Dunton: Absolutely. So I'm the senior woman administrator at Hollins, and so it's nice that I get to interact with all of the student athletes and also see some of the administrative side. And I love that part. That's one of the things that I love about being m- when I was a Division III athlete and now as a coach, is that you get to wear many hats.
Um, and at the Division I level, you're kind of only focused on your program, and so it's nice to be able to be a part of all the different aspects of Hollins.
Bruce C. Bryan: Yeah, I think that's one of the things that's different. If you're James Franklin or, one of the, the head coaches at Virginia Tech, you are totally locked in and focused only on basketball- Mm-hmm
and probably your, team. But you're looking at things maybe as a leader a little more holistically.
Coach Emilee Dunton: Absolutely.
Bruce C. Bryan: So.
Coach Emilee Dunton: And so I always talk about, um, when we're recruiting student athletes, that we want them to become the best version of themselves, and they're not gonna play basketball until their 30s and 40s.
Um, they're gonna end up being moms and leaders and CEOs, and so we really work on the whole person and not just being an athlete.
Bruce C. Bryan: I think that is really interesting, and I would imagine your experience as a transfer and your experience growing up in a basketball home probably has shaped a lot of your ability to pull talent in.
Um, NIL's impacting all kinds of athletics. Is it an impact in the Division III arena as well?
Coach Emilee Dunton: It has not hit the Division III arena as much. Uh, one of my recruiting goals is always to talk about the student athlete and how they're going to best fit at Hollins. And so obviously with the NIL, I feel like coaches are, you're able to offer the money aspect.
But at, at the Division III level, it really is about the whole person, like you said. And so we talk about, once again, how can you become the best version of yourself, and then showing them how that's going to happen at Hollins.
Bruce C. Bryan: And I guess the impact might not just be NIL, name, image, and likeness- Mm-hmm
which is how college kids now, can get paid, um, some of them quite handsomely. That's a whole different show. Yeah. But it's also created an atmosphere where people are transferring more, and they're looking for that better situation, and it feels like everyone, probably at all levels- Mm-hmm ... is perpetually looking for that better situation.
Some of that is pe- and I wanna talk about this later, but people in their ears telling them they should be playing more, they should be getting more points, they should be getting more statistics, whatever it is. That's gotta be something that's impacting your program just like all the other programs, right?
Coach Emilee Dunton: The impact that it's had the past few years is that we ended up landing a big-time transfer. And so Gracie Hufford, she went division two, to USC Aiken, ended up transferring back to Holland. She was from Lord Botetourt. And so we haven't necessarily in the past few years had any of our major, um, scoring players leave, but it is a huge part of at the end of every year, it's not just your seniors.
You have to meet with each player and see if they're going to return.
Bruce C. Bryan: So people are talking now, Coach, about, uh, your winning record and the fact that it was the first winning record, I think, in 45 years. Mm-hmm. And you're getting noticed when you're probably doing some of the same things you were doing before-
anyway. It's just now you're getting noticed. You're on a radio show like this, and we're talking hoops, and I've seen you on TV and all that kind of stuff. Tell me a little about how that, how that feels and, the differences in doing the same things but getting recognized, I guess.
Coach Emilee Dunton: Yeah, I always take it back to kind of John Wooden, and even if you look at Starbucks and, um, John Gordon, they talk about that anything that Is worthwhile, takes time to build. So it's not just gonna be, you know, a one-year, two-year, quick fix. And obviously taking over Hollins that had not had a winning record in the NCAA era, I knew that it wasn't gonna be a quick fix.
Um, and so I'm just excited right now for the girls who have bought in and stayed the course, that they're able to get the recognition for the program.
Bruce C. Bryan: Do you feel like the platform you got has a chance to propel you to the next place? Is that, like, uh, people that aren't as familiar with, with where you guys stand, do you see building on what's been happening so far?
Coach Emilee Dunton: Absolutely. My goal is for us to become, um, a team that gets an at large bid. And so I think it's really hard to win the ODAC tournament, um, to have that goal. So competitive, right? Yeah, it's so competitive. Um, but I do think that with our scheduling and then with our recruiting, we could be a team that gets an at large bid into the NCAA tournament and compete in what people know as March Madness.
Bruce C. Bryan: So, um, break down what happened last year. Was it a, a ... By the way, this is Naturally Curious. I'm Bruce Bryan. That's Coach Emily Dunton from Hollins University, where she's the head women's basketball coach. So break down what happened last year. Was it better talent, a new system, new people fitting in together?
Kind of what led to that, that jump last year?
Coach Emilee Dunton: So last year was the first year, um, since I've taken over the program that we had the majority of upperclassmen. Um, as you said in the introduction, I started at Hollins in 2018, and then everyone knows in 2020 was COVID. Um, and so that was, 2020 and '21 Or it was gonna be '21, '22 year we did not play.
And that was gonna be the year that I had the most upperclassmen. And so we didn't get that season, and then it was basically a complete rebuild. And so from there, it, the last few years we've just been rebuilding, and now we had, um, the majority of upperclassmen and experience. They had been in the program.
A lot of p- times people didn't realize that we were playing against fifth-year guards. So I'd brought in a huge freshman class, and they had been playing against a lot of really talented upperclassmen, and now everyone had graduated from COVID.
Bruce C. Bryan: Right, because COVID kept people around an extra year. Yes.
So you had 18, 17, 18, maybe 19-year-old kids, sorry, playing against 22, 23-year-old- Absolutely ... young adults, and that had to make an impact. So now you have some of the more senior people. Yes. That's probably also helped with recruiting as well a little bit, so now you can, can bring in replacement, not replacements, but replenishments.
Coach Emilee Dunton: Yes. Right? Absolutely. And a little bit easier to be able to see exactly what we need to bring in. Um, and so as a coach, I've also focused on with being, growing up with my dad as a college coach, it's always been about the student athlete experience. Um, and so making sure that when they come in, we're not over-promising someone, um, and ex- what they could have and then not give them.
Can't guarantee
Bruce C. Bryan: they're gonna play- Yes ... because now they're on a really good team. Yes. And I'm guessing that some of your senior upper class, um, players become good recruiters as well- Absolutely ... and talking about the program, and they've bought in, so now you have some cascading leadership. And when we were talking about the show, I said it was gonna be about leadership because so much of what's you see on the court is really reflected in what people might experience in their workplaces, too.
Right. The culture sounds like has shifted.
Coach Emilee Dunton: Yep. Absolutely. And so with the culture shifting, it's just been nice to see the upperclassmen buy in, and like you said, they help recruit. We also, if you look at a lot of Division III schools, they will have 15 to 20 players on their roster. Um, only five players play.
And so at Hollins, we keep our roster at 12, and then we'll have practice players and managers. Okay. So we're still, we still have around 15 to maybe 20 people a part of our program, but they know the expectations coming in. And so that just kind of goes back to the leadership and being able to communicate that early on, so they're not upset when they get there with, "Why am I not playing?"
Bruce C. Bryan: Well, this has been a really interesting first segment, and there were a bunch of questions I didn't even get to. So after the break, we're gonna talk a little bit more about the season and about the coming season, about your dad, who's an assistant coach, and some of the things that are happening. We'll talk about all that, uh, when we come back on Naturally Curious.
Dunton Segment 2
Bruce C. Bryan: Welcome back to Naturally Curious. My guest today is Coach Emily Dunton. She's the head women's basketball coach at Hollins University in Hollins, Virginia. Coach, were you close in other years to breaking through, or was this a big jump that was maybe even a little unexpected?
Coach Emilee Dunton: Yeah. So as we talked about before COVID, we had an 11 win season.
I think we were 11 and 13. And then after we didn't play a year in COVID, we had another year that I think we were 11 and 12. It was once again- So close ... almost .500. And we didn't get to play all of our games due to COVID testing. And then last year we actually had our first .500 win season where we were 12 and 12.
So you've been edging close, right? Yes. You've been on the verge- We've been right on the verge ... for a
Bruce C. Bryan: while. Yes. So I was gonna ask if it's something you, can sustain, but clearly you've been building it, so I think you must feel confident you can sustain what you've built.
Coach Emilee Dunton: Absolutely. That's something that as you're building it, um, you try to put things in place to make sure that it is-- you can have sustained excellence.
And so through the first time, I kind of s- I was extremely young, and so just a go-getter and, um, prior to COVID- You just muscled your way through it, right? Yeah. You're just kind of trying to figure it out. But obviously you don't know, what you're up against. And so I kind of talk about prior to COVID in my coaching career and then after COVID.
And I felt like after COVID there were different things that we looked at in recruiting, our budget improvements, different things that have allowed us to kind of sustain the success each year since COVID, and so that's been nice.
Bruce C. Bryan: So most coaches go quarter to quarter or practice to practice, game to game maybe.
Were you ever able to bask in some of the goodness that happened during this season?
Coach Emilee Dunton: We always just take it one game at a time. And so obviously after any win you're excited 'cause that is the goal, um, is to win games. But at the end of the day, it's still just working towards our vision. And so as a team we set goals, and even though we had achieved some of the goals, you're still working on the next goal.
And so you get excited, you want the girls to feel it, but at the same time you wanna stay focused.
Bruce C. Bryan: And that's kinda what I mean. You're always on the next thing. Yes. And that's very consistent with the coaches and athletes that I've spoken to Through my career, but off-season now, have you had a chance to kind of go, "Holy smokes, what did we do?"
'Cause that's a hard thing to pause and reflect. Have you done that yet, or should we do that together right now?
Coach Emilee Dunton: I know. I'm like, uh-
Bruce C. Bryan: Too busy recruiting the next class. I would ... Yeah. The answer is no, you haven't,
Coach Emilee Dunton: right? Yeah, n- no, I mean, I'm just excited that we are a winning program now on the stat sheet.
I always knew that the way that we ran the program was a winning culture, but it wasn't necessarily on, you know, it wasn't in the record books. Where now people look and go, "Okay, Emily, Hollins is a winning program." And so for that, I'm excited about that we kind of have something concrete to back that up.
Bruce C. Bryan: And you don't have too many moments of quiet with a new baby and all that and administrative jobs that you're doing, but every once in a while, can you catch your breath and say, "Holy smokes, this is, this is cool"?
Coach Emilee Dunton: Yeah, absolutely. The other day I was, in the building and I saw the team was working out together, and it was just something looking over,- add everyone in there and it's just like, wow, we've come so far.
Bruce C. Bryan: So what's it like talking to high school kids these days? I don't wanna mess up your recruiting mojo or anything, but how does the recruiting process work? Is it any different when, than when you were getting recruited?
Coach Emilee Dunton: Absolutely. I, I think technology has changed it so much. And then, like you said, the NIL, the D1, the, travel basketball, everything has transformed.
And so for me, we try to, like I said, pinpoint what we're going to need on our roster, whether it's a post pa- player, whether it's a guard, and then find kind of a top 10 list of players that meet that aspect, and then go after them. And then go
Bruce C. Bryan: talk to them- Yep ... and work them out. So it's still a sales job, right?
Coach Emilee Dunton: Yes, it's absolutely a sales job, and the nice part that I like to say, a lot of times when I took over at Hollins, people would say, "Emily, you're not gonna be able to recruit there. It's all women, so that is so hard. Are you sure?" The nice part is only 5% of high school girls are even interested in attending an all women's college.
So I find out right away, do I have a chance or not? Who's
Bruce C. Bryan: interested. Yeah, right. You'll know.
Coach Emilee Dunton: And so then if I know I have a chance- You can cross them off if not ... then it's like I have a 50/50 chance of getting them, um, 'cause I feel like my staff and I are pretty good recruiters.
Bruce C. Bryan: So you're a little bit older than they are, but I bet you feel like they're, that you're their age.
Is that an odd relationship, with the players?
Coach Emilee Dunton: I have to say now, having a child, I definitely feel a difference. Um, there was a... You know, my first few years, a lot of times when we would go in to eat or anything we had to do, I would walk up to the counter, and they would say, "Where's the coach?" And I would say, "I'm the coach."
Bruce C. Bryan: I'm the coach, right?
Coach Emilee Dunton: Lately I don't get that as much. So I do feel like we are starting to kind of grow a little bit. So
Bruce C. Bryan: Coach, probably the hardest question I have for you in this whole interview, could you still take a couple of these girls in a game if you had to? Can you still hoop?
Coach Emilee Dunton: I, I can definitely still shoot.
Um, I don't know if I... We have a super athletic team, and I don't know if my foot speed can keep up with them. Okay. But I do think if we did some skill stuff, I would definitely
Bruce C. Bryan: So we got the honest answer from Coach Emily Dunton from Hollins University, head women's basketball coach. We talked in the intro about your dad.
Mm-hmm. And you mentioned during the first segment that you grew up in a basketball household, that he was a Division I coach. He's now one of your assistant coaches, right? Mm-hmm. Talk a little bit about that. Talk about Pops. Yes. Do you call him Pops, call him Coach?
Coach Emilee Dunton: We call him Papa Coach D.
Bruce C. Bryan: Papa
Coach Emilee Dunton: Coach D.
Um, so that is his name. And he still lives in Lynchburg, Virginia, so even though he is on staff, he's not at every, um, practice or game. But it is really exciting to be able to have my dad as a part of the program. Um, he is a fabulous recruiter, so if you go back and look up some things, even in the NCAA when he was an assistant coach at the Division I level, he was- was a top 20 recruiter.
Um, and so I feel like growing up as a little girl, I would listen to those phone calls, um, because there was, wasn't texting back then. And so I would- It was all on the telephone, right? Yeah, it was all on the telephone. So at 8:00 at night, he would be in his office calling, calling people, and I would go in and listen.
Um, and so I just kind of grew up around that, and then obviously X's and O's. When you take over a college program, I went from high school, three-year high school coach, into college. The game is so much faster. There's so many things to learn. And so it was just really nice to be able to call him and say, "Hey, Dad, what, what are your thoughts?"
Um, and so those are things that we still do.
Bruce C. Bryan: Do you call some of the plays that he taught you the same thing that he might have called them back in the day?
Coach Emilee Dunton: Yes. Yeah. Yes.
Bruce C. Bryan: That's awesome.
Coach Emilee Dunton: And so actually, a few years ago, we finally started to change some of the names. The concepts have stayed the same.
When I first got there, absolutely, because you're learning budget, recruiting. There's so many things- My- ... so you just keep the names the same.
Bruce C. Bryan: My son played travel basketball, and I still joke with, uh, his coaches. Um, they had a play called 4B.
Coach Emilee Dunton: Uh-huh.
Bruce C. Bryan: And it was for our big guy to get the ball under the basket on an inbounds, and he'd self- he'd- the coach would yell, "4B," and they'd all line up-
and the big guy would get the ball, and he'd make a basket. Yeah. I thought he was yelling, "Corned beef." Oh, my goodness. I'm like, "It would be a much better play to be called corned beef." Yeah. So maybe you could have a play that, you know, you guys- Yeah ... might call something interesting or different or fun. So we know your dad's been a big influence.
Um, who else influences you and fuels the work you do as a coach?
Coach Emilee Dunton: Yeah, so I am big into podcasts. Um, I love listening. Oh, this is fortu- fortuitous. I know. So this is so fun. We can listen together. Um, so I really l- in the past few years, I love listening to Kim Mulkey, Dawn Staley, um- Even Kim- Leaders of the women's basketball- Yes
Bruce C. Bryan: coaching industry.
Coach Emilee Dunton: Um, Kim Mulkey's assistant coach, Bob Starkey, he's such a great at X's and O's and player development, um, talks a lot about scouting. Scouting is one of my favorite things, and kind of something that I feel like has put us over the edge at Hollins because we're not necessarily one of the top tier, um, resources when you're looking at some of the major ODAC teams.
And so those are just things- But you're prepared because of the scouting. Yes, but we're prepared. And so those are things that it's control what you can control. And so I've loved, um, the scouting aspect, and then just learning from some of the other top tier coaches in the profession.
Bruce C. Bryan: Does the work that you do translate to other industries or types of situations?
Um-
Coach Emilee Dunton: Absolutely. I think, like you said, in sales, I mean, we are, once again, recruiting, um, student athletes to Hollins. With Division III, you do not receive an athletic scholarship, so there is f- a financial aspect.
Bruce C. Bryan: People are vested.
Coach Emilee Dunton: Yep.
Bruce C. Bryan: You're listening to Naturally Curious. I'm Bruce Bryant. This is Coach Emily Dunton.
And, um, I was wondering, do you draw wisdom from other or insights from other leaders, authors? You mentioned the, the podcast, people outside of the industry, um, basketball.
Coach Emilee Dunton: Yeah. So, um, early on in my career, John Gordon was a pr- a leadership, um, writes leadership books, helped Clemson football, um, and does a lot with other sports teams.
And so I really, um, would listen, or not listen, read his books. Um.
Bruce C. Bryan: So you're getting all kinds of tips from the coach here. If you wanna improve your life and get better at what you do, then here's, here's a chance to do that. So, um, I've heard you described as relentless in a good way. That's what was said.
Relentless in a good way, loyal and passionate. Are these words that you think reflect you, Coach?
Coach Emilee Dunton: Absolutely. I'm definitely passionate. Sometimes it could be, you know, some people might look at that as not necessarily a great thing. Um, being relentless, at the Division III level, you kind of have to be. Um, and you have to just keep working because you don't have-- When you look at the Division I, um, coaching staffs, they have 10 to 12 people, and I only have one other person and my dad.
And so with Coach Brim, myself, and my dad, it's, you know, you have to be relentless and-
Bruce C. Bryan: Yeah, relentless. Oh, and, um, we talked about loyal and passionate.
Coach Emilee Dunton: Yes. And so being loyal, I've loved my experience at Hollins University, and my goal, um, is to continue to build the program to be what I believe it can be, which is a top national team in Division III.
Bruce C. Bryan: Well, Coach, this has been a fascinating interview. The time flew by. And I'm excited for the after-radio show extended version 'cause I have some more questions I wanna ask you. Thank you for being my guest today.
Coach Emilee Dunton: Thank you for having me.
Bruce C. Bryan: So To listen back to the show, to hear the full interview, and links to learn more about Coach Emily Dunton, coaching, and basketball, please search Naturally Curious at radioiq.org.
Naturally Curious was produced and edited by Big Jim Shively and recorded at WVTF Radio IQ Studios. I'm Bruce Bryan. Thank you for listening
Dunton Bonus Content
Bruce C. Bryan: Thanks for sticking around. We're talking more hoops and leadership and family and all the stuff we said we were gonna talk about. Again, I'm Bruce Bryant. I'm here with Coach Emily Dunton from Hollins University. Coach, before, uh, as we wrapped the show, we talked about description of you being relentless and loyal and passionate.
Do you expect the same thing from others? And what happens when people let you down i- in some of those areas?
Coach Emilee Dunton: Yeah. I think, once again, that's where when you go through the recruiting process, you're looking for student athletes that kind of embody, um, what you believe in. And so obviously I know that they're 18-year-olds, and um, I would always tell my dad before I got into coaching, "Dad, you have a really bad job because your job is on the line based on what 18, 19, and 20-year-olds are gonna decide to do the night before a game, uh, or the day before."
And so, you know, I know that things aren't always gonna go exactly as I have planned, and I think that's just something I've learned in the coaching journey.
Bruce C. Bryan: So you get plan Bs and plan Cs- Yes, yes ... and
Coach Emilee Dunton: plan
Bruce C. Bryan: Ds,
Coach Emilee Dunton: right? You definitely have to have those.
Bruce C. Bryan: How about as it relates to you personally? Are you hard on yourself when you don't match up in those areas?
I bet you just, just even in the time we've spent together, I don- I think I already know the answer to that. But-
Coach Emilee Dunton: Yes. I obviously, you know, in a loss, in almost anything, you don't land a recruit, early on it was, "Emily, what could you have done better?"
Bruce C. Bryan: Right.
Coach Emilee Dunton: Where now I kind of look at we only want the people who wanna be at Hollins.
Right. It's such a unique experience. And so if we don't end up with a recruit, sometimes it's almost a good thing because it's like, well, if they came and, you know, weren't really all vested, then you are gonna have to go through this experience at some point.
Bruce C. Bryan: Coach, I g- I have to tell you, I know we're in the bonus segment, and, you know, this is w- you know, 30-some minutes in, but you just hit on something that I've learned in the business world.
Mm-hmm. Um, so my, my side thing is I own a marketing and advertising agency, and one of the things that I have started saying to people is it only works when you wanna work with us. Yeah. If you're trying to make it so that you have to work with us or you don't believe in what we're gonna do, it's never gonna work, and you just totally brought that to the forefront, and I g- I'm guessing and imagining it's exactly the same with your team and with your staff.
Coach Emilee Dunton: Exactly. That's ... We talk about it all the time as a staff, and it's really helped us be able to move on to the next, next part.
Bruce C. Bryan: So I'm guessing some other coaches from the ODAC might be listening in. I don't know if Coach Carl or other people are listening. But what are you adding this season to help your team raise your game or raise their game?
Coach Emilee Dunton: I think once again, just getting into the weight room is such a key aspect. And so those are things that we have worked on, but I think the stronger, you know, there's only so many things that you can do X's and O's wise that the other coaches don't understand, don't know, you know, they're going to be able to break that down.
But if you can be stronger and faster, obviously that's a huge, um, piece of the puzzle. And so the players are really just working on building their bodies.
Bruce C. Bryan: So talk about your team, many of whom have probably been with you for a while now. Um, what was it like for them to experience success? And talk about them right now.
Coach Emilee Dunton: I have so many wonderful players on my team and managers that are a part of the program. And so just kind of hitting on the seniors, uh, we had two seniors this year, Ariana Gutierrez from San Antonio, Texas, and Noelani Carter from Easley, South Carolina. And they came in, um, after the COVID year, so they were the first recruiting class, and they have really just brought steadfast.
I mean, they have been committed, they have been loyal, and they've been passionate about Hollins basketball. So to be able to stay for four years, they are ... I don't know how many colleges can say this, but each year their win total increased- That's impressive ... during their four years. And so that's kind of what I told them.
When you go out in life, like you might not always have a great day, but as long as you're working towards your ultimate goal, you're getting better and, and, you know, if you step outside, you're getting better. And they could see that, um, during their four years. It wasn't always easy at Hollins But they got better.
Bruce C. Bryan: I broke the seal earlier talking about my business, and one of my favorite clients is a former point guard. Yeah. And so when I talk to you, I hear and see- ... some of the many things, is very successful in business, and I see and hear many of the things that, um, you know, that you're talking about playing out.
So these players have kinda set the standard now. Mm. The class behind them has a bar that's pretty high. Um, is there more in this team of the, the people that are coming back? Is there more in them in your opinion?
Coach Emilee Dunton: Oh, yes, absolutely. And so with our four juniors that we have, um, Sarah Morales is also from San Antonio, Texas.
We have Zaria Holden, who's from Alabama. We have Erin Allen, who's from Raleigh, North Carolina, and then Missy Hazzard, who's from Patrick County, Virginia. And they, if you look at their high school accolades, they were probably the most, one of the most talented groups that we brought in, um, all together, and they are so excited for their senior- They're encouraged
season. Yeah. Yes. And once again, like I told you, I think the big part is they've been p- they were playing against those fifth years, and no one ... As a coach, I understood, you know, when you look, you lose by two, and a fifth year had 20 points, and you're going, "Man, if that fifth year wasn't on, wasn't on that team, it might be different."
Um, so they've had to go up against that. We have two girls who are embarking on a thousand, becoming a thousand-point scorers. Wow, that's impressive. And so we really just have, you know, a really talented group coming back. And then just to say a little bit about the underclassmen, um, we have three players that are underclassmen from Lord Botetourt High School.
And obviously- Interesting. Local players then ... local players. One of them who won the state championship, um, one of them who played Division II, and then another student athlete who's very talented but has faced some injuries. So she's gonna be back this year, and it's just really nice to be able to have, I like to have half the team locally or within a two-hour radius and then half the team from different places in the US.
I
Bruce C. Bryan: was gonna ask where you're getting your, your talent, and it sounds like you have a pipeline around the country. Mm-hmm. And then of course news travels, and that- Yeah ... probably helps you as well.
Coach Emilee Dunton: Yeah. So with my dad, uh, bringing in the Division I, we would go to Texas every, um, year. He ran a camp in San Antonio.
And so that kind of, early on in my coaching career, I kind of really used San Antonio as a hotbed because when I'm recruiting them, I can talk about, um, different restaurants, different places that I would go when I was in San Antonio. So we love recruiting Texas.
Bruce C. Bryan: So tell me now that you've got a baby-
Coach Emilee Dunton: Yes
Bruce C. Bryan: um, that, that obviously makes life, um, more complicated for recruiting and getting out on the trail. Um, tell us a little bit about how you're juggling all this stuff, and I guess you're really excited about October- Yes ... and, and the start of the season again, right?
Coach Emilee Dunton: So I have ... It really does take a village, um-
to raise a child, and as you become older, you understand that quote more and more. Um, and so I'm so blessed with my parents living in Lynchburg that my mom is able to really help. Um, his name's Baby Shane, and so- Nice ... with Baby Shane, and I think once again, I, I always heard coaches talk about when they became a mom, they became a better coach, and I thought, "How can that be?"
Um, but now just he's only nine months old, I do believe that that's true. You're a little softer. You look at the student athletes a little bit in a different lens. Um, and it's been really fun to see my student athletes love on my son, and so they love him so much. Part
Bruce C. Bryan: of the team. Yes. Part
Coach Emilee Dunton: of the program.
Absolutely. Do
Bruce C. Bryan: they dress him up in green and gold or-
Coach Emilee Dunton: Yes ... yeah. They say, "Coach, you can only bring him to games in green and gold." If I don't, they get upset with me. Um, so he's a big Hollins fan, and it's- ... just been really nice kind of to also give me a break 'cause as someone who is passionate and loyal, you kind of do get to sit it down and just be a mom for a few hours, and then you can get back to going to work for Hollins.
Bruce C. Bryan: Yeah, and so my question is, are you working on his left hand already?
Coach Emilee Dunton: I know. Well, I hope he-
Bruce C. Bryan: So he can, you know, play with both hands when he gets into the basket. Third generation basketball, right?
Coach Emilee Dunton: Yes, yes. He is already crawling and already standing and taking a few steps. His dad was also a fantastic, um, basketball player, and so we-
Bruce C. Bryan: All right
we will see. So maybe- ... you know, we can think back on this in 15 or 20 years, and you'll consider letting him be on my show then- Absolutely. ... as a guest. This is an investment in the future, Big Jim. There you go. We're gonna bring back Baby Shane.
Coach Emilee Dunton: A- as long as we can get some NIL over here.
Bruce C. Bryan: Absolutely. Well, I mean, they're, they're doing fundraising at WVTF all the time- There you go
so maybe we can, you know, work something out, but- Perfect ... um, yeah, he, he's g- That's a great nickname, Baby Shane. Yep. I feel like that would be a good name for a, for a basketball player. There you go. When you look at these recruits, what are you looking for? You mentioned earlier some of the attributes.
Talk a little bit about that.
Coach Emilee Dunton: Yeah, so I think someone who obviously is passionate and loves the game of basketball. Um, in the Division III lifestyle, you get to be a student, which is another huge, important aspect, but you also have to love the game. If you're going to have a competitive program, you have to have student athletes who want to put in the work when you're not in practice.
And so with us, we can only practice October till the end of the season, and then they are on their own. They're on their own. And so if they don't love the game of basketball, they're probably not playing until October. Um, and so that's what I have to say about the upperclassmen that have really built the culture of Playing basketball outside of the window of where I can lead It
Bruce C. Bryan: has to kind of be done internally.
Yes. I was curious, it sounds like you've a little bit addressed this, but how hard is it to hold onto the players you have? It seems like everyone's looking for that next step, the bigger success, and people are being told how good and amazing they are. That must be a, a hard part, not maybe for you- Yep ... at Hollins, but in general, that must be a hard part of any coach's life.
Coach Emilee Dunton: Yeah. I think if right now you look at the transfer portal at the Division I level, it has ballooned. Um, even people who, you look at Texas, who is in the Final Four, they have multiple soon to be- But one of their players
Bruce C. Bryan: left. Yeah. Even though they were in the Final Four and they were making a lot of money.
Coach Emilee Dunton: Yes. I think they have three players- Wow ... um, in the transfer portal. So once again, it's one of those things that you say you just have to know that it is a possibility. And for me, I just go back to relationships and try to create an experience that they believe is the best that they can have.
Bruce C. Bryan: So do you work You must work with the parents and with the high school and travel basketball coaches as well, right?
You're building relationships with a whole network of people, I would think.
Coach Emilee Dunton: Yes. I, I believe the parents, at the Division III level, I believe the parents are a huge part of the recruiting process because they are the ones who are gonna end up paying.
Bruce C. Bryan: So the parents that were in Texas, that must have been, you know, that they don't get to see their daughters play basketball as often as they might if they were playing nearby.
That, that's probably a challenge.
Coach Emilee Dunton: Yep. So one of the recruiting sales is with Hollins, all of our games are live-streamed. So that's nice is that even though you won't necessarily be able to sit there in the stands, you're always going to be able to watch your daughter play basketball. And then once again, I always say, "I'm gonna be their mom away from home."
Um, and we really just hit on, like, "You can call and text me at all hours of the night, and I'm gonna be here for your daughter." You're up anyway. "I'm gonna be here for you." You got baby Shane, right? Exactly.
Bruce C. Bryan: You and baby Shane are up bonding anyway. So it's just one of those things that So just go ahead and text me.
Coach Emilee Dunton: It's no
Bruce C. Bryan: big
Coach Emilee Dunton: deal. Anything you need, I'm gonna be here.
Bruce C. Bryan: Coach, how has the game changed in the last 10 years?
Coach Emilee Dunton: Wow. The game has changed so much, and it's, I think it's so much better and so much fun. I really wanna be an advocate, even though I have nothing to do with men's basketball, that for the NCAA level, they need to get on moving the game.
Um, 'cause they still just play two halves. Um, they don't even advance the ball. So everything's kind of been stagnant when I watch the men's college game compared to the women's college game. Which is quarters. Yes, quarters. And moves
Bruce C. Bryan: a little more rapidly.
Coach Emilee Dunton: Moves more rapidly, and also at the end of the game, the last minute, you get to advance the ball, which is huge.
So if the ball is on the other side of the court and- You can call
Bruce C. Bryan: a timeout
Coach Emilee Dunton: and move it
Bruce C. Bryan: to half- I call...
Coach Emilee Dunton: Yes ... half
Bruce C. Bryan: court.
Coach Emilee Dunton: And-
Bruce C. Bryan: So you save your timeouts then, I would imagine.
Coach Emilee Dunton: Yep, you save your timeouts, and then you also, if there's only three seconds, you can still win the game. Yeah. You know? So kind of when- I like that
I was watching the March Madness, it's like, man, if the guys could call a timeout and advance the ball, it might be a different outcome.
Bruce C. Bryan: Um, is it hard to keep up with all the changes? Or it's just, it's evolution, it's business- Yes ... it's life, it's coaching- Yep ... it's all people.
Coach Emilee Dunton: Yep. All
Bruce C. Bryan: right, I have a couple more questions as we wrap up.
Okay. Um, this is gonna be a hard one, but what do you love most about what you do? The practices, the recruiting, the game management, or something else? What's your favorite part of all of it?
Coach Emilee Dunton: That is such a tough question 'cause I feel like the, throughout the season you have different highs and different lows.
Obviously recruiting is something that I really enjoy. I love, especially early on when everyone said, "You're not gonna be able to get that player," and then I get to announce- And then you get them ... a 1,000-point scorer and, and all state players coming to Hollins, and they're going, "What in the world?" What?
How did she do that? Uh, yeah. So obviously I love recruiting. Um, but I love competing. And so I think overall, even in the games, practice- recruiting, like you're competing every day. And so that's something that I think I love most about my job is just being able to compete because I love, I love competition.
Bruce C. Bryan: All right. So tell me what's the hardest thing you do in your job?
Coach Emilee Dunton: The hardest thing is probably, once again, I hate, I hate saying this, but it might be the respor- resource aspect. Um, obviously we are a Division III school- Yeah ... so we're not-
Bruce C. Bryan: You're bootstrapping- ... as they say in the, in the startup business, right?
Coach Emilee Dunton: Yes. Yes.
Bruce C. Bryan: You're driving the bus.
Coach Emilee Dunton: Yes.
Bruce C. Bryan: Um, Chris is washing the dishes. Yes. Um, and you're making sure there's gas in the tank- Yes ... and making hotel accommodations and whatever else it is.
Coach Emilee Dunton: Absolutely. So-
Bruce C. Bryan: Organizing the potluck.
Coach Emilee Dunton: Yeah. We don't have a $10 million budget like LSU or South Carolina. So once again, you might sometimes wanna do things and you just can't.
Bruce C. Bryan: So Coach, if there are Hollins people listening, they're pretty well-to-do alumni. You know, I'm thinking of three or four in my brain right now. This would be a great chance for them to call you and, you know, underwrite some stuff, right?
Coach Emilee Dunton: Absolutely. We would love that.
Bruce C. Bryan: So last question I have for you, it's a two-parter.
I'm gonna put you on the spot. Have you had any technical fouls and why?
Coach Emilee Dunton: I did. This year I had one. I hadn't had one in a few years, and we were playing an ODAC game- And my point guard had stole the ball like back to back, and she was getting ready to go on a run out layup, fell on the ground. None of the refs were looking at me.
I was yelling timeout, ran out onto the floor, called timeout, and he T'd me up and said I came too far out on the floor.
Bruce C. Bryan: Because you weren't listening to me. I know. So I'm not gonna put you on the spot, but have you ever had an argument like that with your husband or- Yeah. No, I'm just kidding. That's a, that's a whole different episode.
I think if there were technical fouls in, in our grown-up relationships- Yes ... if I could call a technical on Big, Big Jim. You weren't nice to me. I'm, I'm T'ing you up, son. Yes. It would all be better. Coach- Absolutely ... if players are listening- Mm ... or parents are listening or coaches are listening and they wanna get in touch with you, they've been intrigued by, um, what they've heard in the last, you know, 45 minutes or so- Yeah
uh, what's a, what's a good way for people to find you? Do, like, do you have a social media handle? Are you- Absolutely ... a big-time influencer, things like that?
Coach Emilee Dunton: Yeah. So @Holland'sHoops is our social media on all platforms, and then obviously Emily Dunton, @EmilyDunton is also, is my personal, um, handle. And so you can reach us at those places.
Please give us a follow. We love to have local, um, local fans come out. We have grown- I'm coming to a game. Big
Bruce C. Bryan: Jim and I are gonna come to a game.
Coach Emilee Dunton: We have to. Please do. We have grown our fan base, um, so big this year. The Holland's Gym is an amazing, amazing experience. Um- It's
Bruce C. Bryan: like
Coach Emilee Dunton: Hoosiers probably, right?
Yes. Yeah. It gets so loud, and it's really a fun place to play. I say we have the number, we have the number one home court advantage in the ODAC, so come on out. All right. Have fun, and we'll give you your green and gold pom-poms.
Bruce C. Bryan: Coach, I can see why you're good at this. That was, that, you know, like, I'm, I'm ready.
I think, you know, listeners are like, "When's the, when's the first game?" And, uh, so yeah, congratulations on the great season last year. We'll all be looking forward to seeing how things are built out forward and wish you the best.
Coach Emilee Dunton: Thank you. Thank you for having me. It's been a blast, and please come to a game.
