Beamer boys basketball coach resigns

By CASEY OLSON

The Mirror

The only coach the Todd Beamer High School boys basketball program has known won’t be back next season. Jarrett Mentink told school administrators late in the week he was resigning as the head coach of the Titans to spend more time with his family.

“It is very difficult to start a program and then let it go,” Mentink said. “But with my wife and I having our first child, I had to reevaluate the situation and do what was best for my family.”

The Titans just concluded their best season in the three-year history of the program.

Beamer finished 10-10 in the rugged South Puget Sound League South Division and missed earning the school’s first postseason berth by one game. Mentink ends his Titan career with a 16-44 overall record.

“I feel very good about the state of the program,” Mentink said. “We worked hard over the last three years to build a solid foundation and I believe the program is headed in the right direction. It’s much easier for me to leave knowing the cupboards are full and knowing that there are many quality individuals that will continue the work we have started.”

Mentink, a Decatur High School graduate, currently lives in Kirkland with his wife, Fox Sports Northwest anchor Angie Mentink, and their son, Jaxen.

“I commuted an hour and ten minutes each way to the gym and let’s just say my son isn’t all that fond of the car seat,” he said. “I would drop him off everyday at grandma and grandpa’s while I went to practice and I cannot thank my parents enough for watching him. But it was a huge commitment for my entire family. I just felt it was time to reassess the situation as my family is the most important thing in my life.”

Mentink’s future plans include being “the best Mr. Mom I can while my wife is working in the afternoons and evenings” and teaching part-time in the University of Washington’s new masters program for athletic administration.

He will also continue authoring children’s books through his company, Kids in the Clouds. Mentink has written books with Seattle Seahawk running back Shaun Alexander and former Mariner Brett Boone.

Beamer’s search for a new boys basketball coach comes right on the heels of the Titans hiring Dick Zatkovich as its new football coach. Beamer Principal Josh Garcia, along with athletic director Jerry Peterson, informed former football coach Jeff Housman after the 2005 season that his contract would not be renewed.

Like Mentink, Housman was hired before Beamer opened its doors in September of 2003 after acting as the defensive coordinator and head baseball coach at Decatur High School. He guided the Titans to a 5-23 record, including a 1-9 season last year.

The 60-year-old Zatkovich spent 16 years as the head coach of Lakes High School, where the Lancers won the 1997 state championship. He also coached the Lincoln football program for five seasons.

Sports editor Casey Olson: 925-5565, sports@fedwaymirror.com

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