Peters Township’s Kendall calls it quits
Eleanor Bailey/The Almanac
Bert Kendall smiles as he looks up at the scoreboard seconds before Peters Township won the PIAA Class 6A Championship in 2019. The Indians defeated Garnet Valley, 62-49, to become the first ever girls basketball team from Washington County to win a state title.
Observer-Reporter
Peters Township’s girls basketball coach Bert Kendall was 110-48 in seven seasons.
Celeste Van Kirk/Observer-Reporter
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Celeste Van Kirk/Observer-Reporter
Peters Township’s coach Bert Kendall talks to his team during a time out against West Allegheny at Peters Township High School on Monday, Feb. 11, 2019.
Less than one year removed from guiding Peters Township to a state championship – the first PIAA title for a girls basketball team from Washington County – coach Bert Kendall has retired.
Kendall, 59, informed his team at its banquet Sunday night.
“It was a very hard decision,” Kendall said. “I was having trouble balancing my work schedule and basketball schedule. It became more and more apparent what was going to be best for the team. Trying to fit in basketball isn’t giving it a championship effort.”
Peters Township defeated Garnet Valley in the 2019 PIAA Class 6A championship, 62-49, finishing one of the most dominant seasons in WPIAL history. The Indians were only the fifth WPIAL girls team to win a state title with a perfect record (30-0). They also defeated North Allegheny to win the WPIAL championship in overtime, 43-40, for their first district title in program history.
Of the 30 victories, 26 were decided by double digits.
Kendall is the executive vice president for QuesTec, a mechanical HVAC company with offices in Missouri, Kentucky and Arkansas.
“There is a fair amount of travel involved with my work,” Kendall said. “It’s hard to tell kids to be dedicated but I may be gone for a week or miss a game. I was struggling with how to fit it all in. Selfishly, I wanted to coach but what’s really right for the team is not to be selfish. I wanted to stick around. Peters Township is a great place to coach. Sometimes you have to make really hard decisions. This was one of them.”
Kendall revived a struggling program at Peters Township. Prior to his arrival, the Indians hadn’t finished with a winning record in three seasons. The year before he became the coach, they were 3-19.
In sevens seasons coaching the Indians, Kendall was 110-48 with three section titles and two WPIAL final appearances. Prior to coming to Peters Township, he was an assistant at Bethel Park for nine seasons.
“I’m going to miss watching the girls grow and improve,” Kendall said. “I’m going to miss the competition and playoff runs. But if you give part-time effort then it will yield part-time results.”