Former Washington girls basketball coach Marilyn Coddens set to enter Hall of Fame

Marilyn Coddens never expected that her love of basketball would lead to a coaching career worthy of Hall of Fame status.

The highly successful mentor of so many players in South Bend will achieve that very well-deserved distinction though come April 27.

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Coddens, a 1968 South Bend LaSalle graduate, is part of the 2024 Indiana Basketball Hall of Fame Class. The group of 12 chosen for this year's class, the 22nd women's class for the hall, will be honored next month at the Hall of Fame in New Castle and later that evening at a dinner in Indianapolis.

The distinguished list includes Nan (Tomshack) Tulchinsky, who worked for the South Bend Community School Corporation for 43 years. Tulchinsky served as the LaSalle High School athletic director and also as the South Bend Schools Director of Athletics from 2002-07, the first woman to hold that position.

"It was really a shock," said Coddens when she learned of her selection back in November. "It's still surreal. I never, ever dreamt that this would happen. I never did it for that reason.

"We (herself and husband Don) just loved basketball. It was always about teaching for me. Coaching was an extension of the classroom for me."

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Coddens, who was nominated for the Hall of Fame by former longtime Clay Athletic Director Greg Humnicky, led the South Bend Washington girls' program to new heights during her tenure from 1994-2008. She guided the Panthers to a 245-75 mark with three straight appearances in the Class 4A state title game from 2006-08. Her 2006-07 team, led by then sophomore and current WNBA star Skylar Diggins, beat Columbus East 84-64 to win the state championship. That squad featured five seniors in Ashley Varner, Katie Boocher, Sherice White, Lauren Archie and Chaneka Anderson and also included the likes of sisters Emily and Karis Phillips, lost its opener to Fort Wayne South and then won its final 28 games.

"Some of my better memories from those teams was when we traveled," Coddens recounted of the prolific Panther teams. "Traveling together outside of the area brought the team closer together. We were with each other so much. It was a fun loving group too."

"I was in the right place at the right time to get the job at Washington and I loved it there."

"Skylar was just a natural leader. She had a lot of responsibility on her shoulders. She was just so competitive. She was the first in the gym and the last to leave. The thing about that whole championship team we had is that all of them were more concerned about winning than about individual things."

Coddens, an Indiana University South Bend graduate, began her coaching career as the elementary boys coach at Edison. She then won six sectionals, three regionals and five Northern Indiana Conference titles during her run on the West Side at Washington. Her teams were Class 4A state runner-up in both 2006 and 2008.

"I was a good coach, but what I did was surround myself with great people," Coddens said. "I had great assistant coaches and supportive parents. But it was the kids who got it done and allowed all of this to happen for me."

Coddens, who also served as the Washington Athletic Director for two plus years after stepping down from coaching there in 2008, gives the biggest assist to her husband Don.

"I would have never have gotten into coaching basketball without Don," said Coddens of her husband. "He was coaching and was the one who encouraged me to coach. He was always so supportive of me. He was my right hand man. Assistants came and went, but Don was always there. I joke that he was the only assistant coach who could put up with me."

Don Coddens was a coaching staple in South Bend for some five decades. He was the first girls basketball coach at Riley, where he won three sectionals and one regional. He also coached a Riley boys basketball team that was ranked No. 1 in the state under his tenure.

Marilyn Coddens, who retired from teaching in 2013, noted how fortunate she was to coach the talent that came through Washington. The Panthers had five Indiana All-Stars, starting with Jackie Batteast, who went on to star at Notre Dame and play in the WNBA. The list also included Jerri Taylor, Ashley Varner, Emily Phillips and Miss Basketball winner Diggins, who was also the Patricia L. Roy Mental Attitude Award recipient in 2009. The 2008-09 Washington team, coached by Diggins' stepfather Maurice Scott, lost 71-69 to Ben Davis on a shot at the final buzzer and finished 26-1.

"The thing that I'm most proud about is now when I see former players they are all responsible adults and good people," Coddens remarked. "It's like being a parent to them. I take a sense of pride in that."

Coddens, who taught math at Washington, says she wants to be remembered for much more than just the wins and trophies during her coaching career.

"I was strict as a coach, but I hope they say I was fair," Coddens said. "I hope they say that I really cared about my players. I wanted all of them to be good individuals."

"But this is not just about me receiving this honor. There's so many people that played a part in this. All of them allowed me to do this.

"This is just such an honor that I never, ever expected."

But one that is richly deserved.

This article originally appeared on South Bend Tribune: Former Washington coach Marilyn Coddens to receive huge honor