MORGANTOWN, W.Va. For the second time, Morgantown High School (MHS) Girls Track and Field coach Steve Blinco has been named the West Virginia High School Girls Coach of the Year by the U.S. Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association and the United States Marine Corps. Blinco also earned the same honor in 2014.
“The thing that’s so special about the award is that it is sponsored by our armed forces, the U.S. Marines,” Blinco said. It’s A neat tribute and an honor to get an award they sponsor.”
The MHS girls won overall state titles under Blinco in 2012, ’17, ’22, and 23, along with numerous individual state titles over that time. During a recent event at the Penn Relays at the University of Pennsylvania, the team of Lea Hatcher, Amelia Summers, Jennifer OPalko, and Irene Riggs finished fifth during the high school girls 4800 relay Championship of America. That performance gave them the state record time of 9:18.17.
“I’ve been doing this for the better part of a decade now, and I’ve had great success and great luck,” Blinko said. “You have to have some luck too; you have to work your tail off, but you have to have things go your way.”
Blinco has been outspoken about bringing the state track and field championships to Mylan Park from Laidley Field in Charleston, the only home for the event in state history. While he continues to work with student athletes, he wants students statewide to experience the multi-million-dollar Mylan Park facility.
“We needed that facility to be able to have a home track at Mylan Park, and I think everyone is aware that I’m not going to rest until I can say that I’ve tried to get the state track meet moved here,” Blinco said. “There always has to be another goal, and that’s the next goal.”
Greg Epps serves with Blinco on the Star City Council and also has two children who have attended Morgantown High School. His daughter ran track under Blinco and now competes on the WVU Women’s Track Team. His son, who graduated in 2023, was especially influenced by Blinco during the pandemic, along with many other students.
“Coach Blinco was the one person, entity, group, or organization that really helped some of those kids, including my son, to have purpose and community,” Epps said.
Blinco said he’s right where he wants to be in various roles and plans to continue on his current path.
“Teaching, coaching, council, public service, mentoring young people, and being active in my community—these are all things that I believe I was called to do, and I should set an example for everybody in my community to see.”
Photo: Steve Blinco being sworn-in as Star City RecorderÂ