Lincolnton coach first to 200

Lincolnton’s Bob Cowie knew he was approaching 200 career wins. What he didn’t know was that he was about to become the county’s first boys basketball coach to reach the milestone.

Cowie hit the landmark last Friday against Lake Norman Charter, and the school held a postgame ceremony to honor the achievement.

“It was a special night,” Cowie said. “My assistant coaches had a lot to do with it and they put together a nice program afterward.”

Cowie, in his 14th year as head coach, now owns a 201-134 record after Tuesday’s win against Bessemer City. He’s the all-time winningest boys basketball coach in the county, ahead of East Lincoln’s Neil Hodges, who is 184-131 in his 12th season. The next-best record at Lincolnton belongs to Lavell Hall, who went 155-70 from 1985 to 1990 and 1992 to 1994.

“It just proves the point that you’ve been fortunate to have a lot of good people around you,” Cowie said, referring to his players and assistant coaches.

The 200-win mark had previously been reached in the county only by girls basketball coaches: Jack Kiser (287-30-3 at Lincolnton), Henry Barkley (256-102 at East Lincoln) and Sheila Barker (216-134 at Lincolnton).

Cowie’s teams have posted winning records in nine of his previous 13 seasons. He guided the Wolves to a regular-season conference championship in 2000, a sectional title in 2000 and a conference tournament title last season.

Prior to taking over as head coach for the 1998-99 season, Cowie previously served four years as a Lincolnton assistant coach under Jon Hancock.

Following Friday’s win, the school presented Cowie with two basketballs, a framed jersey with the number 200 and an ink pen made from extra wood that was used to construct Lincolnton’s new gym floor a few years ago.

The relationships he’s developed over the years are what Cowie most cherishes from his coaching tenure. That’s why he said it meant a lot to see several former players, including Dr. Matthew Cline, Jeremy Wilson, Darren Wilson, Chris Melton and Phil Robinson, in the stands to witness the accomplishment.

Cowie was also thankful that the school has allowed him to coach there for 18 seasons.

“Lincolnton High School has been a great place to work,” Cowie said. “From great students to faculty members and other coaches, it’s just a great place to work and that makes it all easier.”

This season might be one of Cowie’s best yet. The Wolves are 14-2 overall and take an 11-game winning streak into Friday’s game at rival North Lincoln. With a 9-0 league record, Lincolnton owns a two-game lead over Highland Tech atop the Southern Piedmont 1A/2A Conference standings. The Wolves are going for their first regular-season conference championship since 2000, the year they last reached the Western Regional.

“We’re playing very well right now,” Cowie said. “We’re 14-2 and we’ve steadily improved throughout the year, and I think we’ve got room for more improvement.”

Phillip Gardner: 704-869-1843; twitter.com/gazettephil