JDCHS basketball coach named Best of State

By Catherine Garrett | [email protected]

Juan Diego Catholic High School’s boys basketball coach Drew Trost, who led his team to its sixth straight region championship this past season, received Best of State recognition as the Best High School Coach for Private Schools K-12 statewide.

“I feel very honored to receive this award,” Trost said. “There are so many terrific coaches out there at public, private and charter high schools and so many different sports. To be named the best high school coach, I think my wife and mother must have voted at least a thousand times each.”

“The most important thing to know about Drew Trost is that first and foremost, like all good coaches, Drew is a teacher,” JDCHS Athletic Director Chris Long said. “He not only teaches and coaches basketball skills, he emphasizes teamwork, work ethic and sacrifice for the good of the team.”

Trost feels that this type of award is not just based on accomplishments during one season. “Since coming to Juan Diego, I feel like we have built the basketball program into one of the very best in the state,” he said. “We are consistently competing at a high level and have been able to send many players on to play basketball in college.”

During his seven years at Juan Diego, he has led his program to at least the quarterfinal round in the state tournament six of those seasons. His 2016, 2017 and 2018 squads were state runners-up with a buzzer-beater to defeat Bingham and a 57-40 victory over Orem to reach the title game in 2018 that Trost counts among his coaching highlights. This past season, the Soaring Eagle team reached the semifinals before losing to Dixie 52-50.

“That never gets old,” Trost said. “I love helping our players achieve this kind of continued success.”

Since he began his coaching career in 2005, Trost has helped 14 players develop into college players with four going to the Division I ranks.

Trost also acknowledged that this individual honor is possible because of those around him. “I am just very grateful for this award. This is definitely a team effort though,” he said. “I have been blessed with terrific assistant coaches, a very supportive administration, talented players and an incredibly supportive wife and family. This success would not be possible without these.”

In coaching his players, Trost teaches skills that begin on the basketball court but certainly don’t end there. “It’s not just about basketball,” he said. “It’s really about preparing them for life. I just love working with my players and helping them improve on and off the court. I try to push, challenge and inspire them to grow not just athletically, but also emotionally and spiritually.”

Juan Diego was additionally honored for the third consecutive year as the best private school in Utah while the school also won Best of State honors for the Senior Service Project.

“It’s great to see hard work getting recognized,” Trost said.

A Best of State ceremony and banquet is scheduled for June at the Salt Palace.