Jaime Walz Richey has entered the record books once again.
Richey, a former Miss Basketball in Kentucky (1996) and the second-leading scorer all-time in Kentucky girls basketball history, picked up her 400th career win Monday, Feb. 7, when her Highlands girls basketball team defeated Bishop Brossart 43-33.
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Entering the season, 39 girls coaches had reached 400 wins in the Kentucky High School Athletic Association record books.
Richey took over the program for the 2002-2003 season and is completing her 20th season.
Richey scored 4,948 points in a Highlands uniform, a state record that lasted for 20 years until Whitney Creech of Jenkins broke it in 2016. Richey led the Bluebirds to the state final in 1994.
“Just the daily interactions with these girls and being a role model for them,” she said after getting her 300th win in 2017. “Pushing them to their limits. Sometimes when they do sprints or drills, they don’t think they can do it but I like showing them that they can do it. They can get whatever they want if they put their minds to it.”
Richey was inducted into the LaRosa's Hall of Fame in 2007. She became the sixth Northern Kentucky girls coach to reach 400 wins.
Here's a look at the others:
Nell Fookes – 686
The Boone County legend had a record of 686-225 in 30 seasons at Boone County High School. When she retired after the 2014-15 season, she was in third place all-time in wins in Kentucky and is now fifth to two current head coaches.
Fookes retired with 22 district titles, nine regional championships, and led Boone to the state semifinals twice.
She was inducted into the LaRosa's Hall of Fame in 2006.
She is also in the Northern Kentucky Sports Hall of Fame, the Greater Cincinnati Basketball Hall of Fame and the Northern Kentucky Athletic Directors Hall of Fame.
In 2010, she was named a National Coach of the Year finalist by the National High School Athletic Coaches Association.
In 2000, she was named Northern Kentucky Coach of the Decade for the 1990s by the Greater Cincinnati Basketball Coaches Association.
In 2002, she was honored by the KABC and the KHSAA by being named to the Basketball Coaches Court of Honor for her contributions to girls basketball on and off the court in the state of Kentucky.
MORE: Boone County alumni honor Nell Fookes
Bill Goller – 512
Goller’s name is prominent in Holy Cross’ gymnasium after 24 seasons with the Indians from 1970-95. He had a record of 512-203 and currently ranks 13th in KHSAA history.
He won two Ninth Region championships, eight district titles and three All “A” Classic regional championships. He won 20 games or more in all but one of his 25 seasons.
He was inducted into the LaRosa’s Hall of Fame in 2006, adding to a list of honors that included the Kentucky Basketball Hall of Fame, the Kentucky Court of Honor, the Northern Kentucky Athletic Directors Hall of Fame, the Holy Cross Hall of Fame.
He was honored among the Top 50 coaches of all time in Northern Kentucky history at the Behringer-Crawford Museum.
In addition to his coaching, Goller also served as Holy Cross’ athletic director and was the school principal for 15 years from 1987-2003.
Ray Kues – 460
Kues had a record of 460-251 in 26 years of coaching. He coached at St. Henry from 1984-90, Bishop Brossart from 1990-2005, and Silver Grove from 2005-09. After leaving Silver Grove, he came back in 2016 and coached Boone County for one season.
One of his career highlights was leading Brossart girls to the Sweet 16 in 2001.
Kues was inducted into the LaRosa’s Hall of Fame in 2012. He has been inducted into the Kentucky State Track and Cross-Country Association Hall of Fame, the Greater Cincinnati Basketball Hall of Fame (2002), the Northern Kentucky Athletic Directors Hall of Fame (2009) and the Northern Kentucky Sports Hall of Fame (2009).
He was selected by the Kentucky Association of Basketball Coaches for the Court of Honor (2010) for his career contributions to girls basketball.
Kues also had an outstanding career in track and cross country. At St. Henry and Bishop Brossart, Kues won the Class A state title in boys cross country seven times. At St. Henry, his girls cross country team won the state four out of five years from 1986-90.
Jeff Stowers - 425
Stowers has been the head basketball coach at Simon Kenton since the 2002-03 season and has announced he will retire after this season.
The former Northern Kentucky University basketball standout has led his Pioneers to five Eighth Region championships and six runner-up finishes.
He won his 400th game on Jan. 24, 2020, which was also his 500th all-time. He had 100 wins at Seven Hills High School in Cincinnati.
Don Shields – 401
Shields retired after the 2013-14 season, his 25th at the helm in Villa Hills. He had a 401-290 record.
Shields accomplished the feat at one of the traditionally smallest schools in the state, but his teams won 20 games or more nine times and won nine Northern Kentucky Athletic Conference titles in Division III.
Boys basketball
At least nine coaches who have spent their careers in the main three Northern Kentucky counties (Boone/Kenton/Campbell) have reached 400 wins in Northern Kentucky, according to former Bishop Brossart athletic director Mel Webster.
Highlands and Northern Kentucky University legend Ken Shields leads the list with 460. Newport legend Stan Arnzen is second with 452. Current St. Henry head coach David Faust has 449 as of Feb. 9 and should pass Arnzen soon. He already has the local record with 30 seasons as head coach. Campbell County head coach Aric Russell is currently at 437.
More:Ron Dawn to retire as head basketball coach at Newport Central Catholic
The rest of the current list is Jim Connor (431), Ron Dawn (429), Tom Ellis (426), Bill Code (421) and Paul Rhoden (401). Dawn had 91 wins as the girls coach at Newport Central Catholic and 520 lifetime.
Carl Wenderoth, who coached mainly at Grant County, also coached at Scott and Ludlow and had 500 wins. He is a member of the Eighth Region Hall of Fame.
Ellis also coached at Bardstown and posted 615 lifetime wins.
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