Kylie Weichman has been an assistant girls basketball coach at Columbus East the past nine years, and now she’s taking over as a head coach in a different sport — girls golf.
Weichman, who plans to remain on the girls basketball staff, was an assistant boys and girls golf coach at Northside Middle School when she was a senior at Columbus North and, as her senior project, helped Jack Cooper start the Northside program.
“I certainly enjoyed it,” Weichman said. “I didn’t know at that time that I’d be a varsity golf coach some day. But being a part of the Columbus East girls basketball program, being a head coach was something I was interested in. I was glad to be given this opportunity and see where it leads.”
A 2001 North graduate, Weichman played golf all four years of high school and lettered in three. She finished third in the women’s city tournament in the summer of 2000 and was All-Conference Indiana as a senior that fall.
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The next year, Weichman began giving golf lessons to family and friends, and she has continued to do that.
“My godson (Ben Lorey) is 12 years old, and he’s a really good golfer in Fishers,” Weichman said. “He’s at a point now where he needs a professional to give him lessons, but I’ve been coaching him since the age of 5.”
Weichman earned a bachelor’s degree from Franklin College and an MBA from Indiana University. She has worked from home as an account manager for Boston-based at Pearson Education since 2011.
Weichman, who won the Jack Cramer Ideals of Athletic Competition Award in 2017, takes over the girls golf program from Troy Buntin, who resigned this winter. The Olympians finished third in the Greensburg Sectional last year, advancing to regional.
East, however, had only seven golfers last year, and top player Lauren Steinwedel has graduated, so Weichman will be looking to build some depth.
“That’s exactly the goal — to grow the program and get girls interested in golf at Columbus East,” Weichman said. “Otter Creek is a great place to play, and one of my ideas is to work with (Otter Creek director of operations and pro) Jon Hoover to help grow the game. Columbus East is a place where people can come and play high school golf.”
