Over the last 45 years, Bellingham High tennis coach Steve Chronister has spent hundreds of afternoons watching from the stands as his players collect win after win. Last week, he watched his athletes top Mount Vernon — resulting in Chronister’s 1,000th career victory.
Just a week later, he’s added two more wins to that impressive list, making his coaching record 1,002-147 as of Tuesday, Oct. 8.
“It’s hard to wrap my brain around it sometimes but you just keep living and it happens,” Chronister said. “I didn’t think that much different except there were a lot more people around. I will say the moment it happened, I got an emotional twinge.”
Chronister does not believe any other coach in the state has won 1,000 matches in their career. The Washington Interscholastic Athletics Association doesn’t have record of that either.
He has won 39 league titles, 26 district titles and had 27 top-eight finishes at state, including the Bellingham girls team winning in 2017 and the boys in 2019.
“It’s pretty impressive because you have to be really good at what you do and have longevity,” Sehome’s Athletic Director Colin Cushman said. “It’s not like baseball or basketball where you play more than 20 games per year.”
Cushman was Chronister’s assistant coach at Sehome from 1992–2000. Chronister coached the Sehome boys from 1979–99 and the Sehome girls from 1990–93 and 1998–2000. During those years, his record was 397-39. Before coaching at Sehome, Chronister played and coached at Western Washington University.
Although Chronister won numerous titles, Cushman believes his biggest impact was on the other coaches and kids.
“Steve is a kind, sincere and great role model for kids,” Cushman said. “He is the type of person you want your kids to learn from. He builds strong character, consistency, teaches great lessons and is there for kids and the struggles they have.”
One example of Chronister building up his players was former Sehome star Shane Steiner, who competed for the Sehome Mariners in the early 1990s. Despite being new to the sport and smaller than his competitors, Chronister led Steiner to four state placements and a near upset against a University of Washington commit.
“Shane didn’t win the match but nobody gave Shane a chance,” Cushman said. “He competed and pushed that player to the brink of a shot at winning the match. Steve knew how to bring the best out of Shane and to a point where he believed he could win the match.”
Besides pushing his players, Chronister knew how to get the best out of his coaches. Cushman was new to coaching in 1992 and learned many values from Chronister.
Chronister taught his assistants about integrity, how to be competitive at all times, and the importance of being passionate about the sport. On the other hand, Chronister said his success would have never happened if he didn’t have Cushman by his side.
“I have had a lot of assistants over the years but Colin was a key assistant for me at Sehome,” Chronister said. “He was my assistant for more years than anybody else and I enjoyed coaching with him so much.”
Chronister also believes his success at Bellingham comes from junior varsity coach Jeffrey Butcher.
“Jeff is a special coach and guy,” Chronister said. “We are interested in winning and the relationships, and we know how to blend those two things together. When you treat people right, they will play better.”
Chronister took over the Bellingham boys squad in 2000 and girls in 2001, holding a record of 604-107. Butcher said Chronister’s success at Bellingham comes from his lowkey approach and allowing players to learn from their mistakes.
“We tell the kids you either win or you learn,” Butcher said. “It’s not a loss but, what we can learn from this match?”
Now at Bellingham High, Chronister has built his teams through his free summer program and recruiting students as a P.E. teacher.
“I am surprised when people come back and tell me what something meant to them,” Chronister said. “I didn’t think it would mean that much to them. I am just doing the coaching and the players deserve the most credit. We are just trying to make them the best version of themselves.”
Nick Zeller-Singh is CDN's sports reporter; reach him at nickzellersingh@cascadiadaily.com; 360-922-3090 ext. 104.
