Kapaun Mount Carmel has hired Steve Eck as its new basketball coach, according to a press release.

Eck is a two-time National Junior College Athletic Association National Champion coach. His most recent position was with Hutchinson Community College.

“I look forward to coaching Kapaun Mt. Carmel’s excellent basketball  program,” Eck said. “I consider myself blessed to have had the opportunities that God has given me to  coach outstanding young men in the sport I love. To do so, at a Catholic school named after a  man of such heroic virtue as Fr. Emil Kapaun, is an honor for me.”  

From 1986 to 1996, Eck was the head coach at Wichita South, where he led the Titans to 10 consecutive City League championships and six Class 6A titles. He coached Division I players like B.J. Williams, Steve Woodberry, Manny Dies and Johnny Murdock among others.

Eck coached two teams to the National Junior College Athletic  Association National Championship (Redlands Community College in 2001, and Hutchinson  Community College in 2017), and has been the runner-up two other times. Eck’s record at the college level is 648-128, while his lifetime record as a head coach is 977-162, which is a winning percentage of 86 percent. 

“We could not be more excited about this hire,” said Chris Bloomer, KMC Principal. “Coach Eck’s success as a basketball coach, paired with his ability to develop outstanding young men, will undoubtedly raise the bar for the individuals at KMC with whom he has contact.”