ERIE, Pa. - Gannon men's basketball assistant coach Tim Fralick has resigned to become the head coach at Ashland (Ohio) High School. He is expected to continue his duties at Gannon until June 30.
Fralick completed one season as a member of the Gannon coaching staff, coming to Gannon prior to the 2009-10 campaign after spending the previous five seasons at former Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (GLIAC) rival Ashland University. He spent all five seasons under Ashland's all-time winningest head coach Roger Lyons, originally serving the first two campaigns as a graduate assistant before assuming the full-time position the last three seasons.
“Tim did a tremendous job with us this season,” said Gannon head coach
John T. Reilly. “He helped immensely in all facets of our program and will be a fine head coach. Our program is better because of the year he spent with us.”
Fralick was part of a Gannon staff that guided the Golden Knights to their third consecutive post-season appearance. The squad tied for third place in the Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference (PSAC) Western Division with an 8-6 conference mark despite graduating six of its top seven scorers from the previous season.
Eventual PSAC champion Indiana (Pa.) eliminated Gannon from the conference tournament by a 62-53 score. The Golden Knights owned second-half leads in all three games against the Crimson Hawks, who later advanced to the NCAA Division II National Championship Game.
“It has been a tremendous experience coaching in a program with so much support and tradition,” said Fralick. “I have met great people and learned a lot from Coach Reilly and Coach Viscuso. I wish the men's basketball program and the entire Gannon community nothing but the best.”
Fralick demonstrated great success in recruiting, scouting, and game and practice preparation at Ashland. After moving into the full-time spot, much of Fralick's time was spent on recruiting. He proved to be most successful while recruiting in the states of Michigan and Ohio. Fralick helped recruit five all-conference performers, including the 2007-08 GLIAC Freshman of the Year Kale Richardson. In addition to being the program's academic coordinator, he helped install a new film breakdown/exchange program three years ago.
Ashland qualified for the GLIAC Tournament in three of his last four seasons. The Eagles advanced to the GLIAC semifinals and were ranked among the NCAA Division II Top 25 during his first year as a full-time assistant.
Fralick played collegiate basketball at GLIAC member Saginaw Valley State. As a senior, he was second on the team in scoring, assists and steals. He began his career at NCAA Division I Oakland University (1999-2002), where he was a member of the Mid-Continent Conference regular-season championship team in 2000. Fralick earned all-academic accolades at both schools.
Fralick is a 2004 graduate of Saginaw Valley State. He later received his Master's Degree in sports sciences from Ashland in 2006.
