Lake City High Girls Basketball Coach David Pratt Resigns After Three Seasons

David Pratt has resigned as head coach of the Lake City High School girls basketball program, the school announced Monday. Both Pratt and the school described the decision as mutual. His departure closes a three-season run leading the Timberwolves, a program he had called "a winning situation" when he arrived.

Pratt came to Lake City after eight seasons at Mt. Spokane High School in Spokane, where he coached the Wildcats from 2015 to 2023. He took Mt. Spokane to state in each of his first five seasons there, including a 3A state runner-up finish in 2019, when the Wildcats lost to Prairie by two points in the title game. His final season at Mt. Spokane ended at 12-11, after which he said "admin wanted to go in a different direction" and stepped down.

Lake City athletic director Troy Anderson moved quickly to bring Pratt aboard, citing endorsements that stretched across the border. "There were so many people from the Greater Spokane League that spoke out on his behalf," Anderson said at the time of the hire. "Man, if you get this guy, he's really, really good at building a program." Anderson added: "He brings not only a proven resume, but a hard work ethic and relationship-building qualities that fit what we were looking for."

Pratt replaced James Anderson, who had left the girls program after six seasons to take over the Lake City boys basketball job. Pratt's coaching resume also included a stint as a women's assistant at Whitworth University and six years as head boys coach at Lakeside High School in Nine Mile Falls, Washington, where he compiled an 88-66 record and took four teams to state, capturing three district titles and two league championships.

In his most recent completed season at Lake City, the Timberwolves went 25-3 overall with a 9-0 conference record in the 6A Inland Empire League, one of the most competitive leagues in Idaho. The league includes Coeur d'Alene, the two-time defending state champion at the time, and Post Falls, which won a title as recently as 2018.

Senior guard/forward Sadie Zimmerman was the lone returning starter entering this past season after four starters, including Avery Waddington, Sophia Zufelt, Kamryn Pickford, and Kaliah Frazey, graduated. Pratt had expressed confidence in younger players stepping into larger roles, pointing to guard Macy Murphey, Ella Pearson, and Kaelee Kolden as key contributors moving forward.

When he arrived, Pratt had described his coaching identity in plain terms: "To win, to coach to win, to encourage kids to play hard all the time." He added, "I'm pretty active, animated, if you like. I coach hard, and I expect players to play hard."

Lake City, located at 6101 Ramsey Road in Coeur d'Alene and classified 6A District I, has won three state championships in program history, in 1989, 2001, and 2002. No announcement regarding a coaching search has been made by the school. Assistant coaches Dan Smith, Whitney Teu Teu, and Emma Stensrud had been listed on the program's staff heading into this season.