BV Native Won 600 Games, Five State Titles As Hoops Coach
Mike Cartolaro’s résumé speaks for itself.
Five state titles and 600 wins as a varsity boys basketball coach. Eighteen district or conference championships, with 10 trips to the state semifinals or beyond.
Over 30 years in the classroom, plus a total of 13 years in athletic administration – the last 10 of which have come at Parry McCluer High School, his alma mater.
He’s coached countless players who moved on to the college level, including one multi-sport athlete who now boasts a Super Bowl ring.
But when you chat with Cartolaro, who officially retired as the PM athletic director last week, you’ll have a hard time getting him to take credit.
Instead, Cartolaro would rather talk about his family – his wife, Leigh, and children, Ashleigh and A.J. – as well as his fellow coaches, his players and the administration at the five high schools where he compiled those 600 victories.
“You’re only as good as the people around you, and I’ve had all winners around me,” Cartolaro said.
Coaching Connections
Cartolaro grew up in Buena Vista in the 1960s and 1970s. Inspired by the success of Fighting Blues athletics during that era, he and his childhood friends would play football, basketball and baseball – and they never hurt for numbers for those backyard games.
“It was such a sports-minded town,” Cartolaro said. Basketball was the only sport that he played at the high school level, though he expressed that one of his few regrets was giving up baseball at a young age. On the hardwood, he competed for the legendary – and stern – Chick Crawford.
“We all say that if you survive Coach Crawford, the rest of life is gravy,” Cartolaro said. “But he was old-school, and we respected that. That’s how we played.”
After graduating from PM in 1978, Cartolaro enrolled at Roanoke College. The Maroons were an NCAA Division II powerhouse at the time – they moved to Division III and joined the Old Dominion Athletic Conference in 1980 – but the program wasn’t a great fit for the former Blue.
Undeterred, Cartolaro headed farther south to Emory & Henry College. There, he worked with Bob Johnson, who won 370 games with the Wasps – and who first suggested that Cartolaro take a stab at coaching. “I think he realized before I did; he said, ‘I think you’re going to be a coach,’” Cartolaro said of Johnson.
Cartolaro received his Bachelor of Arts degree from E&H in 1983, and he also spent two seasons on Johnson’s coaching staff. But it was high school hoops that proved to be Cartolaro’s calling.
The Early Years
Curt Newsome’s name is renowned in Virginia football coaching circles. A longtime assistant at James Madison University and Virginia Tech, Newsome spent the final 10 years of his career at his alma mater, E&H, before retiring after the 2023 season.
He also happened to be Cartolaro’s fraternity brother, and in 1983 he was the head football coach at the now-defunct Ervinton High School in Dickenson County. Newsome recruited Cartolaro to coach junior varsity basketball, baseball and football; the newcomer also taught social studies and even drove school buses.
ABOVE, After the PM boys basketball team won its first state title in program history in 2021, then-head coach Mike Cartolaro (center) celebrates with assistant coaches (from left) David Smith, John Armstrong, Tyler Kerr and Rad Patterson. BELOW, Cartolaro is recognized after the game while his players applaud. (Stephanie Mikels Blevins photos)
It wasn’t a glamorous position; Cartolaro recalled that his salary in 1983-84 was $17,000. But it was a start.
Fast-forward to 1987, when Cartolaro accepted his first varsity head coaching position at Orange County High School. That’s where Cartolaro met his wife, Leigh, who would support him throughout what turned into a 34-year coaching career. “She’s been my No. 1 fan,” the longtime coach said.
After three years – and two district titles – in Orange, Cartolaro spent one season at Monacan High School outside of Richmond. (“Leigh tried to tell me I wouldn’t like the city,” he mused. “She was right.”) From there, Cartolaro headed back to far southwest Virginia, where he served as the head coach and athletic director at Virginia High School in Bristol from 1991-1994. He made the first two of his 14 career Virginia High School League state tournament appearances with the Bearcats, reaching the quarterfinals in 1992 and 1993.
But Cartolaro’s mother, Polly, had passed away in 1991. A three-hour distance between Bristol and Buena Vista – where his father Tony was still living – proved to be too far, and the Cartolaros started looking for opportunities closer to home.
A Different Vista
Cartolaro landed at Altavista High School, where he would guide the Colonels to a wildly successful 21-year tenure.
With multiple district titles already in the bag, Cartolaro’s program turned the corner at the state level shortly after the turn of the century. Altavista lost to Nandua in both the 2002 Virginia High School League Class 1A championship game and the 2003 semifinals, and then broke through by beating Riverheads to claim the 2004 title.
“When you win a championship, it’s a great feeling,” Cartolaro said. “You don’t forget that first one, that’s for sure.”
Roughly a decade later – and with four more state tournament appearances in between – the Colonels welcomed in a golden generation of student- athletes. A core group that featured Juan Thornhill, Meche Maulbeck and twin brothers Demetrius and Darius Johnson would rack up five Class 1A state titles, securing two on the gridiron as well as three consecutive basketball championships under Cartolaro from 2013-2015.
Thornhill became an elite defensive back at the next level, excelling at the University of Virginia and winning Super Bowl LIV as a starting safety for the Kansas City Chiefs in the 2019-20 season. The Altavista graduate, who spent the past two years with Cleveland, signed with Pittsburgh back in March.
The Cartolaros attended Thornhill’s wedding a couple of years ago. It’s part of a trend of remaining connected with former players and assistant coaches; while Thornhill may have the most name recognition, Cartolaro can point to a long list of past players who have competed at the collegiate level or joined his profession as a high school coach.
“What I really like is, I keep in touch with quite a few of the players from all those places,” Cartolaro said. “Athletics really creates a bond that I think is a lifelong bond.”
As special as those state titles were, one of Cartolaro’s favorite memories during his time at Altavista was having both of his kids in the gym – Ashleigh was a cheerleader, while A.J. played hoops for his dad – and Leigh in the stands.
But it was a different generation that ultimately brought Cartolaro all the way home.
Back to Buena Vista
With his father Tony aging, Cartolaro decided it was time to return to Buena Vista in 2015. The decision involved a respite from coaching, as he accepted a position as assistant athletic director and alternative education teacher at PM. Tony passed away in 2022.
The break from the sidelines only lasted one year, though, as Cartolaro took over the PM boys basketball team during the 2016-17 season. Four years later, he guided the Blues to one of the greatest moments in program history.
There were already numerous state championship banners hanging in the gym, including five football titles and three straight girls basketball crowns from 20172019. But despite some near misses under Crawford and Nelson Fox, the school had never won the ultimate prize in boys hoops.
That all changed in 2021, when a group led by Spencer Hamilton and Will Dunlap steered the Blues to their first title. The opponent in the Class 1 championship game, which – due to COVID-19 restrictions – was played in the PM gym? Altavista.
Nearly everything about that moment was surreal, including the chance to face off against his former school with the title on the line. Both teams had shown plenty of resiliency in taking the floor and battling through to the championship game in less than ideal circumstances coming out of the pandemic.
“Really good group, just tough kids” on the 2021 team, said Cartolaro, who thinks that Buena Vista’s athletic culture helped the Blues persevere. “It’s [Buena Vista] always had that sports edge about it,” he added. “This little community has managed to hold onto that identity, even through the roughest times.”
End of an Era
Cartolaro retired from coaching one year later. His final victory – against Grayson County in the 2022 Region 1C tournament – was the 600th of his career, as he finished with an overall record of 600-237. (A complete list of his district, regional and state coach of the year awards would barely fit in this week’s sports section.)
Now, after six years, he’s hanging up the athletic director hat as well.
He left the boys basketball team in great hands, as Tyler Kerr – another PM alumnus who coached under Cartolaro – took the Blues to the state quarterfinals with a young group last winter. “He’s done a great job, he really has,” Cartolaro said of Kerr. “And maybe the best is yet to come.”
Cartolaro also seems as proud of the recent upgrades to the Blues’ athletic facilities as he is of his success on the basketball court. During his time as AD – he assumed the head role in 2019 – PM has installed new bleachers and a new floor in the gym, put down Bermuda grass at Bobby Williams Field, and replaced the scoreboards at its outdoor facilities. Back in the spring, the school renamed its baseball stadium in honor of another favorite son of Buena Vista, Charlie Manuel, who was in attendance for the dedication ceremony on May 3.
Cartolaro will stay active on the PM Athletic Hall of Fame committee – he was inducted himself in 2022 – and on the ’70s reunion committee, which organizes events for PM alumni who graduated between 1970-1979.
He and Leigh plan to spend more time with their grandchildren; A.J. and his family live in Evington, while Ashleigh is close by in Lynchburg. And of course, there’s a to-do list waiting for him at home.
After 42 years as an educator, coach and administrator, Cartolaro may finally have some time to reflect on everything that he’s accomplished. Just know that he’s always going to share the accolades.
“It’s not about me. It’s about everybody around me,” Cartolaro said. “I didn’t realize I was going to do as much as I was going to do. … But I wouldn’t trade it for anything.”
