Colden Hutton/Photo via Williams Woods University
Just over a month after Ryan Clark became the new women’s basketball coach for Minot State University, Lake Region State College has found its replacement.
The Royals will be bringing back Colden Hutton to lead the program, the school announced on Thursday.
Hutton was an assistant coach for the LRSC men’s and women’s basketball teams during the 2021-22 season. He took over as women’s basketball interim head coach when Danny Mertens and the program mutually agreed to part ways during the season. The Royals went 8-23 that year, and 5-16 in conference play.
Following that season, Hutton was hired as an assistant coach for the Iowa Wesleyan University men’s basketball team. Meanwhile, that was the same year Clark was hired as the LRSC women’s basketball coach.
Hutton led the Tigers to a 27-3 record, and 9-1 in conference play, during the 2022-23 season. IWU actually shut down as a school in 2023, so Hutton moved on to William Woods University in Fulton, Mo., to be an assistant coach for the men’s basketball team this past season. He helped the Owls to a 12-16 (10-4) record, which was the third-best mark in school history.
“Having worked closely with Colden in the past, I know the type of effort, dedication and hard work he puts into everything he does,” LRSC athletic director Jared Marshall said, per a press release.
The Royals’ women’s basketball team thrived under the two years Clark led the squad. They had a 20-12 overall record in each campaign, and combined to go 25-20 in conference games. Seven players under Clark’s tutelage moved on to NCAA programs, including four from the third-place Royals this season.
Hutton will try to keep the program trending in the right direction.
“I am excited to be back at Lake Region and in the Devils Lake community,” he said, per release. “The amount of support we get here is unmatched and I can’t wait to be part of the community again.”
Hutton is expected to begin the position later this month.
