COACHING STAFF
Chad Jilek - Head Varsity
Coach Jilek is entering his 13th season as head coach and has compiled 240-54 record at Johnston High School. Last year brought another highly successful season. In 2023-24 Johnston was ranked #1 all year finishing with a 26-0 record while winning their 3rd Class 5A State Title in the last 5 years. The Dragons also earned their 6th straight CIML Conference Championship. The Dragons spent all season ranked in the national polls (ESPN, MaxPreps, SBLive). They finished the season ranked #12 in the MaxPreps poll. Johnston qualified for their 10th consecutive Iowa State Tournament (a large school record) and made it to the state championship game for a record 5th consecutive season. The 5 straight state title appearances is an Iowa High School all class record. Johnston is the only team in class 5A to make at least the state semifinals each of the last 7 seasons and 8 out of the previous 9. The Dragons went from 8 wins in Coach Jilek's first year at the helm to 14 wins in his second in which they lost in the regional final to the eventual state champion by 3 points. In his third season the Dragons spent the entire season ranked in the top 10, won 16 games, and qualified for the state tournament. Johnston spent much of the 2015-16 season ranked #1 in Class 5A and finished the season as state runner-up. Johnston has been ranked in the top 10 each week for the past 11 years. As head coach of the Dragons Jilek has been named Iowa Coach of the Year 3 times, West District Coach of the Year 4 times, and Regional Coach of the Year 11 times. Prior to taking over the Johnston Basketball Program Coach Jilek spent 5 seasons as an assistant at Waukee High School where the team qualified for 5 straight state tournaments including 3 semifinals. Before moving to the Des Moines Metro area Coach Jilek spent 5 seasons as Head Coach at Mason City High School (girls), Nora Springs-Rock Falls High School (boys), and Remsen St. Mary's High School (boys). He also coached basketball at the freshman and sophomore levels at Clinton High School and Camanche High School. He is a 1993 graduate of Mason City High School. Coach Jilek earned a BA Degree in Elementary Education from Mt St. Clare College in 1999 and a Masters Degree in Education from Morningside College in 2008. He teaches 8th Grade Early American History at Waukee Middle School in Waukee. Coach Jilek and his wife have two daughters and reside in Urbandale. If you wish to contact Coach Jilek you can email him at: [email protected]
Mark Hein - Assistant Varsity
Coach Hein is beginning his 11th season with the Dragon Basketball Program and has been an integral part of the Dragon's success which include two state championships in '20 and '22, and three state runner up finishes in 2023, 2021, and 2016. Prior to coming to Johnston he spent one season as the head coach at Boone where he took a very inexperienced team and instilled into them what it takes to be successful. Before his season in Boone Coach Hein spent 6 seasons as an assistant at Valley where the Valley program experienced a great deal of success at all levels. Coach Hein is retired from a career with a government agency. If you would like to contact Coach Hein you can email him at [email protected].
Jenny Cook - Volunteer Asst
Coach Cook is entering her 6th season with the Johnston girls’ basketball program. Coach Cook played a major role in the Dragon's 3 State Championships. She was born and raised in Colorado and attended Bear Creek High School in Lakewood Colorado, where she played basketball and ran track. After graduating high school, she earned an athletic scholarship to play basketball at Boise State from 1995-1999. Upon graduation from Boise State in 2000 she was hired as a physical education teacher and head varsity girls’ basketball coach at Golden High School, in Golden Colorado. She was the head varsity coach from 2000-2006, winning three consecutive undefeated league championships and earning Jefferson County 4A coach of the year in 04’, 05’, and 06’. She stepped down from coaching in 2006 after her first son was born. She continued to teach until 2011. Since 2011 she has been a stay at home mom. Her and her family moved to Johnston in 2017 and she tood the opportunity to get back into coaching. She is married to Shane and they have three kids, Micah, Mason, and Madison. If you would like to contact Coach Cook you can email her at: [email protected]
Brad Buchan - Head JV 1
Coach Buchan will be entering his 11th season on the high school coaching staff and his 9th as the Head JV Coach. Coach Buchan's efforts have played a huge role in the Dragon's success which include three state championships ('20, '22', '24) and three state runner up finishes ('16, '21, '23). His JV 1 teams have had numerous undefeated seasons. Before joining the high school staff he spent 6 seasons coaching both boys and girls basketball at the middle school level. He has been teaching Computer Applications at Summit Middle School since 2008. He earned a Business Degree from the University of Northern Iowa and his teaching certification from Upper Iowa University. If you would like to contact Coach Buchan you can email him at: [email protected]
Christine Wolford - Head JV 2
Christine Wolford will be entering her 8th season with the girls basketball program and her 5th year as the Head JV 2 Coach. Coach Wolford's efforts with the younger players has been an important part of our success. In 5 years as the head JV 2 coach her teams have only lost 12 games. She also plays a big part on game nights as she helps complete the stats for the varsity and JV 1 games. She came to us with 13 years of experience at the varsity level in Ohio and Texas and 2 years at the middle school in Johnston. Coach Wolford graduated from Laughlin High School in Laughlin Nevada in 1997 where she participated in Volleyball, Basketball, Track, and Softball. She went on to Adams State College in Alamosa, Colorado where she was a member of the basketball and track team and graduated in 2003 with a BA in Accounting, Economic and Finance. Coach Wolford is an intervention specialist at Johnston High School. She and her son, Wayde, reside in Urbandale. If you need to contact Coach Wolford you can email her at: [email protected]