With two decades of service, no one has ever coached more games in Oak Hall’s 37-year history than Cari Martin. And since the day she was hired as a fresh-faced 21-year-old straight out of Valdosta State, the school has been lucky to have her.

Most people around here know Martin for what she has accomplished in volleyball, turning a mediocre program into a year-in, year-out fixture at the FHSAA state final four. But at one point until the early 1990s, Martin also coached girls basketball and softball (she just gave up the latter seven years ago).

Ultimately, she decided to stick solely with volleyball, and with her singular focus there, she has reached rarified plateaus.

Martin led the Eagles to state titles in 1997 and ‘99, and next season, barring something completely unforeseen, she will collect the 21 wins she needs for No. 500.

And she has done it the right way.

So often you read about private schools being put in FHSAA jail for recruiting violations. But you never hear that about any sport at Oak Hall. And if she wanted to, Martin could go out and sell her program to potential big-name transfers.

No, she starts with kids as sixth graders and has her fingerprints all over every level of their development. And yes, I do know getting players that young is an advantage public schools don’t have, but let’s just say the attention span of most 12-year-olds isn’t exactly ideal for teaching bumps, sets and spikes.

Off the court she is beloved by the school’s faculty and her players ” past and present. She also teaches some things the public doesn’t see.

I love hearing from athletes I covered once they are done with high school. Invariably, I’ll get an email every so often from a former Eagle volleyball player letting me know how they are doing, maybe telling me someone to keep an eye on or thanking me for coverage (especially nice in a world where many former prep stars “big time” those who were there before they became college or pro successes).

I’m sure a lot of that goes back to Martin, who called and emailed me often in late 2000 to check on me after she heard I had lost someone very close.

She and I have a working relationship that has been probably 98 percent positive, but that other two percent … well, she’s let me have it. An example: earlier this year, we ran a quote in a story from another local coach who said the Eagles will go as far as talented senior outside hitter Katie Robinson took them.

Cari always has struck a good balance in pushing her exemplary players for statewide honors, while also making sure her developing or complementary athletes aren’t made to feel left out.

“Every parent wants to see their kids in the headlines, and that is something every coach goes through,” OHS athletic director Jeff Malloy said. “One of her true Martinisms is you never know who is going to step up, so you have to always be unselfish and support your teammates. She tries to make sure every kid gets their due. She’s probably one of the best there is at that.”

In the previously mentioned statement about Robinson, Martin said she believed that quote was a disservice to the rest of her team.

Having since seen the Eagles play a few times, and taking nothing away from Robinson’s brilliance, Martin was right.

She has talked about retiring from coaching after winning another state championship, but she is as spry and enthusiastic at 41 as she was at 21. Oak Hall would be wise to do all it can to change her mind.

Recently, I told Malloy I thought Cari Martin was the face of Oak Hall athletics and he agreed. I didn’t tell him this, but I also think the school might want to consider naming its gym or the court after her.

Malloy said he joked during a pep rally this year that Cari was entering her 40th year at the school. That is funny, but think of it this way … if somehow she does stay 40 years, Martin could reach 1,000 career wins and still retire four years before most people.

There’s your selling point, Jeff.