Steve Hood to be inducted into wrestling coaches' hall of fame

Legendary Raider wrestling coach Steve Hood, who retired in 2019, is being inducted into the Washington State Wrestling Coaches Association Hall of Fame.

Hood will be inducted into the hall of fame in Yakima on Nov. 5, and a community dinner will be held at the American Legion building in Electric City on Sunday, Nov. 13 at 3 p.m.

That free dinner will include a main dish, and attendees are encouraged to bring sides, salads, and desserts for a potluck. 

More information can be found by contacting Brittany Cozza, Hood's daughter, at 509-631-2068, or Shelly Jackson at 509-631-0841.

The event was also shared on the Lake Roosevelt Raider Wrestling Facebook page.

Hood was nominated for the hall of fame by Chris Holterman, the wrestling coach at Rainier High School. Current hall of fame members vote on the nominees and chose Hood as an inductee.

"A nominee is eligible upon retiring from active coaching for two consecutive state tournaments," according to washingtonwrestling.com. "Nominees should have completed a minimum of ten years as an Interscholastic Wrestling Coach in the state of Washington. Active coaches may be nominated if they have coached for twenty years."

Hood more than met those qualifications.

He served as assistant coach from 1991 until 1998 when he became the head coach for 21 years, through 2019, and has volunteered with the program since then.

Hood also started the Coulee Crushers Little Guy wrestling program in 1993, and the Coulee Dam Freestyle Club in 1997.

During his time as head coach, Hood produced 72 of LR's 101 state medalists, 12 of LR's 13 state champions, 14 top-10 team finishes, 11 wrestlers who have competed on USA Wrestling's Team Washington, and has won District Coach of the Year six times and Regional Coach of the Year twice, among his other accolades.