ROBERTA OLEJASZ

WHEELING – After six seasons of serving as the head girls’ basketball coach at her alma mater, Wheeling Central, Roberta Olejasz has stepped down to spend more time with family.

Olejasz, a 1990 graduate of Wheeling Central and member of the school’s Athletic Hall of Fame, has spent much of her life coaching basketball at some level, including being the founder of W.Va. Elite AAU. But before that, she scored 996 points in two standout seasons for the Maroon Knights, earning all-West Virginia status both years. She then played at NCAA Division I Virginia Commonwealth University before injuries derailed her playing career.

“It has been an amazing ride being able to coach at my alma mater. I am very grateful to CCHS for allowing me to do what I love, coaching basketball,” Olejasz said. “My staff has done a tremendous job and I was blessed over these six years to coach with my brother, Jim Robinson, and my father, Bob Robinson. Having their tremendous knowledge of the game, along with Kevin Heller and Maddie Seavy’s led these teams to the state tournament four consecutive years.

“Being able to coach with my brother and father created memories for a lifetime,” Olejasz noted.

“We were blessed with wonderful athletes and their families,” she concluded. “Now it is time for my husband, Michael, and I to watch our son, Max, play basketball at WVU and to spend time in Clemson with our daughter, Reagan, during her senior year. I’m doing what’s right for my family and I’m doing what’s right for me. This has been a wonderful experience.

“It has been a blast … an absolute blast,” Olejasz added.

During her time with the Maroon Knights, they posted a 93-39 record and won an OVAC Class 3A title in 2024-25 with a sparkling 23-3 mark. They made four appearances at the W.Va. state tournament in Charleston, finishing as runnerup in the aforementioned campaign.

“I feel like we probably left one (state title) on the table in that season,” she said when asked if there was one moment that stood out in her six seasons. “We probably should have won the state title that year.”

During her first couple of seasons, Olejasz was able to coach her daughter.

“She was a sophomore on my first team in 2020-21,” she recalled. “I had been coaching her all along throughout AAU, along with the core of that team. She was easy to coach.”

Olejasz said that when she took over the program from the ultra-successful Penn Kurtz, she promised the group of girls that they would get to play in Charleston.

“That’s another thing that sticks out, and they did.”

Following the 2024-25 season, Olejasz was selected as the West Virginia Schools Athletic Coaches Association Girls Basketball Coach of the Year.