4 decades in, MCA hits a winner with Donna Hilsop

After over four decades of coaching, long-time Polson tennis coach Donna Hislop was named the Montana Coaches Association Assistant Coach of the Year.

Hislop first got into tennis when she started dating current Polson hed caoch Bob Hislop. 

“He taught me how to play and about the game,” Hislop said. “I started playing myself and loved it.”

There was an opening for the freshman coach in Bigfork, so Hislop applied and got the job. 

“I love the challenge of the game, and there have been an innumerable number of student-athletes that I have had the pleasure of working with and getting to know,” she said. 

Both Donna and Bob Hislop have since been coaching at Polson for close to 30 years. 

“He is a fountain of knowledge and I have learned so much for him,” Hislop said. “It just works well for us. I feel very fortunate to be able to coach with him and that we can enjoy doing so.  Not every couple can do that.”

Hislop said that the success the Pirates have had has been a bonus. The goal has always been to teach a love of tennis — a game players can enjoy for the rest of their lives.

“We also try hard to help our players become better people as well,” Hislop said. 

The Hislops also exposed Polson players to summer lessons, clinics, and tournaments.

“Players also know that our coaching staff cares about them as individuals,” Hislop said. “Assistant coaches are given the opportunity to contribute ideas, drills and have input into what happens. I feel blessed to have been given the opportunity to be a part of the program.”

Coaches are nominated for the assistant coach of the year award, and then information is gathered. Hislop’s nomination came after the Pirates took home their second State A boys crown in 2023; Polson has won six state tennis championships. 

Hislop also coached basketball for Red Lodge, Dodson, Eureka, and Bigfork; track and field for Eureka, and volleyball for Bigfork. Her stint in Bigfork lasted two seasons, and she has 42 years of coaching. 

— Brandon Hansen, Lake County Leader