A 19-6 record wasn’t enough: why Gig Harbor’s girls basketball coach was let go

Gig Harbor High School is one of three high schools in the Peninsula School District, along with Peninsula High School and choice school Henderson Bay High School.

(Julia Park)

The Gig Harbor High School girls basketball program will be searching for its fourth varsity coach in four seasons.

Michele Hackett, who coached the team during the 2025-26 season, has been let go, according to an email she sent to parents, obtained by The News Tribune.

In the email, Hackett states that she met with Gig Harbor High School athletic director Blair Suek last Thursday, April 23, regarding the future of the program.

“(Suek) told me that she had spoken with players and that the general consensus was that I wasn’t the best fit for this particular program and community,” Hackett wrote in the email. “Truth be told, my heart is sad — I put everything I had into coaching all of you, regardless of whether you were on Varsity or JV, and in doing so, grew to care deeply about each and every one of you. I will miss you dearly.”

Hackett replaced Tim Olson, who was placed on administrative leave — alongside two assistants — after a district investigation found the coaches consumed alcohol during a team trip to Florida, allegedly.

Olson replaced Michael Guinasso, who left after the 2022-23 season. Guinasso replaced Megan Murray, who led the Tides to a state championship under 2019 TNT All-Area player of the year Brynna Maxwell, who later became a WNBA draft pick after playing college basketball at Utah and Gonzaga.

Requests for comment from Hackett, Suek and Peninsula School District athletic director Wendy Malich were not answered, as of Wednesday morning.

A source told The News Tribune many of the team’s parents remained firmly in the corner of previous coach Tim Olson, and felt they never gave Hackett a fair chance. The source also said some of the parents weren’t fans of Hackett’s laid-back, hands-off coaching style during games.

By any reasonable standard, Gig Harbor had a successful season under Hackett, who was hired late in the cycle and wasn’t able to coach the team during the summer, a critical team development period for any coach, but especially a first-year coach.