El Capitan, Golden Valley high schools name new boys basketball coaches
Tyler Dietz and August Tangaan grew up playing AAU basketball together since they were in second grade and eventually played against each other in high school.
Now, they are each taking over as the boys basketball coaches at their alma maters.
Dietz was recently named the new El Capitan High coach, taking over for Adrian Hurtado, who resigned to accept an associate principal job at the high school. Hurtado led the Gauchos to the Sac-Joaquin Section Division III championship game this past season.
Tangaan becomes just the third head coach at Golden Valley, which opened in 1994, following in the footsteps of former coaches Keith Hunter and Derrick Jacobs, who recently stepped down after the season.
Dietz, 25, slides over to the boys program after coaching the girls basketball team the past four years, including leading the Gauchos to their first co-Central California Conference championship this past year and compiling a 86-28 record the past four seasons.
This decision to leave the girls program wasn’t easy for Dietz with his little sister Madysen set to play her senior year next season and almost the entire roster returning.
“My little sister was a big part of why I switched over to the girls side, and she had a great junior season, and we just won our first league title of school history,” Dietz said. “A lot of those girls I’ve been coaching since they were like in third or fourth grade with AAU stuff. But the timing just worked out the way it did. This is literally the only job I would have left the girls job for and the opportunity presented itself, and I felt like I couldn’t pass it up.”
Tangaan, 24, also takes over the program he once played for at Golden Valley. The 24-year old graduated in 2018 from GV after playing four years of varsity under Hunter.
He spent the last three years assisting Jacobs, which included a co-CCC championship.
“I just wanted the program to be in good hands,” Tangaan said. “I never saw this for myself about five years ago, but I think these kids need someone who they could relate to, someone who has a lot of energy, someone who has strength and leadership. I felt I could fill that role.”
Tangaan says he’s already been working with the players and is excited to get ready for next year.
“Two weeks after our season ended against Jesuit, we’ve been back going to work right away,” he said. “I’m really excited and ready to go.”
