State championship winning coach Barbara Hartzog is leaving the Jackson Public Schools for Vicksburg High.

The longtime Provine coach accepted the vacant Missy Gators’ coaching position on Wednesday. The hiring is conditional upon approval by the Vicksburg Warren School Board of Trustees. The board will meet on July 28.

Contacted Thursday night, Hartzog said she could not comment until after she was released from her contract at her current job.

“There’s no doubt Vicksburg will have a great team next year,” Warren Central coach Donny Fuller said. “They have all five starters coming back and coach Hartzog is a great coach.”

Hartzog will replace Mike Coleman, who resigned his position in June to take the same position at Quitman High near Meridian.

The veteran Provine coach is not stranger to the gyms of Warren County. The Lady Rams are consistently invited to the Coca-Cola Classic in the early season and have played regular season games at both Vicksburg and Warren Central.

Hartzog led the Lady Rams to the Class 4A state championship in 2002. The University of South Alabama graduate compiled a 160-65 record in her seven seasons at the Jackson school. Her teams advanced to five playoffs and reached the Mississippi Coliseum three times.

“She told us clearly that if this is what the players want and they want to work hard to get out (of district), then she’d be there to guide them,” Vicksburg High principal Charlie Tolliver said.

At Vicksburg, she will inherit a team that did not lose one senior starter from last year. All-County selection Rachel Jenkins, a junior, and Kristin Ellis will provide size down low. Guards Kendra Sims, Cre’Tarsha Taylor, Jazmin Johnson and Tiffany Williams all saw substantial playing time last season.

The Missy Gators are coming off a 14-17 campaign and failed to get out of district for the sixth consecutive year.

Tolliver said last week that he had seven or eight candidates, but only four had planned interviews. Two of those withdrew at the last minute.

Deborah Brown, who also interviewed for the top position, said this morning that she planned to stay on with the ninth-grade and work with Hartzog next season.

She also was Coleman’s assistant last season.