Ash Grove’s Wallace takes reins at BBC, Basketball journey spans from backyard barn to Baptist Bible College head coach

When Ash Grove native and resident Madi Wallace was a girl, she would practice basketball in the barn out behind her house. It started her on a journey which, most recently, has seen her become the head women’s basketball coach at Baptist Bible College in Springfield, where she coaches the Lady Patriots.
Basketball journey started in the barn
Wallace began practicing basketball in the barn behind her family’s house after her father set up a basketball goal for her there.
“My dad actually poured concrete out there, put wood on the walls, and hung up a goal,” she told a reporter for KY3 during an interview in 2020, when she was an assistant girls’ basketball coach at Central High School in Springfield. “I drew the lines with sidewalk chalk.”
Her practice paid off, and Wallace would go on to play for the Ash Grove Lady Pirates. In 2014, her senior year, the team went to the Final Four, and ended their season as runners-up, the first time the Lady Pirates went to state.
Despite struggles, Wallace continued with the game
After high school graduation, Wallace went to Avila University in Kansas City, where she played college ball, but, she transferred to Evangel University after one season to be closer to her father after he was diagnosed with cancer. She had to sit out her sophomore year but was able to play her junior year. During her senior season, she broke her lower fibula, ending her college basketball career, but that was not the end of her relationship with the game.
Coaching opportunities came about after graduation
After graduating from Evangel with bachelor’s of science in communication studies, Wallace worked as an assistant basketball coach at Central from 2018 through 2021, during which time she earned her master’s of science in organizational leadership and change from Drury University. She then went on to assistant coach at Ash Grove High School from 2021 through 2022 before officially becoming the head women’s basketball coach at BBC on Aug. 9.
Wallace described her position at BBC as her “dream” job.
“Coaching at the collegiate level, while continuing to live in the 417, has always been a dream, but I wasn’t sure that it was in my cards,” she said. “I am a firm believer that God will lead you exactly where you are supposed to be. When the door of opportunity opened for me at Baptist Bible College, I knew that this was something I could not pass up. The opportunity to take the game I love and teach young adults lessons that they can carry with them for the rest of their lives is the greatest blessing I could have asked for in a career. I will forever be grateful beyond words for this opportunity and for the people here at Baptist Bible College that took a chance on the young coach with a dream. BBC has quickly become a family for me, I am so proud to be a part of it all.”
Creating a “family atmosphere” among the players
As the head coach, Wallace said that she works to promote a “family atmosphere” among the players.
“From the moment I walked in the door,” she said, “we as a team have worked to establish a family atmosphere that translates both on and off the court. From this, trust is being built on a daily basis, and the culture of our team is changing in positive ways.”
Additionally, Wallace said the team has ramped up their game on court.
“Basketball-wise, the previous teams here were used to a much slower paced game due to a smaller roster size,” she said. “Now that our roster has expanded, we have increased the speed and intensity of our overall game. We take steps in the right direction daily and plan to continue to in the years to come.”
However, Wallace said, at BBC, the young women she coaches are gaining more than a chance to dribble a ball.
“The overall goal from year to year is for these young adults to walk out of their program ready for life, in whatever field they might be pursing,” she said. “Here at BBC, we establish a faith-based family atmosphere while competing at a high level, so that our graduates can walk out the door ready for what the world might have in store for them.”
In addition to coaching, Wallace is also co-owner of Fourteen Fifteen Staging and Interior Home Design, a home-staging service based in Springfield.