Burlingame has its next boys basketball coach.
Stetson Carpenter announced on social media Monday night that he has been named the next coach of the Bearcats. Carpenter’s hiring is pending board approval by the USD 454 Burlingame Board of Education, which is set to meet on May 14. Carpenter said he found out about the opening from Dwyane Paul, the current head coach at Lawrence Free State, and had previously known about Burlingame previously.
Carpenter comes to Burlingame after two seasons serving on Paul’s staff at Free State. Carpenter was Paul’s varsity assistant coach this past season for the Firebirds and was Free State’s Sophomore Coach during the 2023-24 season. Carpenter has also been a volunteer assistant coach at Ottawa University and has spent two years as an assistant coach at Baldwin High School. Carpenter grew up in Burden, transferred to Oxford for his senior year. Carpenter attended Butler Community College and was a practice player and then transferred to the University of Kansas before landing his first job at Baldwin.
Carpenter said he’s excited for his next chapter in Burlingame and getting to work with the students.
Carpenter will be a paraeducator at Burlingame, along with his coaching duties. Carpenter replaces Eric West, who stepped down in April after seven years leading the program and 11 years overall in the program. West was named Burlingame’s new athletic director in April. Carpenter inherits a Bearcat program that went 16-6 this past winter, was the runner-up in the Lyon County League, and fell in the Class 1A-Division I Sub-State No. 2 Championship Game to Clifton-Clyde.
