After forging a memorable legacy at James Wood High School, Adrian Pullen has retired as head coach of the Colonels' baseball team following six successful seasons.
James Wood coordinator of student activities Ethan Waters announced that Pullen stepped down late Monday night, and Pullen confirmed Tuesday morning he'd be retiring from coaching. He said he felt it was the right time to step away.
"There's a lot of pieces in place moving forward with the team that's left, the coaching staff that's there. I believe they're ready to go on their own," Pullen said. "For me, it was a family decision based upon where my needs and where my focus should be now. They've been wonderful in letting me go out and do this journey of coaching James Wood and do my thing. But now it's time to give back to them."
Pullen added that he wanted to spend more time with his wife, Crystal, and focus on supporting both his son, Bodie, and his daughter, Yeakley, during their respective careers playing college baseball (University of Richmond) and teaching second grade.
A James Wood Class of 1990 graduate, Pullen was named the team's head coach in 2019. After there was no high school baseball in 2020 due to COVID-19, Pullen made his head-coaching debut in 2021.
He went on to compile a 101-38 record and led James Wood to four state tournament appearances across six seasons. In 2022, he helped the Colonels win the Region 4C championship and finish as the VHSL Class 4 state runner-up. Pullen has also been named The Winchester Star Baseball Coach of the Year four times.
Pullen said the team's run to the 2022 state final was made possible by his players' hard work and the fact that many members of the roster had played together since they were 8 years old. He said the 2021 roster's loss to eventual state champion Broad Run readied them for the postseason challenges they faced the following season.
When reflecting on his overall winning record, Pullen said he was proud of he and his players' success, but said the wins and losses weren't the most important part of his coaching tenure.
"In this day and time, success a lot of times boils down to wins and losses, but for me, it really doesn't," Pullen said. "Success to me is just the way that kids come in at a young age as 13- or 14-year-olds. To watch them grow and improve and develop, not just on the field but off the field ... and just watch them develop into young men and [become] ready for life after high school and baseball, that's what's satisfying and makes it a success."
James Wood senior outfielder Tyler Prusik is one of many players Pullen has seen grow, as Prusik developed into a Class 4 All-State First Team selection this past season. He said Pullen impacted James Wood's players in "very positive ways."
"Coach Pullen really cared about us, not just as players, but as people," Prusik said. "He pushed us to work hard, stay accountable and compete every single day, not only on the field, but in the classroom and in life. He created an environment where we wanted to show up to get better, not only for ourselves, but for teammates as well."
Pullen won The Winchester Star Baseball Player of the Year award in 1990 and was later inducted into James Wood's P. Wendell Dick Hall of Fame in 2016. Pullen served as an assistant for the Colonels from 2004-2010 before returning as a varsity assistant and JV coach from 2016-2019.
He said getting to coach the Colonels meant a lot to him, and noted that he couldn't have done it without support across the board.
"It takes a lot of people [to have success]," Pullen said. "It takes a great coaching staff, it takes great kids, great families that will buy into the process and what you're talking about and what you're preaching. And we've had that at James Wood. It makes me proud that we have done those things, and I just can't say enough about everybody that's involved in making James Wood baseball what it is today.
"The community support has been wonderful. A lot of relationships we've developed throughout, on and off the field; that's the biggest thing that I take away, is just the relationships we've made, not only with players but with administration and with the community."
Current Winchester Royals and former Millbrook head coach Brian Burke was one of several area coaches who competed against Pullen and the Colonels routinely during Pullen's six-year tenure.
Burke, who stepped down as the Pioneers' coach in 2024 after 14 seasons, said he and Pullen have been friends since they each coached travel baseball at Blue Ridge Baseball Association, an organization Pullen founded in 2016. The pair coached on the same staff the year before Pullen became James Wood's head coach.
Whether they were coaching with or against one another, Burke said Pullen has always been a hard worker.
"I've got a lot of respect for what Adrian has done for the baseball community as a whole," Burke said. "What he's been able to establish for local kids and giving them an option to have a travel baseball experience and doing things the right way ... goes way back before the James Wood job that he had.
"While at James Wood, there was never a doubt that [Pullen's] players would be prepared. I think the expectations that he held for his players were all high, but reasonable. They were able to obtain their goals through hard work ... but it goes two ways. He had the buy-in from players, and the kids worked hard for him."
Waters thanked Pullen in a statement on Monday, writing that "coach Pullen set a standard of excellence for our program. We are deeply grateful for his six years of leadership and wish him the absolute best."
Waters also said a search for the program's next head coach will begin immediately.
Pullen said he met with current players and their families on Monday night to announce his retirement and share a speech expressing his gratitude for his time serving as head coach. He shared his retirement speech with The Winchester Star, which included a thank-you message to his players.
"Thank you for trusting me. Thank you for buying into the process," Pullen said in his speech. "Thank you for challenging me, and thank you for giving me the opportunity to be your coach, your mentor and hopefully someone who made a difference in your life ... the wins were great, but the relationships were the real reward."
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