Mario Mengarelli, top small-school boys basketball coach in Washington, resigns at Zillah
Three-time 1A champion's winning percentage (91.4) is tops ever for any coach with 200 or more victories
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Mario Mengarelli, who guided the Zillah boys basketball program to three Class 1A state championships and won more than 90 percent of the games he coached, resigned Tuesday as the Leopards’ coach.
The move is set to become official at Thursday’s Zillah School Board meeting set for 7 p.m. at the district offices.
Mengarelli declined to comment Wednesday, but said he would talk at a later date.
The coach’s post to his Facebook page Wednesday night included:
“(Ten) years dedicated to the program! People don’t understand how much time, effort and mind space it takes! Running a successful program is a non stop year round job. Not that you’re in the gym that much, but it’s questions you have to answer, worried about a players home life, trying to better yourself as a coach, seeing people that hate you because…., putting up with excuses for ….., dealing with commitment issues, it takes a lot to do it the right way! Tough business relying your mental health on the decisions of 14-18 year olds! It will be nice to relieve some stress from my life, but I will miss the big games and the brotherhood that a locker room creates!
“Time to be a husband, dad, cowboy, hunt and fish! I look forward to spending more time with my kids while they are young. Being able to focus on coaching them in their sports or whatever they are passionate about! More time to ride horses!”
Zillah finished the 2025-26 season 26-1, its only loss to Lynden Christian in the Class 1A championship game in the Yakima Valley SunDome.
Just weeks after the season, however, several yard signs reading, “I stand with our coaches,” and including the program’s logo popped up around town.
At the May meeting of the Yakima Valley Sports Commission at Legends Casino and Resort in Toppenish, Zillah athletic director Lance Den Boer confirmed there was an investigation into the program, but deferred all questions to Zillah superintendent Doug Burge, who is handling the inquiry.
On Wednesday, Den Boer again declined to comment. Burge could not be reached at the district office.
Mengarelli took the reins of the program after Burge’s retirement from coaching following the 2015-16 season.
The former three-sport standout at Granger High School wasted no time, leading the Leopards to a 26-1 record and his first championship, and the school’s fourth.
Two years later, Zillah would repeat the record and again win the championship.
The Leopards capped a 27-0 season in 2024, with a thrilling victory against Annie Wright in the championship game.
Mengarelli was 235-21 in 10 seasons leading the Leopards. He led Zillah to the 1A tournament in the Yakima Valley SunDome every year outside of the abbreviated 2020-21 season.
His 91.4 winning percentage is the best in state history among coaches with more than 200 victories. Only eight coaches on the list have won more than 80 percent of the games they’ve coached.
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