There will be many new high school coaches around the Seacoast this spring – Seacoastonline.com

There will be as many as 11 teams that will have new coaches when the 2022 high school spring sports season officially begins in the second week of April.

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New coaches include Lauren Delong (Marshwood girls tennis), Matt Moreland (Marshwood boys lacrosse), Kirstin Fleming (Oyster River girls lacrosse), Wyatt Gantenbein (St. Thomas Aquinas boys tennis), Jeff Thorsen Traip Academy softball),Jody Donohue (Traip girls lacrosse), Bruce Joyce (Exeter baseball), Matt Brewster (Exeter boys lacrosse), Melvin Torres (Dover softball) and Billy McNamara (York boys lacrosse).

Here's a look at some of the new head coaches.

Delong, coming over from York High School where she coached the girls varsity tennis team for three seasons, is now ready to get startedwith the Hawks.

Delong said the excitement of the girls is what she reallyfeeds off, and is ready to see the development in the players over the course of the season.

"The girls learn new skills, they enjoy each other and develop a love for the gamebecause tennis is a lifelong sport, it's all about that longevity," Delong said. "I'm almost 50 and I still compete and play. Tennis is a sport that I love more than anything.It's an honor to share it with the girls and inspire them to play it, love it and enjoy it their whole lives."

Marshwood athletic director Rich Buzzell is "very excited" to have Delongon board.

"She's very invested in the tennis landscape and community, and comes with a wealth of tennis-playing experience," Buzzell said. "The combination of the two is a big win for our program. Our kids are super lucky to have her in this position."

Moreland said coaching for him is all about the player'senjoyment of the game.

"Just the kids having fun, if they get through the season and had a great time, thenthat's pretty much the end goal," Moreland said. "Getting everybody improving and having a good time."

Moreland, who served as Ralph Ruocco's assistant for many years,also played lacrosse for Marshwood back in the 1990s.

"We're excitedto have him make the next step in his career,"Buzzell said. "Ralph's shoes will be tough to fill, but Matt is up to the challenge;we're looking for him to build on our recent successes."

Fleming has bigger goals than just wins and losses for the Bobcats this year.

"Obviously winning and losing, that's what you see on a piece of paper," Fleming said. "It's easy to look at stats that way, but I think my goals are to get everybody on the same page, and just kind of firing on all cylinders. I want the girls to feel really connected as a team. I do think this is a fresh start and a new chapter, not to be clich. If we can all get on the same page and have focus on what we need to do, and not depend on certain people and get everybody involved, from defense to midfield to offense, then, that to me, is a success."

Joyce replaces longtime head coach Kevin McQueen, who called it a career after last season, his 25th with the Blue Hawks.

Exeter won three state titles under McQueen in 2013, 2017 and 2018. Joyce was on McQueen's staff the past 11 years, andis ready to start his inaugural season as head coach.

"I certainly welcome the opportunity, that's for sure," Joyce said. " When the opportunity arose, I couldn't say no."

Joyce mentioned that he and McQueen workedwell together and had a lot of fun doing so. Joyce said besides the team's record, continuing to grow relationships with both the upperclassmen and underclassmen is histop priority.

"We have a nice, solid group of returning guys," Joyce said. "We've got some good young kids in the program. We want to continue to carry on what we've built there, and build on, not just the success on the field, buta lot of good things that we've done off the field; we're trying to carry on those traditions."

Brewster, who takesover for 23-year Exeter head coach Gerry Holly, has been coaching in the club circuit since 2015, but this is his first high school head coaching opportunity.

"I'm absolutely fired up," Brewster said. "I have a great group of kids, it's a great community in Exeter. Exeter has a really good history of being a good program and being highly competitive; I'm excited to continue that."

Brewster'smain focus is tomakesure the kids get better in every aspect, and not just putting the ball through the net.

"I want them to develop as lacrosse players, but also as human beings," Brewster said. "I think that if you can create a culture where kids come in and leave better lacrosse players and better people, then you've done a good job as a coach. If you set the right culture and get the kids to work hard, everything else is going to fall into place."

Torres, who coached for three seasons at Great Bay Community College,is ready for his first year with Dover.

The Green Wave will field a younger team, but Torres is ready for the challenge.

"The season will be a successful one if we have a winning season, and improve as a team," Torres said. "I want the girls to continue to learn the game and get better every day, that's the main goal."

Traip Academyis entering its third season with girls lacrosse as a varsity spot, andDonohue is ready to transcend the program. Donohue has also coached girls basketball at Shapleigh Middle School.

"I'm looking forward to building theteam, and building the sense of community around the team like I did with Shapleigh," Donohue said.

The Rangers, after 22 games as a varsity program, are still looking for their first win.

"I want them to be able to have that (winning) feeling, that sense of accomplishment from a win," Donohue said. "It's not all about winning, I love to win, don't get me wrong, but not at all costs. Sportsmanship and work ethic is way more important to me."

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There will be many new high school coaches around the Seacoast this spring - Seacoastonline.com