Many new coaches announced

With summer just over the horizon, and yes, it is coming, that means that coaches need to be place for offseason programs and with that in mind, there have been a plethora of announcements of new basketball and soccer coaches in recent days.

On the hardwood, Deering has welcomed Rich Henry to run its boys' program, Waynflete has announced that Andrew Leach is its new boys' coach and Yarmouth has hired Connor Hasson for its boys' team, while Lynn Gioruard is the new girls' coach at Waynflete.

Henry comes to Deering from Waynflete, where he served the past two decades as the boys' coach, compiling a record of 263-132 with two trips to the Class C state final. Henry played at North Dakota State and at the University of Maine, where he was a 1,000 point scorer and co-captain his senior year. 

"I’ll be forever indebted to Waynflete for giving me my first coaching experience and opportunity," Henry said. "They were flexible in terms of my needing to balance a corporate career with basketball and (athletic director) Ross Burdick has been a terrific partner for me and the program. It hardly seems like 20-plus years could have gone by, but then I see former players who are in their mid- to late-30s and I'm brought back to reality. The decision to leave Waynflete wasn’t easy, it’s never easy to leave the players that you’ve spent two or three years with, and this current freshman class has some players who I think will be outstanding."

"Rich was my second coach hire at Waynflete back in 2004," said Burdick. "Rich elevated the expectations and challenged the players to improve and compete. He quickly turned the program around to one that expected to make the postseason every year. His teams rose to the challenge and won two regional championships. I thank Rich for his hard work, his loyalty to the program and for his commitment to the players. His teams filled the Waynflete gym and fostered school spirit. Deering will be an exciting new challenge for Rich. I wish him the best of luck and I will be rooting for the Rams."

Henry said that there were several aspects of the Deering position which appealed to him and ultimately convinced him to make the switch.

"The decision came down to some of the attributes of schools that I have always found intriguing: large student population, history of athletic success and a solid football program," said Henry. "I think there’s a natural carry-over between successful fall sports teams and basketball and football players generally come into basketball season accustomed to the level of contact and physicality that you need to be successful.

"I was very impressed with interview committee, which included three players, and the things that came across as being important to them. My conversations with (Deering athletic director) Michael Daly have been very helpful for me in starting to acclimate myself and I’ll be meeting with the rest of the players shortly. We have a fairly robust summer session that will be coming up and I’ll be working to finalize the coaching staff and then it’s getting on the court and working with these young men."

"We are thrilled to have Coach Henry coming to the Deering 'RAMily' to lead/coach our program," Daly said.

Henry replaces Todd Wing, who coached the Rams for 12 seasons, including last winter's 8-11 campaign, which ended with a loss to Scarborough in the Class AA South quarterfinals.

Stepping in to replace Henry at Waynflete is Leach, who spent the past six seasons as the Flyers' girls' coach, compiling a record of 35-68 record with a small roster. Leach led Waynflete to the Class D South Final in 2024.

Leach also coached the Waynflete boys' junior varsity team for two seasons and has coached the Flyers' boys' lacrosse team to three Class C state championships. He previously coached basketball at Islesboro and Gould Academy. Leach is Waynflete’s assistant athletic director.

"I'm ready to build on the work that the boys and Rich have put into the boys' program and hopefully, we can go even further in the future," Leach said.

A year ago, the Flyers boys went 8-11, losing to Winthrop in the Class C South preliminary round.

Hasson, meanwhile, continues a family legacy of coaching. Hasson's mother, Lynne, spent 11 seasons as the girls' coach at South Portland before leading the North Yarmouth Academy girls last winter. Hasson's father, Chris, served as Scarborough's boys' coach at the turn of the century and his sister, Abby, was the Portland girls' coach for four seasons.

Connor Hasson, the one-time South Portland standout, who went on to play at the University of Maine-Farmington, spent the past five seasons as the Red Riots' boys' junior varsity coach and helped lead the program to three Class AA state finals and a pair of Gold Balls.

"I’m thrilled at the opportunity to be a part of the vibrant Yarmouth community," said Hasson. "Yarmouth High School athletics are consistently competitive with multi-sport athletes and the basketball program has a strong and proud tradition that I feel honored to be a part of. Last year’s team had an impressive season and I’m excited to get in the gym and work with the returning players and newcomers to the program to build on that this summer into next season."

"We are excited to welcome Coach Hasson to Yarmouth High School for the 2025–26 school year," said Yarmouth athletic director Sarah Holmes. "Coach Hasson brings a disciplined and strategic approach to basketball and is committed to elevating (the program) to the next level. He is eager to meet his players and begin developing a game plan for the upcoming season."

Last year, under Ilunga Mutombo, the Clippers went 10-9, losing to Lincoln Academy in a triple-overtime thriller in the Class B South quarterfinals.

Girouard was the assistant to Leach with the Waynflete girls the past two years.

Before assisting at Waynflete, Girouard scored 1,000-points as a player at Lewiston High School, then went on to play at Central Maine Community College. Girouard previously served as the Lewiston girls' coach for seven seasons.

"I'm really proud of the work we've done with the girls' program and giving the keys over to Coach Girouard is the smart move," Leach said. "I'm excited to see what she and the ladies do this season and beyond."

Girouard inherits a Waynflete team which went 6-13 last season, losing to Valley in the Class D South quarterfinals.

Turning to soccer, George Sherry is the new boys' coach at Thornton Academy. Sherry coached the Golden Trojans' girls' squad to an 8-5-3 record last fall, which included a playoff victory over Bonny Eagle.

Sherry spent the previous seven seasons co-coaching the Waynflete girls with Carrie Earls. The tandem went 46-42-4, winning the 2023 Class C state championship. Sherry also coached the boys' team at Old Town High School.

Sherry played soccer at the University of Maine and is a premier coach with Maine Lightning. He's worked at Saco Middle School for 26 years as a science, reading and physical education teacher.

Sherry replaces Andy Carlson, who is the winningest coach in program history.