Off the heels of winning its second consecutive NHIAA Division III state championship, the Lebanon High girls tennis team will be looking for a new leader when it comes time to go for a three-peat, as head coach Rob Johnstone has stepped away from the role.
“Rob has provided excellent leadership for our girls tennis program over his tenure, culminating in these past two seasons with the team earning consecutive state championships,” Lebanon athletic director Ben Davis said in an email.
“I believe what truly made him special was his willingness and ability to work with and develop players with lesser talent or ability, or take strong athletes who excelled in other sports at LHS with little or no tennis experience, and develop them in a short amount of time into effective players capable of contributing to the overall success of his teams,” Davis added.
Johnstone, who coached the Raiders’ girls tennis team for a total of eight seasons, cited multiple reasons for his decision to depart from his post.
Johnstone, who also coaches boys soccer at Lebanon High, is also an English teacher at Windsor High and, to focus on his teaching work, does not travel to most away tennis matches.
That has not been a problem in the past, as assistant coach Rick Hines has filled the away-game void. However, Hines’ daughter Laura, the Raiders’ No. 1 singles player en route to a state championship in 2025, graduated after that season.
While Hines assisted this past season, Johnstone acknowledged that in conversations before the campaign, “we both knew this was going to be his last year to do it — his daughter was out of the program.”
“The bottom line is if I’m the coach and can’t go to the away matches and our longtime assistant, who has been the familiar face, the really high-level coach who has gone to the away matches, is not going to do that moving forward — it’s just not fair to the team,” Johnstone added.
Although Johnstone said that leaving the Raiders was difficult, citing the connections he has made with his players, he acknowledged that the solid ground the program is on did factor into his decision.
“I think it’s in a good spot to find someone to step in to really continue things,” Johnstone said.
Over the last three seasons, the Raiders have thrust themselves into the upper class of NHIAA Division III girls tennis.
During that span, Lebanon has appeared in three D-III finals and won the last two state titles — a major turnaround from four seasons ago when there were questions about whether there would even be a team.
“I can’t understate how rewarding it was to work with these girls. I’m proud to be associated with them,” Johnstone said.
Despite his departure, Johnstone said he would be interested in staying involved with the program, whether it’s hitting balls or helping with drills, if the new coach wanted his assistance.
“You’ve got to balance that with the new person is the head coach — it’s got to be if they want that — you don’t want to step on any toes or be looming around… that’s the last thing you want,” he said. “But if you want someone to stand there with a basket of balls and hit, I would love to do that because, again, these players and their families have really been an important part of my life.”
Lebanon is not the only Upper Valley high school with a head coaching vacancy. Others are advertising coaching openings on their district or school websites or on SchoolSpring.
Mascoma High is on the hunt for a new girls basketball coach to replace Mark Rockwood, and Stevens High is advertising an opening for a varsity golf coach on the district website.
Additionally, Woodstock High has postings for golf to replace Chris Bradley and girls basketball to replace Timmy MacDonnell on its SchoolSpring page.
