Windsor
Mackay has stepped down from his job as Windsor High varsity girls soccer coach following nine seasons on the sidelines. Mackay recently said that the combination of coaching both soccer and girls basketball, particularly in the offseason, has cut into too much of the time he’d prefer spending with his wife, Jean, or pursuing recreational golf.
Mackay confirmed he intends to continue to coach the Yellowjackets’ varsity girls basketball team. Windsor is enjoying a strong season on the hardwood, currently resting atop the Vermont Division III standings with a 10-2 record.
“I’ve done it for a long time, doing two sports,” Mackay said. “It gets to a point where I feel I’m not doing as much with soccer as with basketball. This will allow me to play more golf; it allows me to go to Florida in October for two weeks, which I’m not able to do.
“It’s gotten to be a lot. I’m 70 years old. One sport is good enough.”
Mackay took over the head girls soccer coaching job from Jim Ewald, the program’s longest-tenured bench boss, in 2008. Windsor went 46-78-13 during Mackay’s nine autumns in charge, reaching the D-III quarterfinals in 2014 and 2015. Windsor put its first varsity girls soccer team on the pitch in 1999.
Making Windsor competitive on a regular basis requires a commitment beyond just the high school calendar, Mackay noted. He’s been active in AAU basketball in the summer to keep the Jacks competitive in the winter. Summer is also prime offseason preparation time for soccer, and Mackay found he couldn’t commit to both programs during that time of the year.
“There’s so much summer stuff,” he said. “I don’t do soccer because I couldn’t see doing summer and fall soccer and summer basketball. The same kids would see me too much.”
Mackay informed Windsor athletic director Jim Taft in January of his decision to step down. Taft said on Thursday that he’d be starting the search for a new coach in the next week.
As for Mackay, he’s looking forward to more recreational time — once basketball wraps up and the golf courses open.
“I like playing golf; it’s something I do, and I get a lot of enjoyment,” he said. “Once August starts, I don’t get to play. I lose August, September, October, and I haven’t been going to Florida with my wife.”
Smart Sticksters: The National Field Hockey Coaches Association’s high school academic squad includes a slew of athletes from five area schools.
Released last week, the list includes more than 2,500 players from 328 schools around the country. High school juniors and seniors had to maintain a 3.5 grade-point average on a 4.0 scale to make the team. Those achieving a minimum 3.9 GPA were recognized as scholars of distinction by the NHFCA.
Athletes from Hanover, Lebanon, Hartford and Stevens made the list, as did a quartet from Kimball Union Academy. The area’s honorees (x-scholar of distinction):
Hanover High: x-Julia Mae Butler, x-Tessa Cahoon, Johanna Copeland, Hannah Curtis, x-Daphnie Freedman, x-Allyce Good, Margaret Kohl, x-Isabelle Sangha, Natalie Smith, x-Lyla Stettenheim, x-Madeleine Wallace.
Hartford High: Havailah Arnold, Emily Ballou, Karen Cross, Madison Duranleau, x-Caitlin Gaudet, Brooke Hurd, Rachel Loseby, Natasha Lovell, Bethany Perkins, x-Emily Ricker, x-Michaela Ricker.
Kimball Union Academy: Coreen Carley, Elizabeth Colannino, x-Sofia DiAntonio, Riley Dole.
Lebanon High: Alexandra Horvath, Corinne Kennedy, Meredith Melendy, Emma Thibodeau.
Stevens High: Marion Lovett, Rebecca Moody, Elyse Scott, Samantha Woodman.
The NFHCA honored athletes for their GPAs as calculated through the first quarter of the current academic year.
Summer Already? It’s said the road to success is paved in the offseason, and one Upper Valley baseball program is getting set to put that maxim to the test.
Lebanon’s Guyer-Carignan Post 22 will start six weeks of weekend baseball workouts in preparation for the summer American Legion season on Sunday at Grantham Indoor. The workouts, which will run from 1-3 p.m. every Sunday through March 19, will put players together with coaches to work on skills for the coming campaign.
The workouts are open to all players ages 13 and older, and each session costs $10 to help with the building rental. Contact Post 22’s Pete St. Pierre at 603-448-3429 for more information.
Greg Fennell can be reached at gfennell@vnews.com or 603-727-3226.