White River Junction — Hartford High field hockey coach Heath Haskell will not return to the Hurricanes’ sideline next season, according to both Haskell and Hartford athletic director Jeff Moreno.

“We just wanted to go in a different direction,” Moreno said late last week.

Haskell coached the Hurricanes to a 16-9-2 record over two seasons after taking over for veteran 28-year coach Heather Scudder in 2015. Scudder led Hartford to 11 state championships and her teams made at least the semifinals in 13 consecutive seasons before she stepped down. Hartford reached only the state quarterfinals in 2015 and was bumped in the first round against Colchester this past fall with Haskell at the helm.

Moreno, who extends contracts to each of its coaches on a yearly basis, told Haskell that he would not be receiving another contract from the athletic department. Haskell has coached at Bellows Falls, Montpelier and Newport in the past.

“I have zero hard feelings toward Heath,” Moreno said. “It just wasn’t the right fit for us. You could tell he loves coaching. He was always on, always thinking about field hockey.”

Haskell said he was “shocked and confused” upon hearing the news.

“I am sad,” he said in an email on Thursday. “I absolutely love this team and have truly felt supported by the assistant coaches, athletes and their families. I wish the returning girls the very best of luck, and I will forever remember the last two seasons as highlights in my coaching life.”

Moreno said the athletic department would put together a committee involving student-athletes to select a new coach and that the coaching search had already begun. He also said that members of the Hurricane field hockey team had been notified of the coaching change via a letter.

“He knows the game,” Moreno said. “We lose a lot with him not coming back.”

Josh Weinreb can be reached at jweinreb@vnews.com or 603-727-3306.