Dover – A year after taking over as athletic director at St. Thomas Aquinas High School, Dave Morissette will add another title to his resume.
Morissette will take over as head coach of the school’s boys’ basketball team, replacing Sean Murphy who has captained the Saints for the past seven seasons. Murphy resigned last month due to his work.
Although Morissette appreciated Murphy’s contribution and what he meant for the basketball program, Morissette thought it would be an ideal opportunity for him to get back into the game.
“Sean has done a really good job for us this year and I’ve been really looking forward to having him back,” Morissette said. “When he decided he couldn’t (the coach) anymore, I just thought about it. I miss the gym and love working with the kids. I had the opportunity, and I work with an amazing staff. They were all so supportive and energetic. I decided to do it.”
Morissette has been the men’s basketball coach at the University of Riviere in Nashua for 17 years. He was also head coach at Notre Dame College in Manchester for three seasons, and was assistant coach at Plymouth State for two seasons.
While at the Rivier, Morissette had a stint as the Raiders made the playoffs in 13 consecutive years, winning the Great Northeast Atlantic Conference (GNAC) Championship in 2007.
“I love basketball and I love coaching the kids,” Morissette said. “Just being in the gym with them and watching them get better every day and building the program is the exciting part. I’m really looking forward to it.”
Murphy quit at the end of May, and Morissette was so involved in the spring sports season that he wasn’t really focused on considering the possibility of taking on the coaching position.
But with the spring season winding down, it grew more and more on Morissette’s mind, leading him to make the decision.
“I’m really excited,” Morissette said. “We’ve got kids coming back, we’ve got a good support team and I think we’re going to do some fun things in St. Thomas.”
The Saints will lose some excellent players to graduate like goalkeeper Vinny Simonelli and striker Ethan Berg, but the Saints bring back talented players.
Last season, young Rhys Rogers and sophomore Brady Rogers, in their first season with the Saints, showed promise and were a big part of the Saints posting a 13-5 regular season record.
Reese Rogers led the Saints with 15 points in a first-round overtime loss for the third team, 56-52, to Newfound.
Morissette has seen her fair share of basketball games last year and is keen to work with the team.
“(Murphy) got the kids playing really well last year,” Morissette said. “They had a terrible loss in the playoffs, but we have a lot of these kids coming back. Summer ball has started, and they are all excited. Everyone is on the same page and it’s going to be fun, it really is.”