Many of these new people are coaches on some of Shipley’s 68 interscholastic teams drawn from sixth through twelfth grade. Some of the new coaches on Shipley’s staff have ties to the school and the surrounding community as teachers or parents or were raised and attended school in the Philadelphia area.

The Shipley Athletics Department did not have to look too far from home when the girls’ basketball head coaching position became open this fall. Physical Education staff member, Zach Kancher, took over the resurging girls’ basketball program after being the assistant coach for the boy’ varsity team two years ago and the assistant coach for the girls in 2004-5, as well as serving as the JV head coach for the girls. Zach comes to Shipley from Haddonfield HS in New Jersey, where he was a standout varsity basketball and baseball player. He is also the head coach for the AAU Delmont “Blaze” team for girls. In college at George Washington University, Zach majored in English and was a member of the scout team practice squad for the varsity NCAA Div. I girls’ team.

Jacob Hurwitz comes to Shipley as an Upper School math teacher and assistant boys’ lacrosse coach from Houston, Texas, where he taught and coached JV lacrosse at the high school level. Prior to his time in Texas, Jacob was a member of the NCAA Division III men’s lacrosse team at Goucher College in Maryland. His local ties come back to his days at Lower Merion High School and Ashbee Youth Lacrosse in Lower Merion township, where he was born and raised. Playing under legendary lacrosse coach, John Linehan, at Lower Merion HS, Hurwitz was a member of the state lacrosse Final Four teams in 1995 and 1997.

Tim Sullivan, is a community coach new to Shipley this winter, but he has learned a lot about the School from his two daughters who attend Shipley (Jenny ’08, Nikki ’10) and their academic and athletic achievements. Tim brings to Shipley’s thriving girls’ and boys’ swim teams over twenty years of experience in coaching and participating in top level competition. In the late ’70s Tim swam at Council Rock HS in Newtown, PA and advanced to the state championships in the 200 and 500 free, emerging with second place medals in both categories. He attended Princeton University, where he swam for their NCAA Div. I program. After graduation Tim continued swimming and coaching in the Bucks county area, organizing swim events and even a Triathlon Training Clinic at Germantown Academy in 1985.

Joining the Lower School teaching staff this year as a second teacher and as an assistant coach for the boys’ varsity soccer team for their Friends League title season is Thom Schauerman. Thom is a 1995 graduate of Ridley HS and a 1999 graduate of Marymount University. At Ridley, Thom was an All-Central League soccer goalie and participated in the Delco All-Star Game in 1995. At Marymount University, Thom was a four-year starter and a three-time captain, garnering All-Conference honors in 1995. Since college Thom has worked as a goalie coach and trainer for the O.D.P and the Delco “Fury,” the 2005 U-16 PA state champs.

Daniel Hawthorn has come to Shipley as a head coach of the boys’ and girls’ cross country teams and an Upper School math teacher. After growing up in the Main Line area and excelling in local and national Track and Field events, Daniel qualified in 1996 for the AAU National Championships in the 100m Hurdles. He continued to compete at the USA Track and Field National Championships in 1998-2000. At Haverford HS, Daniel was the state qualifier in the 4X400M relay, team MVP, and a member of the Central League Champions team in the 110M High Hurdles and 300M Low Hurdles. Daniel attended the University of Maryland in College Park, MD, where he was an ACC Champion in the Decathlon 1500M event and was awarded the prestigious President’s Cup for Academic Excellence in Athletics.

Jeanne Kanovich joins the Shipley’s coaching staff as an assistant to Daniel Hawthorn for the boys’ and girls’ cross country teams. Jeanne is a 1997 graduate of Franklin and Marshall College, where she competed on the cross country and tack and field teams, as well as serving as the team captain. After graduating from Temple University Law School in 2003, Jeanne has worked as a lawyer with PMA Insurance Group.

Marta Mielcarz ’95 is one of several alumni who have returned to their alma mater to teach and coach. After assisting with the girls’ varsity volleyball team last year, this year, she has taken on the duties of head coach. Marta brings back to Shipley a vast expertise of volleyball, in hopes of returning the Gators to the level they were at during her time as a player. During Marta’s five years on varsity, the Shipley girls captured the Inter-Ac title each year (1991-1995). She was the team MVP for her final four years on the Shipley squad. After graduating from Shipley, Marta moved on to Lehigh University, where she helped the Mountain Hawks win the 1997 Patriot League Championships and advance to the NCAA Div. I tournament and was selected to the All-Patriot League teams in 1997 and 1998. Currently Marta works at GlaxoSmithKine as a laboratory scientist.

Sarah Mechura ’01 joins the Upper School as a math teacher and is assisting Tim Sullivan with the varsity swim teams at Shipley. When she was at Shipley, Sarah swam on the varsity swim team. She graduated from Colgate University in 2005.

André Brown ’97 joins the Shipley staff as a full-time Upper School health teacher this year after assisting the boys’ varsity basketball team during last year’s KSAC Championship season. André enjoyed much success as a student as a four-year varsity player under coaches David “Lefty” Ervin and Len Miller, leading the Gators to a KSAC title in 1997. He graduated from West Virginia State University (WVSU) in 2002 with a major in business management. At WVSU, André was a four-year starter on the university’s NCAA Div. II basketball team. He also served as captain for the team for his final two years in college. Prior to his move to Shipley, André was an assistant coach at Cheney University in 2002-3 and coordinated local youth basketball clinics, including one at Overbrook Elementary School. He also worked as a job developer for the mentally disabled for JEVS (Jewish Employment and Vocational Service).
 
New coaches, a new league—both have marked a banner year in Shipley athletics. The move to the Friends Schools League this fall marked the first time in the Shipley’s history that both the boys’ and girls’ athletics teams were playing in the same league, sharing common opponents, game dates, and philosophies and competing for the same league championships. The success of the change was proven on November 7th when the boys’ and girls’ soccer teams, along with the girls’ field hockey team, all played in FSL championships at the same time on the same day. (The girls’ tennis team had advanced to the championships earlier in the week.) That day marked the beginning of a dramatic rise in school spirit not possible in previous years. The overwhelming sentiment among Shipley students and faculty was that that they were now part of a new tradition that takes a legitimate place among the many other Shipley traditions that have grown up over the years since the founding of the school in 1894.

by Mark Duncan