After six seasons as the boys’ basketball coach at his alma mater, Old Orchard Beach High, Matt Regan is moving on to become the head coach at York, where he’s a full-time teacher. Brianna Soukup/Staff Photographer
In a series of connected events, York and Old Orchard Beach high schools have new varsity boys’ basketball coaches.
Matt Regan is the new coach at York, which competes in Class B South. Regan had been head coach at OOB, a Class C South school, since 2018, compiling a 53-40 record over the five non-pandemic seasons. Regan is a 2009 graduate of Old Orchard, where he played for his father, John Regan, who retired in 2015. He was officially hired on Monday and it was announced Wednesday. Regan is in his fifth year as a health and physical education teacher at York High.
“I’ve kind of always thought there were two places I would ever want to continue coaching basketball and that would be the school I went to and am an alunni of, or the school where I work,” Regan said.
In part because the first day of basketball preseason is less than a month away, Old Orchard Beach has hired Dean Plante, the school’s athletic director and football coach, as Regan’s replacement. Plante was the Seagulls’ girls’ varsity coach for 20 seasons, compiling a 263-120 record. He retired as girls’ coach not long after directing his team to the 2023 Class C state championship.
Dean Plante, a former girls’ basketball coach at Old Orchard Beach who is also the school’s athletic director and head football coach, will step in this winter as head coach of the boys’ basketball team after the departure of Matt Regan. Joe Phelan/Kennebec Journal
Plante said he was asked to take over by OOB Superintendent John Suttie after a meeting of the administrative team.
“I don’t know that we’re calling it an interim position, but for all intents and purposes, we will likely reopen the job at the end of the season when we have more time to vet candidates and do it right,” Plante said. “We met as an administrative team and Mr. Suttie suggested we go this route.”
Plante is well acquainted with his future players. Of the 34 who have signed up, 25 play football, and the senior class includes his son, Brady, a guard and the team’s leading scorer last season. Plante was a volunteer assistant coach last season.
Old Orchard’s football team is 7-0 and looking to advance to a third straight Small School eight-man state championship game, which will be played Saturday, Nov. 16. Basketball practices begin Nov. 18.
“I’ll rest that Sunday. That’s a problem I really, really hope we have,” Plante said.
The coaching dominoes started when Jerry Hill, York’s coach the past four seasons, took a job teaching sociology at York County Community College in Wells.
“I wrestled with it in my head and I just feel like I miss teaching, and it was a great opportunity and I didn’t feel I could give 100 percent to York basketball and decided to step down,” Hill said. “York’s a great place to coach and Jeff (Oliver), the athletic director, was great, and both principals were awesome and the kids were great and the kids were great.”
Hill, who coached for many years in New Jersey, took over at York for the COVID-disrupted 2020-21 season. In his three full seasons, York was 40-16.
Regan said junior varsity coach Josh Herbein and first-team coach Luke Mackey are staying at York.
“Personally, I’m very happy that both are staying,” Regan said.
Since Regan spent the summer coaching his former team, he said the first few weeks with York will be an important time to learn individual player strengths, player rotations, and “who works well together.”
