| HeraldNet - Snohomish County's online news source |
 SUNDAY, OCTOBER 12, 2008 12:45 pm |
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High Schools 
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Glacier Peak coaches have similar connection The new school's coaching staff has a distinct Snohomish flavor Soccer took Melinda Torre around the world. After playing at the University of Washington, she competed professionally in Germany.Football, not soccer, was Rory Rosenbach's ticket to new places. He was a tight end for the Air Force Academy and the University of Oregon. More recently, he coached a prep team in Eugene, Ore., to a pair of state championships. What do Torre and Rosenbach have in common? Both of them accomplished big things after graduating from Snohomish High School, and now they're back in the area kick starting sports programs as head coaches at Glacier Peak, the Snohomish School District's new high school that opens this fall. Torre and Rosenbach represent a common theme among Glacier Peak varsity coaches: Connections to Snohomish High. Most of the new school's coaches either graduated from Snohomish or coached there. A sampling: n Dan Parker, Glacier Peak's cross country coach, has coached the sport at Snohomish since 1988. His girls teams won four state championships. n Rob Serviss, Glacier Peak's girls and boys swimming coach, guided the Snohomish boys squad to its third consecutive state title in February. n Brian Hunter, Glacier Peak's boys basketball coach, graduated from Snohomish in 1988 and was a guard for the Panthers' hoops team. Ties to Snohomish High weren't a requirement for Glacier Peak coaches, but it's a nice bonus, Snohomish School District athletic director Mark Albertine said. "It's a positive in that you have quality people who want to come back and give back to the community they grew up in, and that supported them when they were participating (in prep sports)," he said. "That's always a good thing. You're proud of the fact that they're successful." Their solid track record could help Glacier Peak -- a Class 3A school that won't have seniors its first year -- deal with some daunting challenges. Familiarity with the area can only help. "They know the community. They have some roots here. There's some history," Albertine said. It doesn't hurt that the town's high schools won't initially be rivals, since they will compete in opposite divisions of the Western Conference (Snohomish in the North Division and Glacier Peak in the South Division). For now, there's a sense of support and respect between them. "The community embraced the idea that Glacier Peak is seen as an add-on to the Snohomish community. We're all still just part of one big family," said Glacier Peak baseball coach and athletic coordinator Bob Blair, who this spring was an assistant for Snohomish's state-championship baseball team. Torre, a 1992 Snohomish grad who participated in soccer, basketball and track for the Panthers, said she has already noticed a tight-knit feeling among those who will join her as head coaches at Glacier Peak. "It makes it easier to communicate," she said. "People are really friendly and willing to work with each other." |
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