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Mountain View, Hudson’s Bay fill coaching vacancies

DuChesne new hoops coach; Ephraim football

By Paul Valencia, Columbian High School Sports Reporter
Published: July 3, 2010, 12:00am

Mountain View High School went to the college ranks to find a boys basketball coach.

Nate DuChesne, who was an assistant at Portland State University this past season, has accepted a teaching job as well as the head coach position for the Thunder.

“He was a perfect fit,” said Adam Mathieson, Mountain View’s athletic coordinator. “He’s a coach who believes in multi-sport athletes, and he’s a teacher first. He’s passionate about the sport and what the sport can mean for life-long learning.”

DuChesne was the head coach at Cashmere, La Conner, and Stanwood high schools. His teams reached the Class 4A state semifinals in his 2001 and 2002 at Stanwood. In 2005, he became the head coach at Edmonds Community College, before becoming an assistant at the University of Montana, his alma mater. DuChesne then moved on to Portland State.

“I really consider myself a high school coach,” DuChesne said. “I like that level. I like the excitement. Kids are eager to learn. It’s a good level, a lot of fun.”

He added that high school teaching and coaching is easier on the family life than college coaching.

“I have kids, freshman twins, at Mountain View, playing sports,” he said. “I want to watch them. I can’t recapture the next three years. It’s important for me to be able to do that. It’s not an easy time to get a teaching job in the state of Washington. It’s a very good school district, and I felt it was the right opportunity.”

The DuChesne family lives about a mile from the school, and he said he will enjoy this commute a lot more than the one to and from PSU.

DuChesne will take over for Mike Cranston, who resigned after 18 years as the head coach. The Thunder won the Class 4A Greater St. Helens League’s district tournament this past season.

“He’s done a tremendous job at Mountain View,” DuChesne said of his friend, Cranston. “I really want to build off of what he’s established. He’s had competitive teams every year.”

This was Mountain View’s second attempt at finding a replacement for Cranston. The school initially hired Kyle Brooks, but Brooks changed his mind and opted to stay at Prairie. DuChesne was not a candidate during that first search. But after learning of the situation and talking it over with his family, he decided to apply when the position was re-opened.

“We are so thrilled that when we went through this a second time, we were able to get a candidate the quality of Nate,” Mathieson said.

Hudson’s Bay hires interim football coach — Former Oregon State Beaver Will Ephraim has been named the interim head coach for the Hudson’s Bay football program.

“Will is a very energetic, enthusiastic individual who has great rapport with the kids,” according to Jeanne Shults, Bay’s athletic director.

Ephraim will take over for Steve Stebbins, who accepted a position in southern Oregon in late spring.

Shults said that the combination of the late vacancy and the lack of a teaching position on campus made it difficult to lure a large candidate pool. And with team camp a couple of weeks away, school officials wanted someone familiar with the program to take charge.

Ephraim, who has been the defensive coordinator for the Eagles the past two years, will make for a smooth transition, Shults said.

“I’m excited, and I’m excited for these kids,” Ephraim said. “The kids have shown great respect for me, great enthusiasm, and in turn that increases my enthusiasm. Every day, I wanted to be there.”

Ephraim, a physical education teacher at Thomas Jefferson Middle School, said he absolutely wants to be the head coach permanently, but he understands the process. The job is his for this season and the position will be re-evaluated.

Ephraim, who played defensive back for the Beavers from 1991-94, said he will treat this season as the first of many.

“My goal is to allow these kids to have a positive experience that they will remember,” he said. “Football is a hub that can connect everything. We want to get connected back with the student body. We want to make it feel like it’s not just a football program, but for all of Bay. I want it to be ‘our’ program not ‘the’ football program.”

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Columbian High School Sports Reporter