by Matt Harvey
ASSISTANT SPORTS EDITOR
(Wednesday, August 19) Shinnston's Andy Sorine, first a successful player and then a coach in North Central West Virginia, has been named head coach of North Marion High School's basketball team.
Sorine was hired Tuesday night. It is his first job as a head varsity coach.
Is Sorine, 33, excited?
"I'm drawing up out-of-bounds plays as we speak," he said.
Sorine most recently was Lincoln's head freshman basketball coach in 1997-98 after serving as an assistant varsity coach and head junior varsity coach a year earlier at South Harrison.
He also was an assistant coach under Mike Carey at Salem-Teikyo from 1988 through 1996.
Sorine won letters at West Virginia University in 1984 and 1985 after being named second team all-state his senior season at Lincoln High School. The Cougars advanced to the state tournament and finished 21-3 that season.
At WVU, he played against stars like Len Bias and A.C. Green while learning from coach Gale Catlett. Sorine found maturity in that time.
Under Carey, Sorine said he learned strategy and organization, among other useful skills.
He said he would choose a style of play that best fits his players' skills.
One of his first goals is keeping the support of the administration, students and community.
He'd also like to see North Marion consistently competitive in the tough North Central Athletic Conference. And eventually, Sorine wants to make a run at a state title.
"I'm kind of in the dark about North Marion basketball. ... I do know they don't have a lot of returning players back."
Roger Lefebvre knows there's no magic in recruiting college basketball players. As Salem-Teikyo University's acting women's basketball coach, Lefebvre knows his success or failure will mainly involve hard work.
Still, the eight-year veteran coach and accomplished professional magician says he'll need to pull a couple recruits out of his hat to help turn the Salem program into a consistent winner.
Lefebvre, who came to Salem as an assistant in mid-June, finds himself quickly in charge. He's replacing LeAnn Bird, who left about a week ago to coach on the high school level in Virginia.
"I've been recruiting since I've gotten here, so it really hasn't changed for me," Lefebvre said. "I'm just excited to have this opportunity."
Lefebvre has been an assistant at Division II power Grand Canyon University in Arizona, Clarke College in Iowa and New England College in New Hampshire.
Athletic Director Mike Carey said Lefebvre brings great basketball knowledge and professionalism.
"He knows the game and is a great recruiter," Carey said. "And he's well-schooled and a hard worker. We're confident he can bring our program up to elite status in the West Virginia Conference."
Lefebvre takes over a program that finished near the bottom of the WVIAC standings. What can fans expect from the Tigers this year?
"We'll play to our strengths," Lefebvre said. "If we can run, we'll run. If we have to be patient, we'll be patient. But, we'll play hard the whole game. Only time will tell how good we are."