Alvirne boys basketball coach Mitchell Roy has stepped down to take a coaching and administrative job at Derryfield School in Manchester. (Telegraph file photo by TOM KING)

HUDSON – For the second spring in a row, Alvirne High School will be seeking a new boys varsity basketball head coach.

Mitchell Roy, who led the Broncos to a 13-5 regular season record before a heartbreaking loss at the buzzer in the prelims, is moving on. Roy on Wednesday was named as the new Auxiliary Program Manager and head boys basketball coach at Derryfield School in Manchester.

Derryfield was expected to announce the hire on Wednesday.

“In basketball it’s in a different place program-wise,” Roy said. “But I have a cool opportunity to serve as their Auxiliary Program Manger,overseeing their facilty rentals and trying to expand their summer programs. Something I’d be more passionate about long term.”

In other words, this was a career move outside of basketball that Roy felt he couldn’t turn down. The fact it includes basketball is a bonus.

Roy knows he’s giving up a chance to coach another potential contender at Alvirne next season. It’s possible he could have gotten a teaching position at the school but teaching simply isn’t what Roy wants to do.

“Alvirne has a great team coming back,” he said. “Great kids, honestly the parents were so supportive, the administrative was so supportive.”

The biggest factor in this decision? Roy admits that “Honestly I don’t have a true passion for teaching.” That’s what he has been doing at Campbell this school year after he left Profile last spring following coaching that team to an unbeaten Division IV championship.

“I went to school for sports management, and this is more in line with that,” Roy said. “It’s an extremely, extremely tough decision. I absolutely love the team I had and I love the kids that are coming back. I just can’t emphasize enough that I loved my time (at Alvirne). The parents were amazing, and I know in the past they’ve gotten some negative (reputation). They were the best parents, so, so supportive. Karen Bonney was a great AD and I think they’re going in the right direction with (new AD-to-be) Justin Hufft.

“Athletics are on the up-and-up there. I just think this is a great career move for me.”

The move drops Roy back into the lower divisions, this time Division III, and he’ll be taking over a program that went 2-16 a year ago.

“I think it’s kind of a sleeping giant for boys basketball,” Roy said, citing the success the school has had in other sports. “But I think it’s a great opportunity career-wise.”

Roy feels the Derryfield full time position fits “my skill set more” and the position was offered to him as “kind of a two for one. They were excited to try to get the boys basketball program going in a new direction and I’m excited for the opportunity for a rebuild there.

“But I had an amazing experience at Alvirne. This was the toughest decision I’ve ever had to make.”

Another factor? Location. Derryfield is about seven minutes away from where Roy currently lives. That’s a time factor that was important.

Roy wants to make this a long-term thing, as this will be the third team he’s coached in the last three years.

“That’s what I’m looking to do,” he said. “I don’t want to be in a position where I’m jumping year-to-year and this presents a great opportunity for me to be long term and something I’m really interested in doing career wise.”