Cal-Mum’s Brian McQuillan named Coach of the Year

   Cal-Mum’s Boys Varsity Soccer Coach, Brian McQuillan, was the LCAA selection for Coach of the Year as well as the Section Five Class CC Coach of the Year, named by Birds Eye Foods who hosted a banquet to recognize all Section Five Boys’ Soccer teams on November 8.

   McQuillan’s Raiders finished the 2007 season with a 14-3-3 record, clinching the LCAA Division II title. He’s coached the team for six years but shies away from taking any of the credit for his team’s success.

   "Any recognition that a coach gets is a reflection of a wonderful team. This team is a tremendous group of kids that are a lot of fun to coach. They played as a team and had a lot of success," Coach McQuillan remarked.

   McQuillan and his team were guests of the school board recently. While the board members invited the athletes to congratulate them on a great season, McQuillan instead thanked the board for their support of athletics. He said they showed their support in building the new stadium and all weather turf field and said the team members appreciate that the new field is the best facility in the area, which in turn, motivated them to take a lot of pride in it when they stepped out on to it to compete.

   "Cal-Mum is a fun place to coach. The community supports our programs. There were a lot more people along the way in these kids’ lives that worked with them that lent to their success," commented McQuillan, speaking of the numerous volunteers with the youth soccer program.

   Still, success is sweet for the Cal-Mum High School coach who says this team made his job very enjoyable.

   "Their goal going into the season was to win the league title. This team had good senior leadership and a great group of kids that just wanted to play soccer. They were all hard workers, very determined. As a coach, that’s fun when they give it all they’ve got," the Coach of the Year said.

   Senior Charlie Worl says Coach McQuillan is not only a great coach, but a great person. He played four years of soccer for McQuillan and saw success himself as an athlete of the week, all league athlete and Birds Eye Player of the Week. He was part of the strong senior leadership that McQuillan spoke of on his team.

   "He’s the nicest person I’ve ever met. He boosts our self esteem with his coaching. His intensity and sincerity for coaching is perfect for our development at this age," Worl said, adding that he will miss Coach McQuillan and, because of his impact on his life, he will make a point of coming back to Cal-Mum High School after graduation to see his coach and teacher.

   McQuillan, in his 11th year at Cal-Mum High School, teaches economics, government and advanced placement economics. He’s also the varsity tennis coach. With an undergraduate degree from the University of Rochester and a masters’ degree in business administration from Rochester Institute of Technology, McQuillan passed up a promising career in business for an even brighter career in the classroom.

   "A good day for people in business is if they can make thousands of dollars for their company. That doesn’t do it for me. A good day for me is when I see a student light up when they understand what I’m teaching and they get excited about it."