Hodgdon must fill pair of gaping job vacancies Ivey, Bouchard decide to leave the Hawks’ nest

The Hodgdon girls basketball coaching position is open as two-year coach Wendy Ivey is planning a move to Texas this fall.

Ivey, who has compiled a 29-12 record and led the Hawks to two semifinal appearances at the Eastern Maine basketball tournament, is planning to move sometime after the harvest break to pursue a degree in counseling, SAD 70 superintendent Deborah Stewart said.

Ivey is a physical education teacher, so both positions have been advertised.

“I hate to lose her,” Stewart said.

So will basketball fans, especially after the Hawks made it to the semifinals of the Class C tourney in 2003 and the Class D tourney in 2004.

Hodgdon lost to No. 1 Dexter in 2003, then the school dropped to Class D classification for the 2003-04 season and fell to Lee in the semis.

Both Dexter and Lee wound up as Eastern Maine champs in their respective years.

The Hawks graduated three starters from last year’s tourney team but return guards Andrea Blanchette and Collette Sloat, who was a Class D all-tourney honorable mention.

Ivey, a 1996 Hodgdon graduate, was an all-star soccer and basketball player for the Hawks. In her senior year on the basketball team she was a member of the Eastern Maine Class C all-tourney squad, an Aroostook League all-star, and a member of the McDonald’s East C/D all-star team. She also reached the 1,000-point level for the Hawks.

Hodgdon advanced to the Eastern Maine final in the 1996 tournament.

After high school she went on to play basketball at Houghton College, an NAIA school in New York, and played at the semi-professional level in Europe.

Ivey also worked as a Gear-Up advisor at Hodgdon High in past years.

She was also the Hodgdon boys soccer coach in 2002 and was set to return to that position last fall but the school didn’t field a team.

Ivey was also a member of the select panel involved in the Coaching Maine Youth to Success initiative, a congressionally funded program that is examining ways schools throughout the state can improve the training of coaches and shape interscholastic athletic programs.

In other news, Hodgdon is still looking for an athletic director after Marty Bouchard left the school this summer to take an assistant principal position at nearby Houlton High School.

And Stewart said the boys soccer program is back on track this year after a drop in numbers led the school to call off the season last fall.

Ramonas to attend Concordia

Third-team All-Maine basketball player Stephanie Ramonas has committed to attending Concordia University in Montreal and playing for the Stingers this year.

The 5-foot-10 guard will receive a partial scholarship.

The former Deering of Portland standout helped lead the Rams to a Class A state championship last winter. She averaged 11.4 points, 7.8 rebounds, 4.7 assists and 2.7 steals per game in her senior season.

“She is an outstanding student and athlete who has tremendous potential and who will undoubtedly have a positive impact on our program,” Concordia coach Keith Pruden said.

Ramonas, a first-team all-SMAA player who is known for her defense, was the MVP of the Western Maine Class A tourney. She scored 14 points and added six steals and five rebounds in the state final against Cony of Augusta.

Jessica Bloch can be reached at 990-8193, 1-800-310-8600 or jbloch@bangordailynews.net.