Sinclair gives up coaching position AD, teacher at MA cites time limits

Mattanawcook Academy in Lincoln will soon advertise for a new boys basketball coach after Rick Sinclair recently resigned from that post after three seasons with the Lynx.

Sinclair, who remains as the school’s athletic director as well as a math teacher, cited time constraints associated with practices and games for his decision, particularly given his desire to spend more time with his family.

“It’s time,” said Sinclair, who commutes daily to Lincoln from his home in Brewer, approximately 50 miles away. “[Basketball] takes a lot of time away from being home, and I have a 1-year-old daughter [Abigail] I want to spend more time with.”

Sinclair said he made his decision relatively soon after the season in order to have plenty of time to find his coaching successor.

The Hermon High School and Husson College graduate guided the Lynx to a 34-23 record during his tenure. After a 6-12 season in 2004, MA went 12-7 in 2005 while advancing to the Eastern Maine Class C preliminary round.

This season, Mattanawcook moved up to Class B and finished 16-4. The Lynx defeated 2005 state champion Camden Hills of Rockport in the preliminary round, then lost to eventual 2006 state champion Maranacook of Readfield in the regional quarterfinals.

Mattanawcook figures to be a contending team again next winter, with a nucleus led by returning players Derek Libbey, Adam L’Italien, Shey Gardner and Isaac Young, who was sidelined by a knee injury seven games into the 2005-06 season.

Before coming to Mattanawcook, Sinclair also coached for two years at Hermon, compiling a 29-15 record with the Hawks and also guiding his alma mater to the 2000 Eastern Maine Class B title. That marked the last time a Big East Conference team won the regional title. Since then, Kennebec Valley Athletic Conference schools not only have won six straight EM crowns, but also six straight Class B state championships.