York Suburban soccer coach steps down
After 10 years at the helm of the York Suburban boys’ soccer program, Tony Kowalewski is stepping down as head coach of the Trojans.
York Suburban athletic director Chris Adams made the announcement Tuesday morning that the school accepted Kowalewski’s resignation and they are looking for a new head coach. Kowalewski has spent 18 years of his life with the York Suburban soccer program, first as an assistant coach for eight years before taking over the head coaching position in 2006.
However, life had caught up with Kowalewski and with a daughter in college, a son beginning his college search, and added responsibilities at his day job, Kowalewski felt it was the right time to step down from coaching.
“I found myself last season having to miss a practice or spend more time doing work and soccer,” he said. “It just got to the point where I feel like I don’t have the time to put into the program that I always put in. Or that I think should be put in, so I thought it was good time to let somebody else take the reins and put in more effort than I have to give right now.”
The head coaching job has been posted, and Kowalewski said longtime JV boys soccer coach John Fornadel is interested in the job and is planning to apply.
York Suburban made back-to-back league championship appearances during Kowalewski's first two seasons in charge, capturing the YAIAA title in 2007. He was also named the York Daily Record’s coach of the year that same season.
Kowalewski helped York Suburban make several trips to the District III tournament and was at the helm when they had an undefeated regular season in 2012.
“That was a great group of players,” Kowalewski said about the 2012 team. “They just decided they weren’t going to lose a game. I kinda sat back and watched. Every year we were competitive and I am real proud of the fact that we rarely missed districts. We occasionally missed the counties, but we were always competitive in divisions…
“It was great that we could be competitive every year and that’s something I’m proud of. That’s a great memory.”
Kowalewski will take time to enjoy watching his kids play soccer – his son Carter plays for Suburban and his daughter Hannah plays at Franklin & Marshall – and he joked he’d probably take a vacation the first week of preseason. However, he will still be around the program even if he isn’t head coach.
Kowalewski said he is already on the volunteer coaches list and will make himself available when needed, as well as during the transition period for the new coach.
“I offered I would help with whomever takes over getting things going,” he said.