Oak Hall Solidifies Boys Lacrosse Staff
Written by Lee Roggenburg on . Posted in Uncategorized.
Gainesville – Jonathan Montes has been promoted to head coach of the Oak Hall boys’ lacrosse team, according to Oak Hall School Director of Athletics Jeff Malloy. The former head coach, Rick Kirschner, stepped aside to focus on his duties as the head of Oak Hall’s Upper School. He will remain on the staff as an assistant.
“What a luxury it is to have Coach Montes in place to continue the fine tradition we have in lacrosse. Given the relative newness for lacrosse in the southeast, I cannot tell you how fortunate Oak Hall is to have someone with the wealth of knowledge that Jonathan possesses leading our program” Malloy said.
Montes spent the past two seasons on the Eagles coaching staff and was promoted to associate head coach for the 2014 season. In 2013, he was named the US Lacrosse North Florida Assistant Lacrosse Coach of the Year after helping guide the Eagles to a 17-2 record and their second straight district championship.
“It’s our desire to develop Oak Hall lacrosse into one of the top programs in the state of Florida and the southeast,” Montes said. “We will do so by combining world-class academics with a lacrosse program that is structured to help propel young men on to compete at the collegiate level.”
The founder of the Gainesville RedHawks youth lacrosse program and Florida Generals Select Lacrosse, Montes played lacrosse for The Ohio State University. Aside from his lacrosse expertise, he is the president and owner of Aubrey Rogers Insurance Agency, Inc.
Before becoming a coach at Oak Hall School, Montes was head coach at The Calverton School in Huntingtown, Maryland, from 2002-2011. His record was 112-51 with nine consecutive years of winning 10 or more games in a season. Under his guidance, the Cougars went from last place in the league to a first-place finish in the Maryland Independent Lacrosse League (M.I.L.L.) in just his third season. Montes’ teams won seven regular season M.I.L.L Championships and five League Championships. He was twice named the Coach of the Year by The Washington Post once for Southern Maryland (2003) and once for the entire Washington D.C. Metropolitan area (2005). In 2007 he was named a US Lacrosse Man of the Year for his significant efforts to promote, develop and aid lacrosse at the secondary school level while improving the lacrosse opportunities for student-athletes in the Washington D.C. Metro area. Montes stepped down from coaching in 2012 leaving The Calverton School program widely regarded as one of the top lacrosse programs in the Washington D.C. Metro area with 14 college lacrosse commitments, eight of whom were headed to compete at the Division I level. In his career, Montes has helped more than 150 athletes play college lacrosse.
“We feel so very fortunate to have a lacrosse staff with so much experience and success. We always strive to be the best at Oak Hall and having a staff with these types of credentials gives our students incredible opportunity to be successful not only in lacrosse but also in life,” said Malloy.
Montes will be joined by Kirschner, who led the Eagles beginning in the 2012 season and has amassed over 25 years of coaching experience including at his alma mater and perennial power Landon School (MD), St. Stephen’s & St. Agnes School (VA) and St. Anne Belfield School (VA). Richard Gaddy, a 2005 graduate of Oak Hall, will once again assume his role as defensive coordinator after his defenses in 2013 and 2014 held opponents to an average of 5.5 goals per game. Gaddy, a founding member of OHS lacrosse, is also the JV basketball coach. Former Trinity Catholic Head Coach RJ Fuhr also joins the staff. Fuhr, who founded the lacrosse program for the Celtics, compiled a 17-8 record with Trinity Catholic in his two-year tenure. Fuhr, the owner of Deep South Lacrosse, is also an assistant football coach for the Eagles. Brett Hodgins, who joined the staff in 2014, will return to the Eagles staff as a goalie coach for both JV and varsity. The middle school team will be led by fourth-year head coach Rob Nelson and newcomer Joey Mandese of the RedHawks and Florida Generals.
“I’d like to thank Headmaster Rich Gehman and Athletic Director Jeff Malloy for the opportunity,” Montes said. “I’d also like to thank past head coaches Rick Kirschner and Jeff Rant for their selfless contributions to Oak Hall lacrosse. It’s an exciting time to be part of our program. We’ve assembled an incredibly talented and motivated coaching staff.
Oak Hall School is a private-independent school serving 800 students for the Gainesville Community in grades PK-12 since 1970. The athletic program has been named the top program in the state of Florida on five occasions for private schools by the Florida High School Athletic Association for their Floyd E. Lay All-Sports Trophy. During the 2011-2012 year, the school was recognized for their sportsmanship winning the Fred E. Rozzelle Sportsmanship Award presented by the FHSAA.
“What a luxury it is to have Coach Montes in place to continue the fine tradition we have in lacrosse. Given the relative newness for lacrosse in the southeast, I cannot tell you how fortunate Oak Hall is to have someone with the wealth of knowledge that Jonathan possesses leading our program” Malloy said.
Montes spent the past two seasons on the Eagles coaching staff and was promoted to associate head coach for the 2014 season. In 2013, he was named the US Lacrosse North Florida Assistant Lacrosse Coach of the Year after helping guide the Eagles to a 17-2 record and their second straight district championship.
“It’s our desire to develop Oak Hall lacrosse into one of the top programs in the state of Florida and the southeast,” Montes said. “We will do so by combining world-class academics with a lacrosse program that is structured to help propel young men on to compete at the collegiate level.”
The founder of the Gainesville RedHawks youth lacrosse program and Florida Generals Select Lacrosse, Montes played lacrosse for The Ohio State University. Aside from his lacrosse expertise, he is the president and owner of Aubrey Rogers Insurance Agency, Inc.
Before becoming a coach at Oak Hall School, Montes was head coach at The Calverton School in Huntingtown, Maryland, from 2002-2011. His record was 112-51 with nine consecutive years of winning 10 or more games in a season. Under his guidance, the Cougars went from last place in the league to a first-place finish in the Maryland Independent Lacrosse League (M.I.L.L.) in just his third season. Montes’ teams won seven regular season M.I.L.L Championships and five League Championships. He was twice named the Coach of the Year by The Washington Post once for Southern Maryland (2003) and once for the entire Washington D.C. Metropolitan area (2005). In 2007 he was named a US Lacrosse Man of the Year for his significant efforts to promote, develop and aid lacrosse at the secondary school level while improving the lacrosse opportunities for student-athletes in the Washington D.C. Metro area. Montes stepped down from coaching in 2012 leaving The Calverton School program widely regarded as one of the top lacrosse programs in the Washington D.C. Metro area with 14 college lacrosse commitments, eight of whom were headed to compete at the Division I level. In his career, Montes has helped more than 150 athletes play college lacrosse.
“We feel so very fortunate to have a lacrosse staff with so much experience and success. We always strive to be the best at Oak Hall and having a staff with these types of credentials gives our students incredible opportunity to be successful not only in lacrosse but also in life,” said Malloy.
Montes will be joined by Kirschner, who led the Eagles beginning in the 2012 season and has amassed over 25 years of coaching experience including at his alma mater and perennial power Landon School (MD), St. Stephen’s & St. Agnes School (VA) and St. Anne Belfield School (VA). Richard Gaddy, a 2005 graduate of Oak Hall, will once again assume his role as defensive coordinator after his defenses in 2013 and 2014 held opponents to an average of 5.5 goals per game. Gaddy, a founding member of OHS lacrosse, is also the JV basketball coach. Former Trinity Catholic Head Coach RJ Fuhr also joins the staff. Fuhr, who founded the lacrosse program for the Celtics, compiled a 17-8 record with Trinity Catholic in his two-year tenure. Fuhr, the owner of Deep South Lacrosse, is also an assistant football coach for the Eagles. Brett Hodgins, who joined the staff in 2014, will return to the Eagles staff as a goalie coach for both JV and varsity. The middle school team will be led by fourth-year head coach Rob Nelson and newcomer Joey Mandese of the RedHawks and Florida Generals.
“I’d like to thank Headmaster Rich Gehman and Athletic Director Jeff Malloy for the opportunity,” Montes said. “I’d also like to thank past head coaches Rick Kirschner and Jeff Rant for their selfless contributions to Oak Hall lacrosse. It’s an exciting time to be part of our program. We’ve assembled an incredibly talented and motivated coaching staff.
Oak Hall School is a private-independent school serving 800 students for the Gainesville Community in grades PK-12 since 1970. The athletic program has been named the top program in the state of Florida on five occasions for private schools by the Florida High School Athletic Association for their Floyd E. Lay All-Sports Trophy. During the 2011-2012 year, the school was recognized for their sportsmanship winning the Fred E. Rozzelle Sportsmanship Award presented by the FHSAA.
