Boys soccer

Shea back at the helm at Oakland Mills

Don Shea, who guided the Oakland Mills boys soccer program to eight state titles in 18 seasons before stepping down in 2003, will return to coach the Scorpions next fall. Shea has remained at the school as a social studies teacher and now gets the chance to coach alongside his son, Trevor, who is the program's junior varsity coach.

"Obviously, his resume speaks for itself," Oakland Mills athletic director Troy Stevenson said. "All along, he has been teaching at the school, so the kids like him and respect him. Coming back, there's a high level of excitement, and he brings instant credibility back to the program. He knows the game, knows our athletes, so he'll be able to get the most out of them to be successful."

Before his 18 years at Oakland Mills, Shea coached 10 years at Elkton, where he won one state championship. In his 28 years, he has won 292 games. He said he was excited about the idea of coaching with his son, who played for him at Oakland Mills, along with the challenge of going against a largely new group of coaches in Howard County.

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Glenn Graham

Football

Armstrong steps down as Mount St. Joseph coach

Mount St. Joseph football coach Chip Armstrong resigned Tuesday after leading the Gaels for the past five years.

"It's 100 percent a family decision," Armstrong said. "It's something that, when you take the emotion out of the equation, it's really a no-brainer. I have to put my family first."

Armstrong, who plans to continue teaching anatomy, physiology and chemistry at Mount St. Joseph, led the Gaels to a 21-28 record during his five seasons as coach. He guided the Gaels to a share of the Maryland Interscholastic Athletic Association A Conference championship in 2007.

"I enjoyed the experience at St. Joe, and it's unfortunate, but you always have to put your family first in these types of situations," Armstrong said. "I'm grateful to [Mount St. Joseph athletic director] Paul Triplett and the administration for hiring me. We had a good run, and it was a lot of fun."

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Matt Bracken