Coach of Girls Varsity Field Hockey, Girls Junior Varsity Ice Hockey and Girls Varsity Lacrosse, Kate Dolan has coached a total of 72 seasons since she began working at Andover 24 years ago. “In that time, I’ve learned that as a coach, you are trying to teach important life skills and you should be a good role model,” said Dolan. “You are just trying to show kids how to be part of a group and how to work together,” she added. Coach Dolan played field hockey in high school and both field hockey and lacrosse in college. She did not pick up ice hockey, however, until her first winter at Andover. Although she has coached Girls Varsity Field Hockey and Girls JV Ice Hockey from day one at Andover, she started her lacrosse tennure leading the JV team until 1995 when she switched to coach Varsity. “Each team is totally different, but I coach all my teams the same. I am the same person, and I believe in the same things no matter what I am coaching,” said Dolan. Although she has an extensive field hockey background, Dolan does not have a preference towards any particular season. “The seasons are all really different, which I think is good because otherwise I would get bored,” said Dolan. “The sports themselves are different, but kids are really different too, and that’s a good thing,” she continued. Dolan has coached alongside Martha Fenton, Instructor in Athletics, during both the fall and spring for the past 18 years. However, the two unknowlingly coached against on the same field, before Fenton even started to work at Andover. “[Fenton] was coaching JV lacrosse [at Exeter] and I was coaching JV lacrosse at Andover, so we coached against each other back when I very first started,” said Dolan. Dolan’s favorite part of coaching is watching a team develop. “[As a Coach], one of the things I have learned is that you have to be flexible, and you have to adapt,” she said. “Things you do one year do not necessarily work the next year, but I think that the foundation of any team that I coach is trying to develop a sense of working together and the need for people to have good communication and be trustworthy and help each other be the best they can be.” One of Dolan’s favorite events of the spring is the what Girls Varsity Lacrosse calls “Final Four Practice.” “The team gets divided up into the four teams that are going to the Division One Lacrosse Final Four. We do relay races and games and it turns out to be really fun,” she said. “Kids really love sports and I feel like sometimes people can forget that,” she added. “Kids love to play for Andover and it’s really an essential part of the experience of going to a school like this.” Dolan is also currently the Assistant Dean of Advising, but will drop that role in the 2013-2014 school year to take over as the Dean of West Quad South. Look out for Coach Dolan and her Girls Lacrosse team as Andover goes up against Tabor at home this Saturday.
