Apr. 13—PLATTSBURGH — When Gene Bushey walked into Hannaford for a grocery trip, there's a good chance he didn't expect to be walking out with a new job opportunity.

But that's just what happened after he ran into former women's soccer coach Donna Dixon at the store, who told Bushey about the opening for both the men's and women's soccer programs at Clinton Community College.

"I had just moved back over here, and got a little hint about it from her, and it just stuck with me," Bushey said.

Now, he's been officially hired as the head coach for both programs, officially announced by Clinton Community's Athletic Director Kevin Daugherty.

"He's my kind of coach," Daugherty said. "He's enthusiastic, he's passionate and he's knowledgeable."

BACK IN THE NORTH COUNTRY

Bushey is originally from Ellenburg Depot, where he went to school and played high school soccer at Northern Adirondack. He also attended and played soccer at SUNY Canton.

Starting his career as a Cougar back in 2009 as the men's assistant goalkeeper coach, he then moved up to the head coaching position at Clinton for the team. Next, he went to Plattsburgh State, where he was the assistant coach and goalkeeper coach. Most recently, he was working as a volunteer assistant coach and goalkeeper coach for the University of Vermont women's team.

Bushey seems to have had the most success with the Catamounts, with whom he helped to capture an America East conference title this past season. Along with head coach Kristi Huizenga and assistant coach Michael Skelton of UVM women's soccer, Bushey won Coaching Staff of the Year honors.

But now, after bumping into Dixon and learning of the opening, Bushey contacted Daugherty and set up a meeting to talk about the position.

"We sat down and chatted for a while and at that time I was starting to get more interested in it," Bushey said. "Then, he was explaining to me how he wanted the coach to be for both the men and the women and I got more excited."

Daugherty said Bushey's experience was one of the main factors into the decision to choose him as head coach

"He's no stranger to junior college soccer because he's been in the position, and he knows Region 3, which is important," Daugherty said. "There's 22 schools in our region in the state of New York and some of them have very good soccer programs. So, he's been there and he knows what he's up against."

TWO FOR ONE

Bushey said the challenge of coaching both the men's and women's teams will be a learning curve for both sides.

"They don't know my style of soccer and I haven't seen them play either, the men or the women," Bushey said. "I have a style that I want to play and we're going to incorporate that with the kids."

"It's a lot different from high school style and I don't expect to get a giant outcome but I want the kids to learn our formations and learn how we want to play."

The teams are still forming, at the moment, and Bushey said the Cougars have a group of senior men ready to play, and a few women as well.

"We're hoping once May comes and you've got to put in your application fee and you get selected into the school, we're going to start to see that number rise," he said. "We're hoping to have both teams ready to go in August, and if we don't get both then we're hoping to get one or the other."

The school's goal is to get the numbers back to where they were before COVID shut down most of the sporting programs at Clinton.

"In 2019, we had 35 student-athletes participating in men's and women's soccer," Daugherty said. "We had a good number for both programs at that time so we want to try and get back to those numbers again."

GOALS FOR THE TEAM

One of Bushey's main goals for the team will be fundraising.

"We're going to fundraise the hell out of this this fall," Bushey said. "So, when we go for a road trip, we can sit down and eat at a restaurant as a family, like we did when I was at Plattsburgh and UVM, instead of going to Stewart's because that's all you can afford."

Bushey plans to treat the members of his teams as family, and raising money that allows the team to spend more time together off the field is one way to do that.

"I want us to be just like a regular school, and to represent Clinton Community in a good way," he said.

For now, though, the main goal is to get a filled out roster. However, Bushey and Daugherty are both excited to see where the programs go in the next few years.

"I think it's going to be a challenge, but I think it's going to be a lot of fun," Bushey said. "I think the kids are going to enjoy what we have to offer. Defensively, we're going to be sound."

FITS THE BILL

Daugherty said all-around, the athletics at Clinton Community are starting to look up.

"We haven't been able to field soccer or basketball in the last two years and the school looks to athletics to bring in additional student-athletes, and we just want to get back to that level that we were at before," Daugherty said.

Daugherty also mentioned that Bushey has strong local connections, from Ellenburg to Plattsburgh to Vermont. The teams will look toward local students to make up their rosters.

"There's a lot of talented kids around the North Country and we're hoping we can get some kids to play for us," Bushey said.

Overall, the school and athletic department is happy with the way things are looking for the fall season, and that has all started with Bushey's hiring.

"Gene just fits the bill," Daugherty said. "I mentioned the three things that are important to me as an athletic director to have in a coach, and he's got all three."

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Email Jessica Collins: [email protected]

Twitter: @JCollinsSports