Spencerport and SUNY Brockport graduate Henry Gorton was named the new men’s volleyball coach at St. Andrews University in North Carolina. This follows four seasons on the Spencerport High School coaching staff (2020-2023) where the team garnered a Section V title every season and finished second (2021 and 2022) and third (2023) in the New York State championships, and this past season as an assistant coach at St. John Fisher for one year (2023-2024).
“I’ve played volleyball for years and started working after college in a field that I was disinterested in, because I thought that’s what I had to do to be an adult,” Gorton said via email. “Around five years ago, something clicked in my head, and I decided I would rather put some more effort in and find a job doing something that I loved.
“Around the same time, my high school coach, Aaron Austin, reached out to me and asked if I would be interested in getting involved with the program that I played for in high school. I fell in love with coaching and began taking every opportunity I could to work with kids from all ages, elementary school to college level, improving their skills and getting them excited about the sport.
“This past year I assistant coached at St. John Fisher with head coach Matt Cohen and assistant coach John McCarty and realized that this could be a career, and with coach Cohen’s help, I was put in contact with St. Andrews University down in Laurinburg, NC.”
The Cardinals finished with a 25-6 record and, along with the Section V success, drew the attention of the Knights.
“As a head coach for Henry Gorton (as he graduated from Spencerport) and now a colleague, I have taken pride in mentoring him, supporting his desires to be a passionate, hard-working, strategy-oriented leader,” said Aaron Austin, Spencerport boys volleyball head coach. “He has grown as a person and coach through hands-on experience and continuous feedback. Henry is ready to challenge his team and prepare them for the on- and off-court challenges and responsibilities of college volleyball and life. I am confident in his ability to inspire and lead his own program.”
“I have learned so much from all of the coaches I have been around for my playing and coaching career,” Gorton said. “My mother has always said you can learn from every person you meet. Coach Austin is amazing at getting athletes bought into the program and making kids passionate about being a part of the team. Coach Cohen is so good at staying calm under pressure and being able to convey whatever message needs to get through during an otherwise frantic situation. I hope to use all the tools that I have learned from past coaches and be the best coach that I can.”
After his high school playing career, Gorton played men’s club volleyball while attending SUNY Brockport and that provided one of his favorite memories as a player.
“My favorite memory playing volleyball is keeping Brockport’s club D2 State Championship run going (state champions from 2009 to 2023) and winning the 2018 ECVA East Coast Championship my senior year and being awarded 2018 ECVA D2 MVP.
“My favorite coaching memories are watching players grow from timid middle schoolers to confident and competent teammates and leaders in their later high school years. I enjoy running into alumni at events or now at college matches, and being able to see just how much they have grown and benefited from sports and the lessons sports teach us.”
Gorton inherits a solid program that finished third in the regular season with a 22-10 overall record before losing to eventual Appalachian Athletic Conference champion Reinhardt in the semi-finals. And a roster that featured 23 underclassmen including 17 freshmen, seven of whom played regularly.
