Bruce Dick, Kerstin Young both out as Fort Collins High School basketball coaches

Fort Collins High School boys and girls basketball head coaches Bruce Dick and Kerstin Young will not return next season, school officials confirmed this week.

"We just felt like the programs needed a different direction," Fort Collins athletic director Kyle Tregoning said.

Both coaches said they were "blindsided" by the moves after each wrapped up their third season with the Lambkins.

"It was unexpected and really did come out of nowhere for me," Young told the Coloradoan.

"There were never any negative conversations during the season or immediately after it," Dick said.

On the boys side, Tregoning cited a desire for a coach who is more involved in building all levels of Lambkins basketball, including the junior varsity and "C" teams.

"We want to be a full boys basketball program," Tregoning said. "It's not just about the varsity."

Dick vehemently disagreed with the notion that he wasn't developing sub-varsity players and said he understood the importance for all levels within a program after 40-plus years as a head coach.

Dick enjoyed a similar level of winning success at Fort Collins to previous stops in a long career that has seen him win more than 700 games.

Dick took the Lambkins to the Great 8 during the 2022-23 season, going 22-4, winning the Front Range League and making the state quarterfinals for just the second time since 1990.

Fort Collins made the playoffs in each of his three seasons, had two all-state performers (Jayce King, Luke Wagstaff) and went 46-28 in his three seasons. Fort Collins went 24-60 from 2018-21 prior to his arrival.

"I was really proud of that (2022-23) team for completely turning things around in our program," Dick said. "It was so much fun and we had an amazing run."

The 71-year-old surpassed the 700 career wins mark in January 2023 with Fort Collins.

He ranks fourth all-time among Colorado basketball coaches with 728 wins and was inducted into the Colorado High School Coaches Association Hall of Fame on April 15.

After a 23-year stint at Green Mountain that included a state championship, Dick led Rocky Mountain to three playoff appearances from 2005-09, highlighted by a Great 8 berth.

He then took over Resurrection Christian and twice finished state runner-up. He led Resurrection Christian to an unbeaten 2019-20 season that was canceled due to the COVID-19 pandemic, with the Cougars just two wins shy of winning it all.

In her first year as an assistant, Young took over as interim girls basketball coach during the 2021-22 campaign when Matt Hower resigned mid-season to accept a position with the University of Colorado women's basketball team.

She went 43-21 as head coach in two and a half seasons at her alma mater, making the playoffs all three years. Young played for the Lambkins under Tregoning, who was the girls basketball coach from 2002-16.

"I wanted to provide stability for the girls when I became coach mid-season and really developed a deep connection with the program," Young said. "I'm proud of what we've done."

Young, a first-time high school head coach, said she was given two "vague" reasons for her departure: game management and issues around handling multi-sport athletes in the program.

"I didn't feel like I got a chance to work on it because any issues hadn't really been brought up before," Young said. "And then, as a former multi-sport athlete myself, I value them and want to support girls in pursuing their passions."

Tregoning declined further comment on Young's exit, citing "personnel" confidentiality in Poudre School District. He did say that the decisions were "not easy to make" and carefully considered.

Former Fort Collins athletic director Brian Poynter hired both Dick and Young during his two-year tenure before Tregoning started in 2022.

Tregoning said the search for new basketball coaches is already underway, and the jobs are expected to be posted by early next week on Poudre School District's website. They will be listed for approximately 10 days, he said.

"Someone who will run all aspects of the program," Tregoning said when asked what Fort Collins is looking for in its next boys coach.

PSD coaching positions are part-time jobs compensated by an annual stipend. Head basketball coaches are paid between $4,429 and $6,379 per season, depending on their years of experience.

This article originally appeared on Fort Collins Coloradoan: Colorado basketball: Bruce Dick, Kerstin Young out as Fort Collins coaches