Chad LaBree, a veteran subvarsity basketball coach in the area, has been named the new girls’ varsity basketball coach at Brewer High School.
The Old Town native was named to replace Chris Horr, who stepped down from the post earlier this year after leading the girls basketball program at his alma mater for the last eight seasons.
Horr led the 2017-18 Brewer team to the school’s first Class A North tournament quarterfinal appearance in 20 years, and the Witches reached the quarterfinals again last winter before falling to top-ranked and undefeated Skowhegan, the eventual champion.
LaBree previously served as a freshman and junior varsity boys basketball coach at John Bapst Memorial High School in Bangor, then was the junior varsity girls basketball and JV softball coach at Brewer during the 2017-18 school year.
Before entering the high school ranks, LaBree coached a middle-school boys “A” basketball team in Glenburn that included three future high school standouts in 2020 Mr. Maine Basketball Bryce Lausier of Hampden Academy, Isaac Varney of Hermon and Henry Westrich of Bangor.
All three have gone on to play college basketball, Lausier at St. Anselm College in Manchester, New Hampshire, Varney at Husson University in Bangor and Westrich at Colby College in Waterville.
LaBree serves as global director of customer service and director of sales enablement for Carbyne 9-1-1, a public safety technology company, and his work duties had taken him out of coaching recently until he was able to accept his new post.
“Coach LaBree was highly regarded by the girls who played for him in both basketball and softball during the one year he was with us,” said Dave Utterback, athletic administrator for the Brewer School Department. “Chad approaches everything with the utmost professionalism and enthusiasm. He treats his players with respect and dignity and is always well prepared.
“Our committee felt Chad was the right person to take over our program and lead us into the future.”
LaBree will begin his coaching duties with the Brewer girls basketball program during voluntary summer workouts once the school year ends in June, then lead the Witches into formal preseason practices for the 2022-23 campaign in November.