Ryan Orshoski, a 'teacher at heart,' excited to take over Perkins program

Ryan Orshoski wasn't happy with himself when he stepped down as Bellevue's girls basketball coach eight years ago. The young coach had compiled a sterling 110-32 record in six seasons and took the Lady Red to a regional final in his last season in charge of one of the top programs in northern Ohio. But the pursuit of winning was consuming him. "I was in need of a basketball detox. I didn't love the person I was becoming," Orshoski said. "It became a little too important to me. I was enjoying it less and less." Orshoski, still a young coach at 37, feels that it's time to get back in the high school game. He was approved as Perkins' new girls basketball coach at Wednesday night's school board meeting. He will replace Brian Heck, who resigned in early April after school administrators investigated what they termed as a hazing incident. In addition to coaching girls basketball, Orshoski will teach fourth grade language arts and social studies at Meadowlawn Intermediate. "Everything aligned and it worked out well for us," Perkins athletic director Ted Sturzinger Jr. said. "He's very professional and his IQ of the game is very high and I feel very confident about his leadership skills with our girls. Looking forward to him getting in the gym with them." Orshoski said he went through three rounds of interviews and accepted his new job last week. "I felt a calling back to the classroom and I've always kept tabs on what's going on in the Sandusky area," he said. "I was aware of the coaching carousel that was taking place and felt that it was the right time to apply. "I was intrigued by the teaching positions that were available. It's hard to get teaching jobs." Orshoski said the interview process was thorough and he felt that Perkins was focused on getting the right teacher for the job. "There was a piece of that that was coaching and a big piece that was teaching," he said. Sturzinger said Perkins received six applicants for the job and officially interviewed two candidates. Orshoski has lived in the Dayton area since leaving the Bellevue job. He worked for Athletes in Action, based in Xenia, from 2014 to 2020. He's spent the last two years at Dayton Christian School, teaching language arts for one year before a move to the administrative ranks. He was promoted from assistant principal to principal in February, but felt that teaching was the best fit for him. "I'm looking forward to getting back into the classroom and getting more student interaction," he said about his move to Perkins. "I'm a teacher at heart." During his time with Athletes in Action, Orshoski helped lead the women's basketball department. His job included plenty of overseas travel, humanitarian work and sharing his Christian faith. He's been to Africa four times and Colombia twice. "I was able to travel a lot with Athletes in Action and see the world and coach," he said. "That was a wonderful time of growth for me. I was able to learn from some great coaches and saw how you can use basketball for a platform. I'm excited to put that in play at Perkins." Orshoski says he wants the basketball court to become an extension of the classroom. "We're going to develop people first, students second, and athletes third," he said. "We viewed the game holistically — body, mind and soul. We'll talk about achieving victory beyond the scoreboard. The effort, the attitude. We won't be defined by the scoreboard. "We'll play to a standard we set four ourselves that is much more than winning and losing." His job at AIA also included ministry work at the NCAA Final Fours. Orshoski, who is single, has plenty of family in the area. His parents, Paul and Tevon, are Margaretta graduates and Paul coached the Polar Bears boys basketball team for four seasons (1988-92). They now live in Perkins Township. Orshoski has three older sisters and 11 nieces and nephews in the Perkins system. Orshoski attended Margaretta schools through sixth grade and graduated from Oak Harbor High School. While attending Bowling Green State University, he made the drive to Perkins to coach on Ray Neill's girls basketball staff. Orshoski coached seventh grade for one year, freshmen for two and junior varsity for one. He graduated from BGSU in 2008 and led the Bellevue program from 2008 to 2014. Orshoski was twice voted Division II AP Coach of the Year and guided the Lady Red to four conference championships. "Everyone knows the Santoros, but we had a good run of talent there and were able to have some success," he said. Orshoski coached first-team All-Ohio players Leslie Raifsnider and Carly Santoro at Bellevue. "Ryan's very basketball knowledgeable. He knows the game really well," said current Bellevue girls coach Kory Santoro, who was one of Orshoski's assistants in 2013-14. "Everybody that played for him really liked playing for him. He demands that you play hard and girls respect that "He was a big part of changing the culture over at Bellevue. Perkins hired a good one." Orshoski said he'll be in town next Wednesday for a meeting of all Perkins coaches and plans to meet with his players. "We will hit the ground running with a full summer," he said. "We'll get in shootouts, do a team camp and hopefully a league." The new coach is impressed by the team he's taking over. The young Pirates tied Bellevue for the SBC Lake Division title last season and finished 17-7, losing 56-52 to top-ranked Shelby in a Division II district semifinal. "They're a fun group of girls to watch," Orshoski said. "They play with a ton of joy and enthusiasm which is contagious and attractive to coach. I'm looking forward to that."