Scott will lead Hersey boys basketball program
Hersey has announced the hiring of Austin Scott as the sixth boys basketball varsity head coach in the program's history.
He succeeds Steve Messer, who led the team for the previous 12 seasons and finished with a record of 291-283 at Hersey.
Scott played at Lake Zurich and earned all-conference honors twice, all-area recognition three times and all-state status in his senior year (2005-06). He finished with more than 1,300 career points while playing for coach John Zarr.
After graduating with honors, Scott played at Wisconsin-LaCrosse, where he was a four-year letter winner and a two-year captain for the Eagles.
Scott spent one year teaching and coaching at Grayslake Central. From there, he moved to Lake Forest High School, where he has spent the last six years teaching English and Journalism courses. During that span, Scott has been an assistant to Scouts varsity boys basketball coach Phil LaScala.
"I am extremely honored and privileged to be joining a school with an academic and athletic reputation like that of John Hersey High School," Scott said in a statement released by Hersey. "Hersey basketball has a storied tradition, making it to the Elite Eight on three separate occasions, and I look forward to continuing this tradition of success in helping develop young student-athletes into leaders on and off the floor."
On three occasions while at Lake Forest, Scott was nominated for the Distinguished Educator Award, given annually to one teacher who makes a profound difference in the life of a student. He won the award in 2017. He will join the English staff at Hersey.
Austin is the son of Dave and Marina Scott, successful educators in their own right. Dave taught PE and driver's education for 33 years at Maine South along with serving as boys basketball head coach for 13 years. Marina was a longtime administrator at Fremd before finishing her career as the principal at Libertyville.
"We are excited to welcome Austin as a member of our Hersey staff," stated John Novak, Assistant Principal for Student Activities. "He has distinguished himself as a teacher and a coach, and we are excited for him to have a positive impact on our school, both inside and outside of the classroom. I am confident that, as our head boys basketball coach, Austin will continue the tradition of excellence that has been forged by our previous coaches."