Dave St. Hilaire has stepped down as Winthrop/Monmouth/Hall-Dale/Kents Hill’s head football coach after nine seasons of leading the Ramblers.

Taking his place will be Joel Stoneton, the program’s current defensive coordinator and head coach from 2004-13. Stoneton will step down from his role as Winthrop athletic director at the end of the school year.

“It’s time for the next chapter,” St. Hilaire said. “About halfway through the year this year, I thought about it, and I thought about how I’d only seen my grandson twice in the past two or three months because of coaching. It’s time to spend more time with the family and enjoy that.”

St. Hilaire took over as head coach in 2014 after Stoneton became Winthrop High School’s athletic director. St. Hilaire went 55-32 in nine seasons as head coach. The Ramblers were Class D South runners-up in 2016 and 2019 and appeared in the single-region Class D’s state championship game in 2021.

St. Hilaire has been coaching in the Winthrop community since 1988, starting as head coach of the freshmen team that year. He also coached the Winthrop/Hall-Dale boys hockey team from 2000-06. He plans to enjoy boating in his retirement, having purchased a boat shortly following this past football season.

Stoneton had a successful tenure of his own in his previous stint for the Ramblers. Winthrop/Monmouth went 61-35 in Stoneton’s 10 seasons at the helm and won the Class C West championship in 2008.

“I really enjoyed the athletic director piece, but it’s just gotten to the point where it’s a full-time job now, and I spend more time babysitting parents than I do with kids,” Stoneton said. “Doing it year-round as head coach is something I’ve missed a lot, and I’m excited to be back on the sidelines.”

Stoneton is also the current Mountain Valley Conference president, a role he doesn’t know if he’ll be able to retain now that he’s transitioning from athletic director to head coach. As for St. Hilaire, being away from a coaching position doesn’t mean he’ll be far from Charlie’s Field on Friday nights.

“I’m going to try to be there for every game to support the kids and the staff,” St. Hilaire said. “It’s going to be different, but I’m still going to be there for them. I’ll find a good spot to stand and cheer them on.”

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