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York's Doran steps away from coaching

Many people have grown tired of Zoom meetings these days, but Vince Doran dreaded this one more than most.

The York boys basketball coach held a virtual meeting for his players Sunday night, a video conference in which Doran announced he was stepping down after eight years at the helm. While not unexpected given his recently expanded family, Doran leaves behind one of the area's most successful programs.

Doran said he'll submit his letter of resignation on Monday to York athletic director Rob Wagner.

"The people at York couldn't have been more fantastic," Doran said. "It really just came down to family."

Doran - a business teacher at Hinsdale South who formerly coached the Hornets and at Driscoll - and his wife, Amy, welcomed a baby girl in December. Doran actually had to leave York's Jack Tosh Holiday Classic to be present for the birth, which was a definitive sign that it was time to step aside.

York enjoyed tremendous success during Doran's tenure, including 57 wins the last two seasons. The Dukes won five regional champions, notched five 20-win seasons and enter next season as the defending West Suburban Silver champions.

The Dukes went 28-5 this season with North Dakota-bound Nate Shockey leading the way. Next season they'll return starters Jeff Grace and Nick Hesch in addition to four other players from their regular rotation.

Doran also engineered the expansion of the Tosh to 32 teams and its establishment as one of the state's most respected holiday tournaments.

"I'll be glad to help with the transition and make it as smooth as possible," Doran said. "If Rob wants me to help with the Tosh, I'd be glad to do it.

"It was really a lot of fun the last eight years," he said. "I was proud to be just a small part of the success we had."

Twitter: @kevin_schmit

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