Long-time Bainbridge High boys basketball Head Coach Scott Orness has announced he will not return to helm the program this season and has accepted a new position at North Kitsap High.

He has been the head coach at BHS for a total of 11 years.

“It is time for me to take on a new challenge,” Orness wrote in a letter to team families wherein he cited two specific reasons for his departure.

“The biggest reason I am taking the North job is that I feel in my gut that I need to build a program for my kids and for the Poulsbo/Kingston community in which I have lived for the past 14 years,” he wrote.

With his own children quickly approaching their teenage years, Orness added, he wanted to use his talents to build a program where he lived that his own kids could be “a part of something they can be proud of.”

“With the help of many in the North Kitsap community and with time, my hope is to turn North into a basketball juggernaut on the peninsula,” he wrote.

The second reason for his deciding to leave, Orness said, was the ever-present question of league placement that plagued Bainbridge.

“I have been very clear where I stand with Bainbridge being part of the Metro League,” he wrote. “It might be a good fit for some sports, but in my opinion, it isn’t for basketball, mostly because of the corruption that goes on around recruiting and the building of all-star teams.

“It is difficult for me to see my players believe in our vision, work their tails off, and fall short year after year to teams that play by a different set of rules,” he added.

Faced with the near-unified approval of island players and parents to remain in the Metro, Orness said he felt leaving was the honest thing to do.

“Through multiple conversations over the years, the majority players and parents want to stay in the Metro,” he wrote. “You need a coach that believes 100 percent in being there. That is not me.”

BHS Athletic Director Kaycee Taylor said that Orness was a popular figure among the staff and students.

“He was tremendous asset to our program and he will be missed by fans, players and colleagues alike,” he said. “We all wish him good luck on this next venture.”

Though he was leaving with a heavy heart, Orness wrote, he was very proud of what he and his players had accomplished in his time at Bainbridge.

“Over the years, a large number of people have built Bainbridge into a very attractive program,” he wrote. “There is an established feeder program in Roots with incredible leadership on the board, BHS is competitive in the Metro at the varsity level, our JV and freshmen had a combined 29-4 record this past season and, most importantly, a strong culture has been developed among the players.”

“I will be rooting on Bainbridge in all but one game of the year,” he added.