Eastern York boys' basketball coach resigns after successful five-year run

Justin Seitz knows his decision might seem surprising, but he actually considered it a year ago.

He felt he couldn't push it back any longer this time.

Seitz confirmed Wednesday morning that he resigned as Eastern York boys' basketball coach this week. The 1999 Eastern York grad spent the past five seasons leading the program he starred for in high school. He coached the school's junior high team the five years before that.

"You've seen me on the sideline. I can be demanding. But this year it wasn't the same," Seitz said. "It got to the point where I don't feel I can match that energy moving forward."

The 42-year-old Seitz, who is also the president of the York Ballers AAU organization, works full-time in sales for a marketing agency. He said it's gotten difficult balancing his career with high school basketball, which he said has become a "365-day-a-year job."

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When Eastern York was eliminated in PIAA Class 4A quarterfinals last month, Seitz had an important business trip to Cincinnati the following week. Had the Knights advanced to the semifinals that Monday, Seitz would have needed to drive through the night from Pennsylvania to Ohio to make his work meeting the next day.

"You schedule practice from 5 to 7 p.m. so you leave work an hour early. Then you make up that hour of work. Then you have to put together a scouting report and a practice plan," Seitz said about a typical day for him during the season. "The next thing you know it's 11:30 or midnight and you haven't had any time for yourself or your family. It becomes like Groundhog Day."

Still, Seitz is stepping away after perhaps the best season of an impressive five-year tenure.

Eastern York finished 20-9 but reached the state quarterfinals for the first time since 2011. The Knights struggled down the stretch of the regular season and didn't win the YAIAA Division II title, but rebounded with a pair of impressive state playoff wins.

Overall, Eastern York went 76-49 with four winning seasons during Seitz's tenure. The Knights made the District 3 playoffs four times, the YAIAA playoffs three times and the state playoffs twice. They won a division title his first season and reached the league title game in 2022.

And the Knights will likely be competitive next season. While 1,300-point scorer Austin Bausman will graduate, Eastern will bring back three starters including potential NCAA Division I recruit Carter Wamsley, who was named a GameTimePA first-team all-star as a sophomore this season.

"Next year's junior and senior classes, I've been working with those kids since they were in fourth and fifth grade," Seitz said. "That was the tough part of the decision but the reality is there will always be an attachment to every class. There won't ever be an ideal time to say 'I'm done.' Those guys will have a lot of success."

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One of those guys is Seitz's younger son, Brady, who started for the Knights at point guard this season as a sophomore. Seitz also coached his older son, Trevor, who scored over 1,300 points before graduating in 2020. Seitz now plays for NCAA Division III Marywood University, where Bausman will also play next season.

Seitz said he always tried to keep his feelings as a parent separate from his responsibilities as a coach, so he didn't want Brady's career to be a major factor in his decision to step down. However, he said he's glad he'll be able to attend more of Trevor's college games while still watching Brady play.

His older brother, Jason, is the head coach of the Eastern York girls' team. Jason's daughter, Arianna, is a superstar player and will be a senior next season. However, Justin said he won't be helping out as an assistant for the girls' squad next year.

"I'm gonna sit in the stands and watch," he said. "The reason I came back this season was for all of the players and not just Brady. And they all deserve a coach who is fully invested. If I can't be all-in then I don't want to put any of the kids in that situation."

Seitz said he's grateful to have spent the past decade coaching the program he played for. He scored nearly 1,500 points in his career and was named one of the top 10 athletes in school history by the York Daily Record in 2021.

"I've lived in that school district for nearly 75% of my life," Seitz said. "That made it really rewarding. It was awesome."

Matt Allibone is a sports reporter for the York Daily Record and GameTimePA. He can be reached at 717-881-8221, mallibone@ydr.com or on Twitter at @bad2theallibone. 

This article originally appeared on York Daily Record: Eastern York High School: Justin Seitz resigns as basketball coach