BETHALTO - Bethalto Community Unit School District #8 has announced the hiring of Mike Arbuthnot as the head girl’s basketball coach at Civic Memorial High School for the 2020-2021 school year. On Thursday, April 23, the Bethalto School District Board of Education approved the hire of Arbuthnot to become the program’s 6th head coach since 1977.
Eagle Nation is excited for Coach Arbuthnot to take the helm of a program rich in history. Arbuthnot is a well-respected member of the coaching community where he has served many years as a girls basketball and softball coach. Most recently, Arbuthnot was the head coach of the girls basketball program at Triad High School. Before Triad, Arbuthnot was the head coach at Highland Community High School. While at Highland, he collected 144 wins over six years, two regional championships, one sectional championship, and a trip to Bloomington for the State tournament.
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Coach Arbuthnot is known for the passion he brings on and off the court. He is excited to begin connecting with members of the girl’s basketball team, their parents, and the dedicated fan base in Bethalto.
Civic Memorial High School Athletic Director Todd Hannaford said, "Coach Arbuthnot is an ideal fit for our program as he has excellent knowledge of the game, understands the importance of motivating and growing athletes, and the value of academics for our student-athletes."
Arbuthnot succeeds Jeff Ochs, who served as interim head coach for the Eagles for the 2020 portion of this season. Ochs was 15-4 in 19 games and led CM to a Class 3A Triad Regional championship. The Eagles were 29-6 overall in 2019-2020.
Arbuthnot has been a head girls basketball coach at Roxana, Highland and Triad, as well as an assistant girls coach at Edwardsville. He’s also guided Roxana baseball and softball and been an assistant baseball coach at Alton.
