Sunday Sitdown: Bourne athletic director Scott Ashworth is the renaissance man of high school sports

Boston Globe

11-05-2025

He went on to play basketball at Saint Anselm and Bridgewater State, where he served as captain his junior and senior years.
He coached Bourne baseball for 14 years before giving it up when he was named AD, and in the ensuing 15 years has overseen four state championships —
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Bourne AD Scott Ashworth has been umpiring high school softball since 2010.
Brendan Kurie
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He'll have more time soon. Ashworth plans to retire as AD at the end of this school year, and will step away from his teaching job in February. He will continue coaching boys' basketball, a program he led to the
We caught up with Ashworth before he left for a weekend in Florida where his son, Jake, a former standout basketball player for Bourne and UMass Dartmouth, is working as a Single-A baseball umpire.
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Let's go back to your playing days at Fairhaven, what were some highlights?
I have lifetime friendships and memories from our basketball team. We went to the state finals in Worcester. The bond that club had is still alive today. I'm going to Florida to help my son [this weekend] and I'm staying with one of my old high school teammates. The Sunday of April vacation, I went to [former coach Mark Southworth's] 80th birthday party. The reason I ended up in Bourne is Mr. Southworth taught in Bourne and there was a job in the Phys. Ed. department. I started as an aide in January of 1992.
At what point did you start thinking about going into coaching?
I was already coaching football at Fairhaven while I was in college. When Oct. 15 came [and BSU basketball season started] there was a lot of flying from practice to practice. At that point I kind of knew I wanted to coach. I really didn't know what else I'd do. To this day, if I wasn't coaching basketball? I've been in the gym since 6 years old. I'm 56 now. The first Monday after Thanksgiving it's on.
Was there someone in your family that got you involved at age 6?
In first grade all the kids in my class were big hockey guys. I said to my father, 'Dad, I want to play hockey,' I couldn't even skate but I wanted to play goalie. Back then, goalie equipment, all told, was like $150. A pair of brand-new Pro-Keds were $15. So he said, 'If you play basketball, I'll get you a pair of Pro-Keds.' That was it. I've been involved ever since.
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You had some opportunities to coach at the college level, what kept you at Bourne?
Being in the building of the kids you coach I thought was pretty rewarding. If a kid is having a bad day, there's not a lot of times they're going to open up to their English teacher, but they'll find their coach. I've been a point person for kids in the building since I got there 33 years ago. I haven't looked back and said 'I should have done this.' I've been very content and professionally satisfied.
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What are the keys to building winning programs at a small school?
Let's take my point guard for example [Quinn Moriarty]. He came in the building and got the keys to the car as a freshman. Our volleyball team, all the rising juniors played varsity as freshmen. With that comes games experience against higher-level competition. On the back end of it, that's where you see it pay the most dividends.
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A school your size, what challenges does that present for sports like football and hockey?
It's a challenge to keep all the programs up and running. I was a staunch supporter when I came in of the eighth-grade waiver and we've used a lot of those. I think that's helped retain some kids.
How hard is it to keep a crew together when prep and parochial schools come calling?
That's all fostered within . . . If you create that family-type atmosphere, which I think we've done in the 15 years I've been athletic director, people want to play for that. That's a big key for keeping Bourne kids in Bourne . . . There's so many choices for kids you really need to sell the grass is green in town, and it's not greener elsewhere.
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What got you into officiating?
I started having my own family and I was the head coach for baseball and basketball and an assistant for football and something had to give. I got out of coaching football and went into officiating. I started, at 13, doing Little League games. I've been doing ASA softball since I was 23. I started doing high school softball in 2010 when I became AD and I wasn't coaching baseball anymore.
Bourne AD Scott Ashworth talks to the Dartmouth and Durfee coaches and team captains before the start of a game last week.
Brendan Kurie
How have you seen officiating change?
When I started high school football officiating I was in my 30s, and 40s for softball. I was one of the younger guys in the room for every meeting. There hasn't been an influx of younger people getting involved.
Why do you think that is?
I don't know because there's not a lot of younger teachers getting involved in coaching, either. There's not a lot of people coming in and I can't put my finger on why. At 56, I'm still one of the younger guys in these meetings. When these guys are done, who is going to be doing these games?
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Do you think unreasonable fans are a factor?
Unfortunately, for some, that's driven out some officials. It's probably hampered some officials from even getting started.
What about the kids? I've talked to every coach in this series and I ask them if they've seen the kids change. Where do you land?
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Kids are kids. I had players this year who played as hard and practiced as hard, as the kids in my first group. What changes is expectations from adults. You see more and more specialization. There's too much emphasis on club. To me, that's the easiest way to burn your kid out. Each sport comes with a different skill-set that I think helps you for your primary sport.
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I have to ask about 'Sweet' Scott Ashworth. What got you into wrestling?
Believe it or not, I wasn't the most well-behaved elementary school student. They used to have WWF at the Lincoln Park ballroom [in Dartmouth]. If I got five good notes home from the teacher, my dad would take me to wrestling. After the first time I went to a show, I was never a bad boy in school again.
Love at first sight?
Yup, I loved it. When I got out of college I was wondering what I would do to still be a competitor. We all can say what we want about what wrestling is, but it's still a competition, who gets the biggest crowd reaction. It's allowed me to compete throughout my life.
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Did I hear you had a chance to do some pro wrestling at one point, WCW?
I've been up and down the East Coast. I traveled to places I never would have gone to. But my No. 1 passion has always been teaching and coaching. It's almost like a stress release to go and do those shows.
What's your advice for a young coach or AD?
Get your priorities in line. The biggest priority is the kids. Block out the noise from everyone else. If your main concern is doing right by the kids, then you're doing something right. It doesn't matter what anybody else says.
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Bourne AD Scott Ashworth talks to the Dartmouth and Durfee coaches and team captains before the start of a game last week.
Brendan Kurie
Brendan Kurie can be reached at