Zak VanValkenburgh enters his 1st yeat as the Defensive Coordinator after being appointed to Chuck Wilbur’s staff. Coach VanValkenburgh comes to OCC from NEAC’s Cazenovia College Wildcats. Since his appointment in 2015, he has transformed Cazenovia Wildcats defense into the top defensive teams in the NEAC Conference.
Coach VanValkenburgh is a 1994 SUNY Morrisville and 1996 SUNY Cortland graduate. After college, he returned to Henninger High School to begin his coaching career. At SUNY Morrisville, he was voted team captain twice by his peers. In 1994, he was elected All-State and was the starting goalie in the NJCAA North/South game. In 1995, his Cortland defense ranked 7th in the country, giving up less than 8 goals a game. He was the proud recipient of the Joe Lore Award, which is given to the school’s top goalie.
Coach VanValkenburgh has worked with several local club teams and is currently working with the Orange Crush staff. He has coached in various High School Showcase events including 3d Rising in Florida, Orange Crush Showcase in Syracuse and Sweet Lax Showcase in Rochester. He lives in Fayetteville NY with his wife Christine and two son's Zachary and Jack.
