When Brandon McCoy resigned as coach of the Gahanna Christian Academy boys soccer team this spring, athletics director Scott Jemson didn't have far to look to find his replacement.

Scott Ramsey, who served as an assistant coach last season, has been named McCoy's successor.

"I went through an extensive interview process with Scott last year and just kind of picked his brain about soccer," Jemson said. "I was really comfortable about him filling in as an assistant coach. And then knowing what I knew about him from last year and watching the job that he did as an assistant, I was pretty comfortable about him stepping up and taking the head job."

According to Jemson, McCoy stepped down because of family and work commitments.

"I was somewhat surprised, but I understood because of his job and his family," Jemson said. "Brandon put a competitive team on the field every year."

Last season, Gahanna Christian finished 9-7-3 overall, losing to eventual state champion Worthington Christian 7-0 in a Division III district semifinal. The Eagles trailed the Warriors 1-0 at halftime.

Gahanna Christian defeated Johnstown 1-0 and Liberty Union 2-1 in the first two rounds of the tournament.

The Eagles went 2-2-1 in the MOCAL to finish fourth, behind champion Tree of Life (5-0).

A 1994 graduate of Liberty Christian, Ramsey, 36, played soccer at Mount Vernon Nazarene University. He coached the Liberty Christian boys team from 2005-09.

"Once you become a coach, you kind of get that in your system, in your blood," Ramsey said. "(Gahanna Christian) came to me and asked if I would be interested in helping out last year, so I said, 'Sure.' "

Ramsey's son, Dakota, is a junior defender for the Eagles.

"It is definitely a family atmosphere," Ramsey said of coaching at a small school like Gahanna Christian. "It's something where you see the kids grow up through middle school and high school. The teachers are like more extended aunts and uncles. It's a different type of feeling than a larger school."

Ramsey held a team meeting for players and parents in May to discuss the coaching change and held the first summer practice June 19. He said there has been positive feedback from players and parents on his promotion.

"It's a good group of kids," Ramsey said. "At a school like Gahanna Christian's size, you usually don't have cuts. It's usually an outstanding team, so we had a good following come out to the informal meeting. We have a really good group of juniors who have played together for two years and have come up together through the school. I believe it will be quite a powerful year for them, as they kind of hit their stride in maturity and skill levels."