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In a letter to her “conquerors” Winchester High School Girls Varsity Soccer coach Michelle Ross told her players,“I am delighted to return to coach you and cannot wait to be back on the pitch with this amazing team.”
She also thanked the girls for their love and support. Superintendent Dr. Frank Hackett also voiced his support for Ross.
“We are pleased Coach Ross is returning, and she has our full support in order to make the best decisions for the girls soccer team,” he said Saturday morning. “I know this has been a difficult couple of weeks for everyone involved. We are always committed to making sure our student athletes feel supported.”
Ross had resigned from her position as coach after allegations were made that she ousted some members of the varsity team to make room for younger players and bullied at least one player. Allegations that have since been determined to be unfounded.
Mike Bettencourt was acting as an advocate for students when he raised concerns about Winchester High School’s girls varsity soccer roster decisions that preceded the coach’s resignation, he told the Winchester News in an afternoon email on Monday. He disputes community criticism of his role in the controversy.
Ross led the team to a successful 2024 season with a 14-1-3 record and first place in the Middlesex League. In an October 2024 interview with Winchester News, she praised her team’s defensive efforts, saying, “The defense has only allowed five goals in 16 games” and highlighted the team’s depth with 17 out of 22 players recording at least one goal or assist.
Controversy arose after Ross selected eight freshmen for the 2025 varsity roster, an unusual move that included players from a team that won the state championship at the seventh and eighth grade level.
Rumors swirling around Winchester claimed Bettencourt’s daughter, a junior, played varsity the previous year, was ousted from the varsity soccer team. However, team rosters from 2023 and 2024 show she was a member of the junior varsity teams and never a member of varsity.
She was, however, offered a spot on the junior varsity team again this year.
Bettencourt said he and other parents raised concerns with school administrators regarding the ousting of varsity players. However, rosters show all returning varsity players are on the team again this year.
Sources close to the incident say Ross and her assistant coach only resigned after Hackett reportedly said he was considering putting Bettencourt’s daughter on the varsity team, but Hackett said that never happened.
“At no time was I asked or felt under pressure to direct anyone to put someone on the team,” he said, adding that “at no time did I direct anyone to do anything or put anyone on the team.”
Hackett said there were multiple miscommunications that were happening in a short amount of time, with a lot of emotion involved and those miscommunications got conflated, ending in the situation that occurred.
When asked if Bettencourt had asked Winchester High School Principal Dennis Mahoney or Athletic Director Marc Arria to put his daughter on the team, Hackett said, “I cannot speak to what he asked Marc or Dennis because I was not there. He did speak to the AD a few times and met with the principal.”
Neither Arria nor Mahoney responded to requests for comments, instead directing inquiries to the superintendent's office.
Why she resigned
In a letter sent to parents by Ross obtained by Winchester News, the coach explained to parents she had sent her resignation letter to Mahoney, Arria and Hackett.
“I hope this letter outlines in a more coherent form how I got to the decision. I clearly was not able to convey everything to you after the game as I was, and am, still very emotionally raw,” she wrote in the letter. “Out of respect for me and for the lessons I have hoped to impart on you over the years, I ask that you not retaliate against the player; this situation is not her doing, and I hope she does not support the actions of her parents.”
The following is the full text of Ross’ resignation letter:
To whom it may concern,
This is my letter of resignation as the Head Varsity Coach and coach of the Winchester High School Girls Soccer Program.
This is probably the most difficult decision I have ever made. I stand by each one of the players I chose for Varsity, and I already love this team. From the first day of tryouts, I have been inspired by their effort, their character, their grit, and their commitment to one another. It truly guts me to know the impact this may have on their season. Walking away from them is painful beyond words.
But I also know that my responsibility as a coach is not only to the players on this roster, but also to every other coach and player in the district. On principle, and in order to protect the integrity of this program, I cannot remain in this role under the circumstances that have unfolded.
When we allow anyone, especially someone in an unrelated authoritative role, to strong-arm school officials into overturning a coach’s decision, we undermine the integrity of the program and the principles of fairness that guide it. The evaluation and decision-making process that we use for tryouts is deliberate, informed, and carried out by those with the knowledge and significant experience to make such judgments. To bend to outside pressure not only discredits the coach’s expertise, but also sends a damaging message to the entire community that decisions can be manipulated by influence rather than earned by merit.
The precedent this sets is dangerous. If clout or connections can dictate outcomes, then rules and standards no longer apply evenly. It erodes trust in our programs, weakens accountability, and teaches our students that persistence, resilience, and fairness matter less than who holds power. I believe with all my heart that athletics should teach perseverance, humility, and respect for the process, not that rules can be bent to serve the interests of a few.
I am stepping down with a heavy heart. My hope is that in doing so I protect both the players I love and the coaches who will come after me and who dedicate so much of themselves to developing people on and off the pitch. I also hope that this will protect the values that make high school athletics meaningful. This program, these players, and this community deserve nothing less than integrity.
Sincerely,
Coach Ross
When news of the resignation reached parents, many families immediately took to social media and the Winchester Resident Facebook page. Many questioned what had happened and called for further resignations.
A petition is reportedly circulating throughout the community, with at least 200 signatures as of Aug. 29, calling for both Bettencourt and Hackett to be put on leave until the situation is resolved.
Karen Ossen's daughter, a WHS senior, is a WGVS team captain. Ossen said she echoes Ross' sentiment that the players, the program and the community deserve nothing less than integrity and feels Ross is the standard for that.
“Coach Ross is a well-respected, caring, and dedicated leader who has an excellent record of service to the Winchester community as an educator and athletic coach,” Ossen stated. “She has demonstrated a deep commitment to the integrity of the Winchester High School soccer program and the entirety of WHS athletics.”
Ossen said as the first woman head coach for WHS Girls Varsity Soccer, Ross set the standard for strong, determined leadership and compassionate guidance. She also said she hopes “that policies will be enacted that prevent this type of administrative overreach from interfering with coach autonomy in the future.”
More reports
Reports have also circulated that the Winchester Soccer Club board last week voted to remove Bettencourt as secretary from its board, a claim he called “patently false.”
WSC President Bradford Coffey confirmed Bettencourt has not been removed from the board.
“We are aware of the rumors circulating and determined to be patient and monitor the situation,” Coffey stated in an email. “We are extremely saddened by the impact this has had on the high school players and Winchester soccer community. There are no winners. Our primary focus for now is supporting the amazing WHS varsity and JV teams. We will deal with any internal WSC issues in due time and as appropriate.”
Meanwhile, Hackett had reached out to varsity girls soccer families via email acknowledging the “incredibly difficult and frustrating situation.”
“I understand that this has been an incredibly difficult and frustrating situation for you and your daughters, and for that, I apologize,” Hackett wrote.
He also asked families to be aware that, at the time, his lack of response was not by choice, but rather necessity. He called the issues that surrounded the incident complex and his limited public responses were driven by confidentiality concerns.
Bettencourt speaks and Ross responds
In a detailed response to questions from Winchester News, Bettencourt disputed characterizations of his actions and said he never expected roster changes when he initially raised concerns.
“Many parents and students raised questions, over the phone and over email to the administration, including us,” Bettencourt wrote. “It is clear that it was the intention of the coach to single me out and have the students target my daughter.”
Bettencourt alleges his daughter has received threats and was bullied by team members, including captains and that there is an ongoing district investigation into bullying from both the girls and boys varsity teams.
“This coach has made multiple negative comments about my daughter’s learning disabilities in the past, so this was not a surprise,” Bettencourt alleged in his email.
Ross however disputes that statement. She has steadfastly declined to comment on the controversy but recently said she wanted to clarify Bettencourt's allegation. Ross said she was not aware of any learning disability until September 2nd, when the Superintendent informed her she was under investigation for a potential civil rights violation related to bullying. Coaches are not given information about a child's individualized education plan (IEP) she said, adding, “an outside investigator explored this claim and found no evidence of bullying.”
Hackett acknowledged that they received allegations of bullying and said a third party was in fact brought in to investigate. The conclusion was the allegations were unfounded, he said.
When asked about his goal in contacting administrators, Bettencourt said he wanted to understand how the roster decisions aligned with the district’s stated priority of inclusion.
“I did not expect any changes to be made at all,” he wrote. “When I spoke with the athletic director, he pointed me to the school’s policy of having the student email the coach.”
He added, “We followed that policy exactly and my daughter emailed the coach.”
Bettencourt said Ross responded she would not make roster changes, and a subsequent meeting with the coach and athletic director was scheduled, but he alleges neither administrator showed up.
He said he was primarily concerned about seniors who were cut during the final scrimmage. Ross selected 22 players for a roster budgeted for 30, according to Bettencourt.
For comparison, he pointed out the boys varsity soccer team selected 28 players and two managers for their roster, consisting of seniors, juniors, one sophomore and no freshmen.
However, sources at WHS say there is no guidance provided to coaches regarding roster size and rosters show all returning varsity players are on the team again this year.
Regarding his role on the Select Board, Bettencourt said that does not forfeit his right to advocate for students as an elected official.
Winchester News will continue to cover any further developments regarding this story.
