Farmington hiring Martorelli from Xavier to head program

Matthew Martorelli will be leaving as athletic director at Xavier High School this summer to lead the athletics program at Farmington High School.

Farmington’s school administration announced Friday that Martorelli will take the position July 1.

“In addition to his extensive experience, Matt brings passion, integrity and a strong commitment to doing things the right way’ ” said Scott Hurwitz, Farmington High School’s principal.

Farmington High lost Jack Phelan, its longtime athletic director, to a heart attack last July. The sports program has been under the interim leadership of Ed Manfredi since then.

“Jack’s legacy lives on in the hearts of all members of Farmington’s school district community, and his influence will remain within our FHS athletic program for many years to come,” the school system said in a statement.

“Coach Jack Phelan was my mentor, my colleague and my friend,” said Martorelli, a Farmington resident.

Farmington educators said their search for a replacement drew 150 applicants.

Martorelli is a graduate of the University of New Hampshire, where he was a fouryear varsity football player.

He was a 2003 graduate of Northwest Catholic High School. He went on to serve as athletic director there from 2011 to 2019, when he took the position at Xavier in Middletown.

At 1,200 students, Farmington High School is larger than either Xavier or Northwest Catholic.

One of Martorelli’s initial tasks will be to help Farmington High School’s teams transition to a new name. They’ve been known as the Indians for decades, but dropped that name this winter and are searching for a new one.

During his tenure heading Northwest Catholic’s sports program, Martorelli helped teams through a similar process. The school concluded in 2015 that it would drop its name, also the Indians, because it was culturally insensitive. Northwest Catholic switched to the Lions.