Nerney taking the reins at Carroll

Archbishop Carroll didn’t have to look very far to find its next girls basketball coach.

Thomas Nerney, a former Cabrini College great and AAU coach of nine years with the Philadelphia Belles, was hired this week to replace Chuck Creighton, who stepped down in April after winning two PIAA championships in nine seasons.

In the 1970s, Nerney was a four-year captain at Cabrini and 1,000-point scorer. he was inducted into the Cabrini College Hall of Fame in 2006, and the school’s gymnasium is named in his honor.

Nerney began his coaching career as an assistant for the men’s and women’s program at Cabrini before moving on to the AAU scene, serving as a coach for the Belles from 1996-2005. According to an Archbishop Carroll press release, Nerney coached 25 players that went on to play at Division I programs. Nerney most recently held an assistant coach position at the Germantown Academy.

“I am truly honored and humbled to be returning to coach (girls) basketball and am grateful for the leadership at Archbishop John Carroll High School who has provided me with this opportunity,’ Nerney said in a statement. “I have been waiting for the right moment to return to coaching, and Archbishop Carroll is the perfect fit. I look forward to building a team that will compete at the highest levels, but more importantly, a team that will work tirelessly for each other and be a positive example for the greater Carroll community.’

Nerney is the Chairman, President and CEO of USLI, a Berkshire-Hathaway Company with 750 employees headquartered in Wayne. An active philanthropist in the Philadelphia area, Nerney is the founding member of A Front Row Seat to Learning, which provides financial assistance to disadvantaged youth who cannot afford to pay for private-school education.

“Tom is a coach who inspires his student-athletes with his passion for the game and his strong values,’ Carroll president Frank Fox said in a statement. “His constant striving for excellence in every endeavor he undertakes, both on and off the court, translates to success on so many levels. His leadership will continue to attract top talent and quality young ladies to our successful and well-established program. The administration of Archbishop Carroll is excited and honored a coach of Mr. Nerney’s caliber has accepted our offer to coach here.’