Jason Bieber proud of successful run with Boyertown girls basketball program

The trajectory of Boyertown’s girls basketball team changed after Jason Bieber took over as varsity coach. Goals once out of reach were suddenly attainable.

It started modestly with Boyertown’s first conference championship in 2010. It reached a crescendo when the Bears captured the PIAA Class 6A title seven years later.

Bieber and Boyertown have parted ways after 13 mostly memorable seasons. Assistant Troy Sweisfort has been named head coach. Bieber won more than 200 games and surpassed 20 wins four times.

“We had a lot of success over the time I was there,” he said. “We had a lot of support from the community, parents and alumni that really helped to mold the program.”

Bieber, a Fleetwood and Kutztown University grad, paid his dues before finding a long-term home at Boyertown. He was an assistant with the boys at Fleetwood, an assistant with Schuylkill Valley’s girls and Tulpehocken’s head girls coach.

Boyertown was Bieber’s dream opportunity. He remains an eighth grade math teacher in the school district. Coaching there was an ideal situation.

“Boyertown’s community reminds me of Fleetwood’s,” Bieber said. “You have those old-timers that come in every night, sit there and watch the games. They support you and they’re your biggest critics after the game. It’s a neat atmosphere to be in.”

Expectations weren’t high during Bieber’s first season in 2009-10. Boyertown went from .500 to PAC contender. The Bears defeated Methacton in the conference final and finished 21-7. That was a sign of things to come.

Boyertown won 28 games and reached the PIAA semifinals during Bieber’s second season. The Bears started 25-0 and qualified for states in 2014-15. Then came 2016-17, when Bieber guided a team that finished sixth in District 1 to the only PIAA girls basketball championship in Berks County history.

Some of Boyertown’s greats passed through during Bieber’s tenure, including All-State selection Abby Kapp and Kaitlyn Eisenhard. They rank first and second in career points at the school.

“Obviously we had some really good players in my time there,” Bieber said. “They were dedicated players. We played a lot in the offseason. They were always there to play and support what we were doing.”

Bieber was instrumental in building a foundation through youth teams. He helped organize the Lady Ballers program that kept players on the court during the spring and summer. He ran a Lady Bears summer camp that brought more than 100 kids together to work with the varsity team.

Boyertown’s future is now in Sweisfort’s hands.

“Troy is the perfect fit,” Bieber said. “He’s a very knowledgeable coach. He’s going to change some things I’ve done in the past. But a lot of things, those little traditional things, I think he’ll keep a lot of them in place. He’s going to do a great job.”

Bieber wants to continue coaching and will keep an eye out for openings in Berks. Few coaches have a better resume. If the right opportunity doesn’t arise, he said he’ll consider taking a year off. It’s too soon to know what will happen next.

What’s certain is Bieber’s achievements at Boyertown. He can look back on those years fondly and appreciate the hardware he helped place in the trophy case.

“There are so many great memories,” Bieber said. “The players and the relationships. The thing I’m proudest of, the things the kids say, is our program became like a big family.”