For Wausau Pilot & Review
WESTON – The D.C. Everest School District announced three individuals have been selected as new head varsity coaches at the D.C. Everest Senior High School.
DCE Alumna Alexandria Villiard has been named the head varsity coach for the DCE dance team. Villiard began her career as a dancer at the age of 8 and was a member of the DCE dance team from 2011-14. In 2012, she helped the DCE Dance Team capture the state championship. She competed on the UW-Green Bay Dance Team for two years and worked at Expressions Dance Institute for three years. Now the athletic secretary at the DCE Junior High, Villiard has served as assistant coach for the dance team since 2019 and helped the team earn two state championships in 2021 and 2022.
Villiard noted, “As a DCE Alumni It means the world to me to be named the new head Coach of this program.” She continued, “I wish to continue the program’s legacy in the state of Wisconsin and to grow it even further. I look forward to building new connections with athletes, and other coaches and teams in the state.”
Another DCE alum, Jack Micholic, who currently teaches English and Introduction to Video Production at the DCE Junior High, will serve as the Varsity Head Coach for the boys cross country team. Micholic is a 2011 graduate from D.C. Everest who competed in cross country and still ranks in the DCE’s Top 30 for the 5K. He was a six-time state qualifier in track and cross country while at D.C. Everest and went on to compete at the collegiate level under Paul Schmaedke, a Minnesota Coaches Hall of Famer, at Hamline University. During his collegiate career, he was a three-time conference qualifier — once for a distance medley relay and three times for the 800m race.
Micholic will replace Brad Seeley, the widely respected head coach, who recently stepped down. Micholic acknowledges the impact Seeley had on his running career as a high school student noting, “I’m from the Seeley tree of success in cross country and track. It was a dream to one day be a head coach back here at Everest. I’m overwhelmingly blessed to have made some of the richest friendships during my time at Everest.
“To have now garnered respect from the people who coached me 14 years ago, it’s sincerely a dream come true, and I can’t wait to carry on the legacy of hard work and success in the DCE cross country program. I’m really looking forward to building a program predicated on our four pillars: ownership, sportsmanship, accountability, and respect.”
Pending board approval, Oliver Drake, a native of Neillsville, will be named as a Physical Education teacher at D.C. Everest Junior High and as head coach of the boys varsity basketball team. Drake has 19 years of experience coaching basketball at the collegiate level. During his last 12 seasons, Drake served as head coach at two colleges in the Midwest, most recently at Midland University. Drake’s career collegiate coaching record stands at 204-159 and includes six 20-plus win seasons, four National Tournament appearances, two conference tournament championships, a conference coach of the year award, and 100 percent graduation rate of all his student-athletes.
In addition to his collegiate experience, Drake was selected in 2018 to serve as a court coach for the USA Basketball U18 Team led by NCAA championship coach Bill Self of Kansas. In May, Drake was recognized by Silver Waves Media as one of the most impactful coaches in NAIA basketball.
Drake will be joined by his wife Kristen and their two children, Sebastian and Stella. Drake noted his “family is thrilled to be making the move back to Wisconsin to be a part of the DCE Family.”
