Julia Sterling’s summer children’s theater group opens its run of “Oliver!” tonight.

Come fall, she will set off for Italy with her husband, beginning travel plans she’s looked forward to for some time.

Sterling, who has paced the sidelines of Maine athletic fields for 20 years, retired from coaching at North Yarmouth Academy following the lacrosse season.

She leaves both the lacrosse and field hockey programs.

“I turned 60 and kind of looked back thinking I did a good thing,” said Sterling. “I started coaching when I was 23. I’ve been consistently coaching since 1991, with maybe one year off.

“I put my time in, had a great time doing it. There were the highs and lows and many successes.

“I’m proud of my teams. They all worked as hard as I did to get to that point.”

She won state titles with the Panthers’ field hockey and girls’ lacrosse teams in 2010, the same year she battled diverticulitis. She also steered her team through a difficult stretch when star player Courtney Dumont lost her mother.

Sterling’s field hockey team also won a state title in 2008 and was the runner-up in 2009.

Known for nurturing of players, Sterling said she will miss those relationships.

“I just decided, you know, it’s time to let somebody else take over, and I felt really good about it,” said Sterling. “It was hard for me, but now the stress is taken away from the coaching. It gets tough at times. I put my heart and guts into it.”

Tracy Quimby was named NYA field hockey coach last week.

Staff Writer Jenn Menendez can be contacted at 791-6426 or at:

jmenendez@pressherald.com

Twitter: JennMenendez