Streamwood’s Diversey to step down

Citing the need to spend more time with his three young sons, Streamwood baseball coach Steve Diversey will step down at the end of this season, he said Tuesday.

Diversey has coached the Sabres to a record of 93-66-2 in seven seasons. In 2011, he guided Streamwood to the best season in school history. That team set a school record with 30 victories (7 losses) and secured the first conference, regional and sectional titles in program history.

“I think it’s time to for me to just be a dad,” said Diversey, 37. “My kids are playing baseball now. I think it’s a good time to take a break, spend some time with the family and figure out what we’re going to do. I want to spend time with my kids.”

Diversey began his baseball coaching career at Chicago Kelly in 2002, and he directed the baseball program at Huntley for three seasons (2003-05). After coaching football and wrestling at Geneva during the 2005-06 school year, he was hired at Streamwood for the 2007 season.

The Diverseys’ oldest son played Little League Baseball this year, but they held their second son out of sports because of the time commitment involved with only one parent available. “That was kind of the straw that broke the camel’s back,” the coach said. “I’ve always said I’m not going to give up an opportunity to coach my kids to coach someone else’s.”

Diversey said Streamwood’s record of 8-14 through Tuesday and the fact he was reassigned to teach at Elgin instead of Streamwood last year were factors in his decision, but not the overriding factor.

“This year has taken a toll on me a little more than normal,” he conceded, “but I’m more concerned in the long run about not being in the building. That makes it harder to develop the lower levels because you don’t see them or have those connections with them.”

Diversey did not rule out a return to coaching at some point in the future.