JACKSON TWP — Finding success as a high school girls basketball coach wasn't hard for Kelly Matthews.

But she had to find a job, too.

That's why Matthews, 30, has left her post as coach at Moon High School to accept the same position at Seneca Valley.

"I had no problems at Moon,"Matthews said. "That's a great program and it's been a winning one. I did my student teaching there and they were unable to offer me a teaching position."

Formerly an accountant, Matthews left that profession to return to St. Bonaventure University to get her teaching degree. She was an assistant girls basketball coach at Oakland Catholic for a year before returning to St. Bonaventure for a three-year stint as an assistant women's basketball coach.

"At that point, I wanted to coach high school girls,"Matthews said. "I'm from the Moon area, so I went back there."

Matthews served as an assistant coach at Moon for two years before taking over as head coach in 2005-06.

During her only year at the helm, the Tigers finished 23-9, reaching the WPIAL Class AAAtitle game and PIAAWestern Final before losing to Hopewell both times.

"Moon has a very strong senior class back next year,"Matthews said. "It was tough to leave. I didn't apply for every job opening out there. I only looked at certain ones."

She applied at Seneca Valley because it is a Quad-A school in a growing community — and it offered a teaching position.

Matthews will work in the school's Alternative Learning Center, as well as coach the basketball team.

"I don't know much about the (basketball) personnel yet,"she said. "I watched them play one summer league game, but you can't tell much from that.

"I know Amanda Johnson and Kelsey Spencer are returning as seniors. They weren't a very deep team last year, so their kids need to gain some experience."

Seneca Valley finished 17-10 under coach Todd Schoeffel last season, reaching the WPIAL and PIAAtournaments. Schoeffel was 35-40 as Raiders' coach over the past three seasons.

Schoeffel was 113-89 in his first eight years at Seneca Valley, took a year off, then returned for the aforementioned three-year stint. He was 151-129 at Seneca Valley overall.

Known as a scrappy, effective team defensively, the Raiders may not change much under Matthews' watch.

"Everywhere I've played and coached, we took pride in our defense,"she said. "Last year at Moon, our players' scoring averages were 13, 10, 8. 7 — I don't want to depend on one star player."

Matthews is a 1994 Oakland Catholic graduate, where she started at forward on the 1992-93 Eagles squad that won the state championship. She played college ball at St. Bonaventure as well.

"I like to run when I can, play up-tempo," she said of her coaching philosophy. "But I can change that up, depending on my personnel.

"If I have a big, slow team, I'm not going to force those kids to run up and down the floor."

Fashioning herself as a player's coach, Matthews said she "gives my players as much leeway on the floor as I can. I want them to have the freedom to make decisions out there, make their own reads and have fun playing the game."

Matthews was hired as Seneca Valley's coach during Monday night's school board meeting.