Jim Aggas had served as Lew Liparulo's right-hand man with Butler's boys volleyball program for nearly two decades.

When Aggas took over the girls team at Laurel High School last summer, he did not have to think long about who to bring on as an assistant coach.

“Lew has so much knowledge of volleyball and he's always been so appreciative for my loyalty to the team at Butler, I immediately thought of him. It was a no-brainer,” said Aggas, a 1985 Butler graduate now living in New Castle. “But I was a little hesitant to ask him because I didn't know if his wife would be OK with him devoting even more time to volleyball.”

Aggas did ask Liparulo, who in turn talked it over with his wife, Susan.

“She had no problem with it,” he said. “She used to be a coach for Slippery Rock High's track and field team and has always been very supportive of me when it comes to coaching.

“When you're a coach, it involves your whole family.”

So after years of Liparulo having the final say with Butler's boys when it came to strategy and personnel, he and Aggas switched roles at Laurel last fall and the Spartans responded with an 11-3 record and reached the WPIAL Class 2A playoffs.

“I had never aspired to be a head coach and was reluctant at first at the thought of coaching girls because I had always coached boys,” said Aggas. “But for some reason, I decided to apply for the job. The girls worked very hard and there was no complaining. I really enjoyed it.”

Liparulo took the transition to being the second in command in stride.

“I was an assistant for the wrestling team and track team at Butler, both for about four or five years,” he said. “It wasn't difficult to step back into that role.”

This spring, both coaches resumed their familiar roles at Butler and guided the team to the WPIAL Class 3A playoffs. Aggas has been assisting with that program since 2002 and never considered stepping down after earning the job at Laurel.

“Lew and I have been coaching together for so long, I told him I'm there as long as he is,” said Aggas.

Liparulo appreciates the support.

“I saw Jim coaching in a youth basketball league years ago,” he said. “Coaching is a roller coaster ride, you're dealing with a lot of emotions, but I liked the way he dealt with the kids and asked him if he wanted to assist me with the volleyball program.”

For over 40 years, Liparulo has been coaching the sport at Butler. He led the girls team from 1978-2005. It was in the middle of that tenure that the boys program was born.

“In 1993, there were four boys at Butler who wanted to play volleyball,” Liparulo explained. “Since there was no boys team, they were allowed to join the girls. Our (athletic director) at the time told me that if the boys were good enough, I had to play them. I didn't think it was fair to play them up front, so I put them in the back row.

“This upset some of the girls and their parents because it was taking playing time away from them.”

The situation was defused shortly after the season ended when the school board approved the formation of a boys team, which began play in the spring of 1994.

Liparulo was the logical choice as head coach and he's been there ever since. He is approaching 250 career wins with the Tornado boys, who are a regular participant in the WPIAL playoffs.

Liparulo was inducted into the Butler County Sports Hall of Fame two years ago.

“We've been a competitive program for a long time,” he said. “And we play in one of the toughest sections in the state. Two teams that we're very familiar with — North Allegheny and Seneca Valley — just played each other in the state semifinals.”

Aggas has been a key contributor to Butler's consistency.

“He's been an integral part of the program and I depend on him a lot,” said Liparulo. “We don't always agree, but what I like about Jim is that he tells me what he thinks and I value his opinion.”

“Lew is the most selfless person I know,” Aggas said. “We're not just close through coaching, we're best friends.”