Meet Our Coaches! | heatumaau

Meet Our Spring/Summer 2026 Season Coaches!

3rd Grade Coaches: TBD (inquire about opportunity to help coach this team: Kari Cairone kmburger@yahoo.com or 610-420-8401).

4rd Grade Coach:

Dave Wisniewski: Dave has been coaching for over 25 years at the Varsity High School as well as Club levels throughout Pennsylvania. Dave was the Varsity Head Coach of Girls' Basketball at both Truman High School and Conwell Egan Catholic where he also served as Athletic Director. This is Dave's second year coaching for the HEAT. He lead the 2026 graduating Seniors last spring/summer in their final AAU season.

Don Bogan: Don is in his second year coaching for HEAT Hoops. Prior to coming to the HEAT, he was an assistant with the Bucks County Lightning AAU program for two years, as well as a head coach for the Wildcats program for three years. He started his career with an impressive 30 year run as the head girls' coach of Bensalem High School.

5th Grade Coaches:

Kristy Reed: Kristy is the coach of the Upper Makefield Newtown HEAT Basketball travel team at this age level. Kristy is a graduate of TCNJ (NCAA DIII) (formerly Trenton State) where she played soccer and helped her team to win the National Championship! She has been coaching youth sports for over 10 years.

Brian Sassano: Brian graduated from William Tennent High School and Temple University. Brian is in his seventh year of coaching basketball and is currently the head coach of the CRBA 5th grade girls travel team and the UMNB 8th grade boys travel team. He is a student of the game and regularly attends youth, high-school, and college basketball games in the Philadelphia area. His favorite parts of coaching are player development and creating a strong team culture. Outside of basketball, Brian has extensive experience coaching soccer and is currently the travel soccer director at a local club.

6th Grade Coaches:

Julie Osbeck (formerly Sailer): Julie was an All-American scored 1,910 points in high school, which was the most points in Bucks County (girls) history. She was a 1,000 point scorer at The University of Delaware (NCAA Division I) and an Academic All-American. She has 11 years of coaching experience at the middle school and high school levels.

Kathryn Pearson: Kathryn began playing basketball in the 4th grade, played for four years at Council Rock North and four years at Fairleigh Dickinson in North Jersey (NCAA Division III). She began coaching her 3rd grader in 2021 and loves teaching kids this age new skills, how to compete, and enjoyment for the game.

Jim McCullough: Jim graduated from Father Judge High School and Holy Family University. He has played Travel, CYO, and AAU basketball throughout grade school and high school. Jim is currently the assistant coach for the St. Bede’s JV Girls Region Team and will be in his 3rd year as an assistant coach for HEAT Hoops. His favorite part of coaching AAU basketball is seeing the girls develop as individual players and utilizing their strengths to compliment each other and effectively achieve goals as a team.

Rich Galup: Rich has coached for UMNB intramural, travel, and AAU for the past three years. He played basketball at Misericordia University (NCAA DIII). Rich loves to work with kids who love the game and loves to foster their development with the team.

Gerard Margiotti: Jerry graduated from Holy Ghost Prep, LaSalle University, and PCOM Medical School. Jerry coaches CYO basketball and soccer at St. Bede's Parish. This is his second year supporting the HEAT Hoops AAU program.

7th Grade Coaches:

Danielle Oxley: Danielle graduated from Council Rock North in 2003 and continued her playing career at University of Hartford (NCAA Division I). She then coached at the high school level for seven years, and has also been coaching youth basketball for both boys’ and girls’ teams over the past seven years. She is currently the Women's Varsity Assistant for Council Rock North High School.

Brett D'Andrea: Brett graduated from Holy Ghost Prep and Fairfield University. Brett is in his fourth year coaching of in the UMNB program and serves as an intramural age group program coordinator. Outside of basketball, Brett has years of experience coaching both soccer and baseball in the local community.

8th Grade Coaches:

Heather Thompson (formally McGinty): Heather graduated from Neshaminy High School as the all-time leading scorer for both boys’ and girls’ basketball. She played for four years at Drexel University (NCAA Division I). She serves as the Assistant Coach for Rider University (NCAA Division I) basketball program and has dedicated her time to supporting the development of youth basketball for 30 years, supporting clinics, CYO and AAU organizations.

Lisa Boyle: Lisa was the four-year starting center for Temple University Women’s basketball (NCAA Division I). She went on to coach JV at Conwell Egan Catholic for two years. After having seven children, she started coaching at the AAU/Travel level, and has been coaching for the past 13 years.

Pat Price: Pat is a graduate of St. John Vianney and Villanova University. He has worked with the LFE basketball program as division director and coach the last seven years. He’s seen firsthand how youth sports build confidence and is looking forward to joining the Heat coaching staff. Both his daughters love the game and he hopes to continue that passion in our community.

9th Grade Coach:

Adam Biederman: Adam brings 16 years of coaching experience with a focus on player development and teamwork. He is dedicated to enhancing individual skills while fostering a strong team-first mentality. Adam has worked with players at all levels from elementary to high school.

10th Grade Coaches:

Kari Cairone: Kari has been coaching AAU for 15 years and is the co-director of the HEAT Hoops AAU program. She has seen 20 of her former players across just three graduating teams go on to play at the collegiate varsity level. She played for four years at Lafayette College (NCAA Division I) where she served as captain.

Kevin Gallagher: Kevin has been coaching basketball for over 50 years. Since 1968, he has coached all ages and both genders. He has worked with 2nd graders up through the college level. Kevin has brought in championships across the board including a Trenton Catholic high school girls team with two state championships and three straight AAU national tournament finishes and a national AAU title with a girls college level team with the Philadelphia Belles; and, at the college level at LaSalle University (NCAA DI), his team was the first women’s collegiate team from the city of Philadelphia to qualify for the NCAA tournament. Recently he was assistant at New Hope HS (girls) for six seasons, Council Rock North (boys) for four seasons, and he returns to Council Rock South (girls) this year as the JV coach. His resume as an athlete includes playing for a state championship basketball team at Cathedral HS and two additional state finals in both soccer and basketball. He attended Rider University (NCAA DI) on a soccer scholarship. Coach Gallagher’s most important team is his four children and their significant others and his grandson, Noah.

11th Grade Coaches:

Mitchell Akright: Mitch is an experienced basketball coach with 11 years of coaching experience. He is currently the basketball coordinator for St. Andrews School. He also coaches the A level Region teams for 8/7th grade girls and 6/5th grade girls. He has a passion for the sport and understanding of the technical, strategic, and tactical aspects of the game. He has led St. Andrews girls’ basketball recently to the Archdiocese of Philadelphia city playoffs and Region Championships. Building a strong positive winning team culture along with individual development are his top priorities.

Julie Cruz: Julie is in her seventh season of coaching. She is always looking for ways to learn more about the game, attending the last three summers at Point Guard College summer camps as an observing coach. She enjoys focusing on individual and team development and is often reading new books and looking for new drills to focus on helping each player improve.

We occasionally have openings for coaching positions, both volunteer and paid; Please inquire with Kari Cairone kmburger@yahoo.com or 610-420-8401.