Saint Peter Public Schools

Saint Peter High School’s boys basketball program will see a change at the top this coming winter sports season (2026-27) as Ethan Sindelir moves into the head coaching position after assisting outgoing Saints’ coach Sean Keating the past five years.

“I’m super pumped for this opportunity, and it is an honor and a privilege to be selected as the next Saints’ boys basketball head coach,” Sindelir said. “Running my own program has been on my radar for a long time, and I’m grateful for the opportunity to step into that role now.  

"We'll have a good group of seniors coming back next season, which will really help as a first-year head coach as there are great leaders in that group."

Sindelir, a 2018 Maple River alum and 2022 graduate of Gustavus Adolphus College, takes over the boys program with plenty of basketball experience both coaching and playing. In addition to his five years working with the Saints, he was an assistant for two years at Mankato Loyola. During his prep career at Maple River, he was a three-year starter for the Eagles, under long-time coach Chad Ostermann, and was a key member of their 2015 and 2016 state tournament teams. In addition to his basketball experiences, Sindelir was a four-year member of Gusties’ football program as a player (tight end) and for three years as an Gusties’ football assistant coach under Pete Haugen. 

Having played under and worked with so many different coaches, this has provided the new Saints’ mentor with plenty of exposure to different coaching styles and philosophies.

“I am super grateful for not only the opportunity to be the head coach here, but also to have been fortunate enough to have had the chance to work with so many great coaches over the years,” Sindelir said. “I will take a little bit from all of these coaches I've played under and worked with, and from there be able to put my own stamp on our program which is very exciting.

“One thing I know for sure is that I’ve always had a great belief that playing stout defense and a strong rebounding effort from our players will really help shape the identity of our program. Scoring is also obviously important, too, but being able to do those things well, can allow you to have success at every level.”

In addition to his work during the upcoming season, there are plenty of other tasks that need to be completed long before then.

“I’ve been working on finalizing our summer program, and I’m close to done with that,” Sindelir said. “I know the team has been going to Duluth in the summer for team camp, but we’re going to do something a little different this year. We’ll still have our Summer Skills sessions and Breakdown Tournaments, but this summer we’re going to play in the Dells Classic at the Wisconsin Dells.

“We’re also going to play a regular season game next season at the Pentagon in Sioux Falls, SD, which should be a lot of fun for the guys and their families. My next step is finalizing our assistant coaching staff, which I hope to have in place soon.”

Sindelir is a third grade teacher at North Elementary, and he and his wife Zoe (Haugen) make their home here in St. Peter.