Another varsity baseball coach has left Newbury Park High amid a cloud of controversy.

Last week, Chuck Berrington resigned his post as head coach at NPHS after just one season at the helm, a year in which his squad posted a 20-10 overall record, finished third in the Marmonte League and qualified for the playoffs.

Berrington was hired to replace Scott Drootin, whose services weren't retained in August 2008 after five seasons coaching the Panthers.

Following Drootin's departure, a pair of Newbury Park players said aggressive parents played a role in the coach's dismissal.

Berrington, who previously served as head coach at Westlake and Taft high schools, said a similar situation led to his forced resignation from NPHS.

"It was the same kind of thing as with Drootin last year," Berrington said. "A parent comes in and complains, goes over my head, yet the rules state they should come to the coach first.

"The athletic director and principal can't seem to follow their own rules, so they just let a bunch of people come in and complain," he said.

Richard Urias, Newbury Park's assistant principal of athletics, denied Berrington's claim that parents were to blame for the coach's departure.

"No parents, that I'm aware of, went to (Principal Athol Wong) and sat down and demanded his resignation," Urias said. "A couple of parents shared some concerns with me, but those concerns had nothing to do with their kids or on-the-field activities."

Citing confidentiality between the coach and school, Urias declined to state the exact reason for Berrington's exit.

"On the record, I can't comment on that other than to say that we were successful on the field," Urias said. "It wasn't on-the-field issues. . . .

"But we hold our coaches to a high standard, and there are a lot of things that they're involved in. Unfortunately, for his style of managing things, it wasn't working."

Theresa Brown, president of the Newbury Park Baseball Boosters, also declined to comment on the relationship between Berrington and the Panther parents.

"We wish Chuck Berrington well," she said.

When the story broke, the L.A. Times' website, Varsity Times Insider, was flooded with reader comments, many of which supported Berrington.

Urias, however, cautioned against putting too much stock into what people wrote.

"The message boards are anonymous, so it's easy for people to take potshots at other people," Urias said. "Some parents don't get along with other parents, and it can be an opportunity for them to take shots. . . .

"Everyone wants to blame the parents because parents can be difficult. My inability to put out what specifically were the problems also kind of puts secrecy on it, and that lends itself to people speculating."

Berrington said he plans on searching for another coaching job, perhaps in high school or college. He also had a stern message for whoever takes over as varsity baseball coach at Newbury Park.

"I would say don't coach there unless you want your life to be turned upside down," Berrington said.

"I left a great school with great kids to come here to my hometown, to be closer to my daughter who goes to school (locally). It was supposed to be wonderful, and they end up taking your life away."

Matt Goldfield, a longtime varsity assistant, has taken over the program on an interim basis.

Urias said Goldfield is a "strong candidate" to become head coach. As of Tuesday, the job hadn't officially been opened for outside applications.

"We're looking for the real deal here," Urias said. "We're going for a CIF Division I baseball championship. That requires leadership and character that's evident on the field as well as off the field."