BY GENE NARDI
The Wellington High School boys and girls varsity soccer teams competed in the annual Palm Beach Adidas Classic Jan. 3-5 at the King’s Academy, with the boys team earning second place overall and the girls taking fourth place out of eight teams.
The tournament is typically hosted by Wellington each year, but this year WHS partnered up with the King’s Academy to use their facility as the venue.
“We teamed up with the King’s Academy, and coach Glen Martin assisted us this year, so the tournament could use multiple fields due to the number of teams participating,” Tournament Director Mike Aronson said.
The tournament compiled a total of 16 teams from as far as Merritt Island, both boys and girls. Each division played a total of three games. “We get sponsorship from Adidas, and Strikers Soccer Supply, which also helps,” Aronson added.
In their first match, the Wellington boys defeated Santaluces on penalty kicks after a 4-4 draw, then bested the King’s Academy 3-2. The Wolverines eventually fell to tournament champs American Heritage Plantation 3-1 in the finals match, earning second place overall.
Jesus Castellon and Miguel Rincon each earned three goals for Wellington in the tournament. Marcel Venere and Gino Colman each were credited with a score.
The Wellington girls team competed for the third-place position overall after a 4-3 win over Olympic Heights in penalty kicks, followed by an 8-0 loss to American Heritage Plantation. The Lady Wolverines fell to West Boca 4-1, earning fourth place overall.
“There are other club tournaments we have to compete with during this time, including the local Wellington Shootout, held at [Wellington] Village Park,” Aronson said. “We’ll have a tournament next year. We’ve been doing this event for about 10 years, and the most difficult thing now is to find a venue that will accommodate the number of teams that want to participate.”
The Wellington High School boys and girls varsity soccer schedule resumes this week with both the boys and girls teams traveling to West Boca High School on Wednesday, Jan. 9 for 6 and 8 p.m. games, respectively. Scores were unavailable at press time. Wellington will host Suncoast High School on Friday, Jan. 11 for the Wolverines’ Senior Night. The girls’ game starts at 6 p.m., and the boys take the field at 8 p.m.
Above: The WHS boys varsity team with their second-place award.
