The Wellington High School boys varsity basketball team finished the season as district champions. The last time the Wolverines won a district championship was in 2002, but thanks to this year’s team, there will be a new banner in the WHS gymnasium. In addition to winning the district title, the Wolverines also won their conference. It is the first time in school history that the team accomplished both titles in one year.
The 2012-13 team graduated six seniors who were major contributors, so coming into the 2013 season, many didn’t know what to expect. There were new faces to the varsity squad, and the common thread was that the team had little game experience as a unit. Through some early-season ups and downs, the Wolverines went on to compile a 16-12 record, punctuated by a convincing 20-point win over Jupiter High School for the district title. The Wolverines ended the season in an overtime heartbreaker to Spanish River High School in the state playoffs.
It will be a tall task to replace the contributions of the graduating seniors: Brandon Joseph, Danny Prud’Homme, Steven Coulanges, Clandell Cetoute, and Gerry Milligan. Cetoute and Coulanges were acknowledged for their excellent play by being named second team all-conference, while Prud’Homme and Milligan were named honorable mention all-conference.
The future looks bright for WHS basketball, as the team returns three starters in Alex Dieudonne, Aaron Kwiatek and Sam Bernstein. Dieudonne was one of the area’s leading scorers as a sophomore and was named first team all-conference. Kwiatek, another sophomore, started all 28 games and was also named first team all-conference.
Under coach Matt Colin, the Wolverines have been a consistent winning program for six years, and this year’s district championship was another step toward a trip to the state championship in Lakeland.
ABOVE: The WHS boys varsity basketball team.
