Wellington High School Basketball Celebrates A Stellar Season

The Wellington High School boys basketball team claimed the regional championship for the 2016-17 school year, marking the team’s second regional championship in the past three years.

Head coach Matt Colin was on the sidelines for both achievements, but this year’s championship belonged to a strong team of young men, who slotted into roles that propelled the Wolverines to yet another championship banner.

The Wellington Wolverines defeated Coral Springs High School 82-62 in the finals to win the regional title.

“It makes the game so much easier when you’re able to control the game the way we were able to control it,” Colin said. “We always had four players out there who could handle the basketball. It made it so that we were the team that dictated what was going on, not the other team. Anytime you do that, you get the momentum.”

This latest accomplishment was all about the team working together and playing within the system that Colin and his assistant coaches set up for Wellington’s program. In years past, the game might have relied on the play of individuals, but this year was about everyone getting their hands on the ball to make plays for the team.

“That was something that we stressed. We always talk about team basketball,” Colin said. “Obviously, we have some good players on this team. But good players alone don’t win you championships. I think this group was mature enough to understand that.”

Trent Frazier, Miguel Peart and Sage Chen-Young were team captains this past year, and they fit right into their roles. They led by example, and therefore were able to be strong leaders for a young team.

“The years before, we were so used to winning. This year, we lost a lot of talent, so we had to work with what we had and play smaller,” Chen-Young said.

This year was about building off last year’s weaknesses. Coral Springs kept the Wolverines from repeating in the regional championship the year prior.

Chen-Young said the team took the loss hard last year, and the rematch was a must-win for the season and for pride.

“We were already state champs, and it was the game to go back to states, to go back-to-back, and they beat us,” Chen-Young said of the 2015-16 season-ender. “They ended up winning states.”

So, facing Coral Springs at the regional final, the Wellington boys came back and emerged victorious.

“My sophomore year is when we had a lot of talent. We were a good team,” Frazier said. “That’s what made us get our run into the state tournament and get our first ring, but this year was mostly off of everyone playing their roles.”

This was a year when Wellington basketball’s system worked.

“That’s what helped us out, because we were young and little,” Frazier said. “A lot of guys, we weren’t big. We didn’t have a lot of skill, but everyone played their role, and everyone trusted each other, so that’s how we did it.”

Peart agreed that roleplay was much more important for winning games than making plays for glory.

“I just felt good knowing that I was able to get out there and do everything I could,” Peart said. “That’s what I felt like I was, just the everything guy. If you needed a rebound, needed effort, I just went out and gave it my everything.”

A younger athlete on the team this past year was junior Bryan Williams. Colin saw room for growth and contribution from him on the varsity squad. He also looks to fill a captain’s role next year, helping the team continue to match the gameplay of the previous year.

“I felt like I was a good player, but the coach saw something in me that I didn’t see in myself,” Williams said. “The chemistry that we had — I want to continue to grow and keep leading on throughout the years because I’m going to miss my seniors, and I just want all that to stay. I hope nothing changes with it.”

The players embraced their coach and all that came with being a winning team.

“I think toward the second half of the season, as a team, every player, especially the starters, we all toughened up,” Peart said. “We stopped letting little things get to us. We kind of really started to just play.”

Colin finds power in preparation, and this season was about making strengths better and eliminating weaknesses, particularly in rebounding.

“I was always looking to find new rebounding drills, whether it was going online, whether it was calling former colleagues or college coaches,” he said. “Whatever it may be, throw at me a rebounding drill that you do in practice, so I can apply it to my guys, so they don’t get stagnant with what we’ve been doing. We can still accomplish the goals with what we’re trying to do by winning the rebounding battle out there every night.”

The night before the finals, Colin said the team was ready for the highly anticipated rematch against Coral Springs.

“I think there was a lot of emotion going into that game. Trent [Frazier], actually, and he still has it saved on his phone, has got a picture of me picking him up off the floor after we lost the regional final last year, and it was in the paper. It was front page of the sports section, me picking him up and walking him into the locker room because he was so devastated by that loss,” Colin recalled.

It was in the team’s group chat that Frazier sent a message to everyone, including the coach. “The night before the game, he put that on our team chat about how that wasn’t going to happen again,” Colin said.

After a long season of play, a record of 34-3, a lot of rebound drills and dedication, the Wolverines recaptured the regional championship.

Heading into next season, Colin is ready to help turn the next Wellington High School boys varsity basketball team into champions and keep the tradition alive.

“Every season is a journey. You don’t know how it’s going to turn out, but this was, by far, one of the most pleasurable ones I’ve been on,” Colin said. “We have about four or five returning guys who played for us last year, along with the junior varsity group that’s coming up. I’m just looking forward to learning as much as I can about them and seeing what our strengths and weaknesses are.

Palm Beach Central’s Bronco Band  Brings Home The State Championship

The Palm Beach Central High School marching band triumphed over the competition to claim the state championship crown for the 2016-17 school year.

The Bronco band won the Class 3A crown at the Florida Marching Band Championships (FMBC) for the first time in school history last November at Tropicana Field in St. Petersburg. Palm Beach Central earned first place with a score of 87 points, pushing past Miami Coral Park High School, which took second with 85.45 points.

“I could tell early on in the summer that the group was special,” said James Yaques, director of bands at Palm Beach Central since 2005. “We were really happy with our show design, and the band was taking the product and bringing it to life.”

The Broncos bounced back from an off-year in which the band missed finishing in the top five for the first time in four years. In 2015, heavy rains moved the semifinal competition indoors and the bands performed at a standstill — which hurt the Broncos.

“Our show is most effective with the music and visual together,” Yaques said. “With half of the component taken out, we just missed the finals. Based on results from prior events in the season, if the semifinals would have not been rained out, we probably would have finished second or third. I think missing finals [last year] without the opportunity to perform their full show really hurt the kids. It may have been a motivator to be even better.”

Bronco band performances throughout the 2016-17 season were impressive, finishing first in the semifinals, in addition to winning a regional competition at Jupiter High School and placing second at a regional competition at Park Vista High School.

The championship-winning show was performed to the music of Sleeping Beauty. This upcoming year’s show will be based on the fictional character Poison Ivy, one of Batman’s many enemies. The repertoire changes every year.

Emma Pitot, a rising senior, has been a member of the marching band since her freshman year. Pitot plays the alto saxophone and will be the section leader for the second year in a row, as well as having added responsibilities as band captain.

“Our biggest challenge is keeping everybody motivated,” she said, with a current focus on leading the team to a repeat championship. “We have to do the small things to get to the big picture, which is winning states. My job is to help lead, but it’s a team effort.”

Pitot’s teammates are proud of their most recent accomplishment and have high hopes for the future.

“It’s harder to maintain than to win,” said Madison Pompos, who is entering her junior year. “We have to work twice as hard. Last year we had motivation; this year we have to fight to get that feeling again.”

Pompos, who has been in the band since she was a freshman, was one of 12 saxophonists in the 105-member state champion marching band. She has been elevated to the important role of drum major for the upcoming year.

The Broncos have spent much of the summer learning new steps and formations because they perform a different show every year, Yaques said. Each show runs approximately 10 minutes.

Motorists on Forest Hill Blvd. can often catch a glimpse of the band practicing in the Palm Beach Central parking lot on Tuesdays and Thursdays from 4 to 7 p.m. during the school year.

“That’s our main practice field,” Yaques said. “We sometimes practice in the [football] stadium so the students get used to the feel of grass as opposed to asphalt.”

Yaques has brought the Broncos to statewide prominence with a culture of excellence. The Florida State University music graduate served for four years as the principal tuba player for the Second Marine Division band in the prestigious United States Marine Corps Band. He also holds a master’s degree in music conducting from Florida International University.

The band season begins in July and runs through November, with the semifinals and finals for the upcoming school year set for Nov. 18. There were several preseason practices in May and June to get the incoming ninth-graders familiar with the high school band.

The entire group learns the basic steps during the summer practices, and the band practices simultaneously for football games and band competitions. Often, they perform at football games on Friday night and head to competitions on Saturdays to hone their skills.

The well-respected Broncos have been regular contenders for the state title most of the last decade. The marching band is a two-time silver medalist (2014 and 2012) and also reached the Class 3A state finals (top five) four other years (2013, 2010, 2009 and 2008).

Yaques, who directs all the bands at Palm Beach Central, is very proud of the marching band’s accomplishments.

“Winning states is certainly the top goal for the marching band,” he said. “We didn’t do anything differently. The students were really driven and worked really hard.”

The 2016-17 championship marching band consisted of flutes (6), clarinets (8), saxophones (12), trumpets (10), mellophones (5), baritones (10), tubas (5), percussion (16), color guard (32) and one drum major.

This upcoming year’s band will have about 20 new members, Yaques said, making the summer practices an integral part of the season, similar to spring practice for football teams.

“I think it is going to be tougher to repeat,” Yaques said. “Keeping the same kind of focus we had last year will be tough. But we are reminding our students that we will have to be better this year to do it again.”

Pompos recalls with pride the band’s big triumphant moment.

“You realize how much our hard work paid off,” said Pompos, who plans to major in criminal justice while playing in the band at either the University of Cincinnati or Florida State University. “We were overjoyed by the experience. I started crying, everyone was jumping, crying, screaming and taking photos. Every single moment was worth it.”

Track Star Karimah Davis Has Her Eyes On The Olympics

Watching the Olympics is always inspirational, especially when a hometown athlete is involved. That’s why we’re keeping an eye on local track star Karimah (pronounced KaREEmah) Davis. The recent Palm Beach Central High School graduate is the state champion in the 400-meter dash (52.91 seconds), and she came in a close second for the 200-meter dash (23.28 seconds).

Over Memorial Day weekend, Davis, together with the other top 200-meter runners in the world, traveled to historic Hayward Field in Eugene, Oregon, just outside Portland, to compete in the Prefontaine Classic, courtesy of title sponsor Nike.

“Nike pays for our flights,” Davis said. “They give us clothes and backpacks and shoes. They treat us like royalty!”

The Prefontaine Classic is the premier track and field meet in the United States, and the only stop in North America on the prestigious World Athletics Tour. It was established by distance runner Steve Prefontaine, who died in 1975 at age 24 and was the subject of two major motion pictures. To be eligible to compete in this elite track and field showcase, athletes must be ranked in the top 50 in the world in their event.

Televised on NBC, the Prefontaine Classic is where many Olympic track and field stars first establish themselves in the national consciousness and, perhaps because of this, attendance has grown. The Prefontaine Classic has attracted standing-room-only crowds for the last 10 years.

While there, Davis had the opportunity to meet Olympic track and field legends, perhaps picking up some pointers. Then, it was back home for summer track, and on to Florida State University this month — on a full scholarship.

So how did all this start? For Davis, it started late. Although the majority of runners start to get serious about the sport around the age of 8, Davis began running less than four years ago as a hobby.

“It was just going to be something I could play around with,” she recalled.

But coaches quickly took notice.

“I feel that’s why a lot of people are interested in me,” Davis said. “I stepped into the field at an older age, and it’s going really good for me — better than it normally should.”

Davis was running for Emerald Cove Middle School, just about to enter high school, when seasoned coach Derek Walker came up to her at a meet.

“As I was running, he came up to me and said, ‘I can turn you into a state champion.’ Now he’s my club coach,” Davis said.

Walker is so convinced of her potential that he is willing to move to Tallahassee. “He’s trying to move in that area so he can be involved in my future career,” Davis said.

So, what started as a hobby has turned into a quest. Davis’ personal records include the 55-meter (7.08 seconds), 60-meter (7.77 seconds), 100-meter (11.49 seconds) and the long jump (5.33 meters). With the Olympics always in the back of her mind, Davis practices three to four hours a day at Palm Beach Central, taking a break only on Wednesday.

That makes it difficult to hang out with friends.

“Many of my friends have different personalities, different aspirations and are on different routes,” she explained. “It makes it hard to mesh with them.”

Davis’ true support system is at home. “My parents are very supportive,” she said. “I probably wouldn’t be as far as I am without my parents putting me there. They keep my mind in the right place. They invest the time and the money.”

After her state win, Palm Beach Central celebrated by posting her accomplishment on its Twitter page. The Palm Beach County Sports Commission went further, inducting Davis into its Hall of Fame.

As hobbies go, track and field turned out to be a good choice for Karimah Davis.

“It’s turning out really well for me,” she said simply.

Then Davis was off… and running.

Wesley Newlands Finds Her Road  To Recovery In Wellington

With any sport comes the inherent risk of injury. In equestrian sports, which adds another, often unpredictable, living being into the equation, that risk can be particularly high. Fortunately for the thousands of equestrian athletes based in Wellington, the village is home to renowned physical therapy specialists skilled in helping riders quickly rebound from an injury

Show jumping competitor Wesley Newlands found the help she needed to do just that at Athletes Advantage, located off Pierson Road in Wellington. In September 2016, the 29-year-old Canadian was riding in Belgium, simply walking to cool down her horse after a training session, when the horse tripped and fell. As the horse went down, Newlands’ leg became stuck underneath, shattering her ankle.

At a hospital in Belgium, where the staff spoke limited English, making communication difficult, they opted to put Newlands in a cast for 12 weeks rather than perform surgery.

Upon returning home to Canada three weeks later, Newlands’ doctors advised that they would have elected to do surgery at the time of her injury. However, since her leg had already been set in a cast for three weeks, they elected to continue with the recovery plan determined in Belgium.

When Newlands arrived in Wellington in late December with plans to compete at the Winter Equestrian Festival, her ankle had been non-weight-bearing for months. Despite the removal of the cast after 12 weeks, she was still experiencing several problems with her foot.

“My foot was turning purple, and I was having a lot of swelling,” Newlands explained. “I couldn’t really walk.”

That’s where Wellington-based experts Dr. Nicholas Sama and Ed Smith of Athletes Advantage came into play. Sama, an orthopedic and trauma surgeon, X-rayed Newlands’ foot and recommended that she begin working with Smith and Athletes Advantage for physical therapy.

Inside the expansive warehouse space turned state-of-the-art gym and rehab facility, Smith helped Newlands regain strength and stability, as well as the ability to walk normally again, after atrophy of the foot and leg from lack of use.

“With Wesley’s situation, she had an injury that most likely should have been operated on,” said Smith, who founded Athletes Advantage 14 years ago and places a strong clinical focus on post-operative sports medicine rehabilitation. “The result of the downtime — the non-weight-bearing, casting and bracing — was so substantial that she got extremely tight, and she also experienced circulatory deficiencies because she couldn’t use the leg normally.”

Smith, a graduate of the College of Physical Therapy at the University of Florida, said Newlands developed many problems simply from not being able to use her foot.

“She ended up with Dr. Sama, a trauma surgeon here in Wellington who knows the equestrian world very well,” Smith said. “Working with him, we were able to develop at as rapid a pace as possible, but she had been non-weight-bearing for so long that the bones had actually lost density. Early on, we were concerned that the foot was going to fracture as soon as we put weight on it.”

Starting gradually, Newlands visited Athletes Advantage two to three times a week throughout the winter, resulting in returned strength and the ability to use her foot and ankle more normally. By week four of the 12-week Winter Equestrian Festival season, Newlands was back in the competition ring. By the end of March, she was able to ride and compete with all of her mounts, including Wieminka B, Geisha van Orshof, Gin Tonic and Isibel d’O.

“I was able to get back in the saddle pretty fast,” Newlands said. “I had a lot of psychological nerves when I was coming back to competition, and I’m still dealing with the worry that I’m going to hurt my leg again. I protect it a lot, but physically, I’m so much stronger.”

Newlands credits the experts in Wellington for her renewed strength and quick return to the show ring, and she is not alone with her success story. Smith has been practicing outpatient orthopedic and sports physical therapy for more than three decades, and Athletes Advantage has helped countless athletes with similar stories.

“These athletes play a sport, and we have a defined period of time that we’ve got to get them back to performance,” Smith said. “We built this place because I’ve always felt that there was a large gap between a closed-in, medical office and the sport that the athletes are returning to. So, we tried to build a place that would facilitate that transition. When they are done working with us, they are fit to return to practicing their sport.”

In doing so, Smith developed a unique niche. “We have enough space and enough variety at our facility that we can take people from a day after surgery all the way back to being strong enough to return to their sport,” he said.

For Newlands, that has certainly proven to be the case. Thanks to the rehab she underwent, she is spending the summer competing at show jumping events throughout Europe under the tutelage of 2008 Olympic gold medalist and Wellington resident Eric Lamaze.

As she continues to regain full strength and function of her ankle, Newlands’ short-term goal is to earn a place on the Canadian show jumping team and, “to be the best rider that I can be.”