State title coach resigns
Windermere Prep boys basketball coach
who led the Lakers to a 2016 state championship, has resigned to take a job with KSA Events, an Orlando-based company that puts on high school sport events across the country and in Puerto Rico. “The last year or two I’ve been starting to get other opportunities, some out of coaching, some in coaching,” Wilson said Wednesday morning.
“I thought this was something that would be fun, a good opportunity for me to do something I would enjoy and do well. I’m not leaving sports. I’m staying in my realm.”
Wilson said he met with his returning players to notify them of his resignation this week and will work with Windermere Prep to post the opening.
“I think a lot of people are going to want this job,” Wilson said. “It’s a great school, a lot of great possibilities.”
The Lakers advanced to region play in each of the past six seasons — including the 27-5 Class 3A state title season of 2015-16.
Windermere Prep went 13-15 this season for its first losing record since Wilson’s first year on the job in 2009-10. The Lakers were district runners-up to Lake Highland Prep, then lost a region quarterfinal against eventual 5A state runner-up Ocala Trinity Catholic.
Wilson, a native of Kentucky who played basketball at Lexington Catholic and the University of New Orleans, was head coach at Windermere Prep for nine seasons. He coached for four years prior to that in Louisiana.
“I did feel a little burned out from the stress and the frustrations that can come with coaching and teaching at the high school level,” he said. Two seniors for state champ Leesburg,
and were among the five players selected to the Class 6A All-State boys basketball first team.
Lake Highland Prep senior was a second team 5A All-State pick on a list chosen by Source Hoops and the Florida Association of Basketball Coaches.
Today’s Class 4A, Region 1 track and field meet has long been labeled “the region of death” because it was the end of the run for many athletes who might have qualified for the state meet if they resided in one of Florida’s other three big-school regions.
But thanks to a Florida High School Athletic Association rules change, athletes who would have been left home as fifth, sixth and even lower-place region finishers in years past have a chance to qualify for next week’s FHSAA finals.
In addition to advancing the top four finishers in each region final, the FHSAA will also advance up to eight additional qualifiers per event to the state meet, which will be held Friday-Saturday (May 4-5) at UNF in Jacksonville. The at-large berths are based on region times and field event marks.
No more than eight at-large slots will be filled, for a maximum of 24 entrants per state meet event.
“This has been proposed for years,” said Winter Park girls coach
who sits on the FHSAA’s track and field advisory committee. “I think it’s going to really raise the level of competition because some kids who might not have thought they had a chance before are thinking, ‘Wow, I could make state.’ ”
Girls in Region 1 have five of the top seven Class 4A times in the 3,200-meter run. Lake Mary freshman and seniors of Winter Park and of Dr. Phillips rank 1-2-3 on that list with Winter Springs sophomore and Spruce Creek senior not far behind. In the old format at least one of them would not make state.
It’s similar in the girls 4x800 relay, where five Central Florida schools rank in the top seven.
“I think in certain events we could have a girl finish in 10th place and maybe go to state out of our region,” McWilliams said.
It means more heats at the state meet and some schedule changes. Prelims were added for the 4x400 relay.