By Kyle Coppola
Wildwood Girls Basketball Remains Undefeated, Ranked #1 In Class
Wildwood, Fla. — The Wildwood Middle High School girls basketball team is on a mission. With a flawless 12-0 record, the Wildcats have solidified their place as the No. 1-ranked team in the state in Class Rural and the top-ranked program in Sumter County. They’ve also cracked the top ten among all classifications in Florida. This year, they’re determined to bring a state championship back to Wildwood after coming up short in recent years.
(Junior Adejah Corbin drives to the lane. She’s been one of many Wildwood players having a fantastic season.)
This team has earned comparisons to some of the greatest squads in Wildwood’s storied history, thanks in large part to the leadership of senior Trinidy Harris. A cornerstone of the program’s success, Harris has been nothing short of dominant in her final high school season, averaging 17.4 points per game. A veteran of deep postseason runs, Harris has reached the FHSAA State Semifinals three times and played in the State Finals twice, coming heartbreakingly close to a title both times.
“I’ve been here before, and I know what it takes to get to the Finals,” Harris said. “This year, it’s all about finishing the job. We’ve got the team, the talent, and the drive to bring the championship home to Wildwood.”
(Captain Trinidy Harris has been one of the great stories at Wildwood in recent years. She looks to finish her final chapter at Wildwood with a state championship. That’s the only missing piece in her storied high school career.)
Harris is far from alone in this pursuit. Freshman phenom Zoey Brown has been a revelation, averaging 15 points per game in her third varsity season. The rising star, who first joined the team as a seventh grader, is quickly maturing into one of the top guards in the state, providing the perfect complement to Harris’s veteran presence.
“She’s an incredible talent,” said head coach Vincent Brown. “Her growth on the court this season has been phenomenal, and she’s only scratching the surface of her potential.”
Coach Brown, the architect of Wildwood lady Wildcat basketball has built a team that blends experienced veterans with rising young stars. His Wildcats are one of the fastest teams in Florida, operating with a precision and energy that has made them a nightmare for opponents.
(Coach Brown “left” looks on during a recent game against MDCA. His team is ranked #1 in Class Rural and #10 in the state of Florida.)
“When you watch this team play, it’s like a well-oiled machine,” Brown said. “We’ve been focused all season on taking it one game at a time, but we know the ultimate goal is to finish the season in Lakeland with a championship trophy.”
With the postseason looming, the Wildcats are confident they have the pieces to make history. For Harris, Brown, and the rest of the team, anything less than a state title will feel like a missed opportunity this season. I am very excited to see what this team can do come tournament time. This is a feel good story and I am so proud that we have a team like this in our area that’s proving to all of Florida why Sumter and Lake County produce some of the top talent year after year.
The road to Lakeland won’t be easy, but Wildwood’s combination of speed, skill, and determination has made them the team to beat this year.
Kyle Coppola was born in Newton, Massachusetts and received his Bachelor of Fine Arts in Communications from Curry College in 2016. After traveling to Florida on a family vacation, he decided he could not get enough of the warm weather and made the move from snowy Massachusetts to central Florida 8 years ago.
For the last decade Kyle has gained valuable experience in social media content creation, marketing and sales, writing, video production, sports announcing and even broadcasting for local radio stations, such as FM 102.9 in The Villages and FM 91.5 in Massachusetts. Every year he volunteers at The Villages Charter High School as a play-by-play sports announcer for the football games as well as a public address announcer for the basketball games, including the annual Battle at The Villages Tournament.
Outside the office Kyle is a husband and father to two beautiful girls along with their cat. In his spare time he likes to spend time with his family, travel, play golf and swim. He is also a huge sports junkie and even bigger motorsports fan and loves to attend racing events when he can.
