The next girls varsity basketball coach at Wayland Union High School will be a familiar face to Wildcat fans, as Weston Hudson was  selected to take over the girls’ hoops program.

Hudson, an all-state selection in 2010 for Wayland High School and All-American at Cornerstone University in 2014, is the son of boys’ varsity coach Mike Hudson. He succeeds Marty Howard, who decided last month to retire after six seasons.

Hudson is perhaps best remembered as a four-year starter on the Wayland varsity and he was point guard and leading scorer for a Wildcat team that went 23-0 until finally losing in the Class A regionals.

After he graduated, he went on to star at Cornerstone, earning All-American accolades in the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics at the end of the 2013-14 season. Since then he has been an assistant at Cornerstone.

He returned to coach the Wayland boys’ team for a Saturday game against Stevensville Lakeshore while his grandmother was seriously ill, freeing up his father and the rest of the family to visit her in a Hospice facility. His grandfather, Harry Hudson, also was a standout at Wayland for the state finalist team and then a longtime successful head coach at Wyoming Rogers.

Incidentally, Wayland defeated Lakeshore by 15 points, beating a team that went on to the state finals in Class B.

His sister, Presley, was the Freshman of the Year at Central Michigan University and his younger brother, Avery, will be a senior on the Wildcat boys’ varsity next winter.

Hudson also earned other accolades in college as a player:

• 2013-14 Conference Player of the Year
• 2010-11 Eagles, National Champions
• Fifth leading scorer in Cornerstone University history
• Three-time first team selection on the all-WHAC (Wolverine-Hoosier Conference).

Wayland High School Athletic Director Justin Wilson said, “Wes is excited to join the high school coaching ranks and continue the high standard of basketball excellence at Wayland Union High School.”

His task will be daunting because the team lost six seniors from last year to graduation, including Ali Cutler, Ali Martus, Hope Dollarhide, Sydney Ritz, Karli Warning and McKenzie Kaspar.

PHOTO: An action shot of Wes Hudson from his playing days at Cornerstone University.