“You’d better watch out. You better not pout.
You better not cry. I’m telling you why.
Presley Hudson’s coming to town.”
Indeed, Wayland’s best-e
ver female basketball player will be in a Central Michigan uniform to play against Western Michigan University at 2 p.m. Saturday in Kalamazoo.
This “homecoming” of sorts reminded me that Wayland really does have two families that exemplify a sort of athletic royalty. Two families have dominated the history of local sports.
I speak of the families Ritz and Hudson.
The Ritzes go very deep into their ranks, with their fame reaching across the United States. The most obvious is Jessica Merchant, daughter of the former Deb Ritz, who was an All-America softball player at the University of Michigan and a huge part of the NCAA championship team.
But Jessica has a lot of company, notably sister Brittini, who also was a Miss Softball Michigan honoree who played at CMU, Macy Merchant, all-MAC softball selection for CMU, and volleyball and softball coach Nicki Cardosa, formerly Nicki Merchant.
And Nicki is assistant coach for Cheri Ritz, who has two state championship teams to her credit.
And we cant forget Coralie Ritz Miller, another all-stater, in basketball, and first WHS girls’ varsity basketball coach after the legendary Zack Moushegian.
Sydney Ritz is the latest, being an all-conference volleyball player who will move on to the college ranks at Spring Arbor next fall.
What makes the Hudsons extraordinary is that essentially they have been focusing one just one sport — basketball.
Harry Hudson, a 1955 WHS grad who played on that state Class C finalist team with Phil Regan, was one of the earliest. But Gordon Hudson came along in basketball in the mid-1960s.
Though Harry’s youngest son, Mike, starred at Wyoming Rogers, he came to Wayland a couple of decades ago to become the winningest Wildcat hoops coach ever and still going strong. And joining the most recent parade of Wayland Hudsons are his children.
Westin was an all-stater for Wayland’s only team ever to go 20-0 during the regular season and he was an NAIA All-American at Cornerstone after that.
Then came Presley, all-state hoops star and Miss Basketball runner-up last winter and now starting guard and leading scorer for the CMU women as a freshman.
Junior Avery Hudson is the starting point guard on the varsity and Ternor, a freshman, is on the junior varsity.
The Ritz and Hudson families indeed have given us many quality athletes and coaches over six decades. You cannot talk about the history of Wayland High School sports without mentioning them and their contributions.
PHOTO: Presley Hudson (3) and her Central Michigan teammates will be in Kalamazoo Saturday afternoon.
