Like most players transitioning to the NEPSAC, there were growing pains for Preston Edmead in his first season with Williston Northampton last year. The talent was always there for the 6-foot guard who had moved from Deer Park High School in New York, but he had to learn. Important lessons defined his junior campaign.
Then this season, like the team around him, it all came together for the Hofstra commit.
Edmead’s individual growth hit its apex simultaneously with a team ready to make noise. The result was a storybook winter at Williston Northampton, where the Wildcats dominated en route to the Class A championship and Edmead took his game to the next level in every area, earning him our inaugural Class A Boys Player of the Year.
“Sometimes last year, I think he wanted to win so badly that he would say, ‘All right, I’m going to do this,’ and try to do it on his own at times,” Williston head coach Ben Farmer said. “Compared to this year, he really let go of that because he understood he couldn’t do it on his own. It’s not like last year he had bad intentions, he just didn’t really, I think, know how to do it. This year, he really grew in that area. He was willing to do whatever it took to win.”
Edmead improved across the board in his breakout season as he averaged 22 points, five assists and four rebounds per game and took home Class A tournament MVP honors. But the numbers and accolades only begin to tell the story. He evolved as a leader, raising his voice more and building trust with his talented teammates. His competitiveness showed in the best ways, too; he made the extra hustle plays, he didn’t force shots and made the right reads. He became the perfect leader to push Williston to the promised land.
Edmead set the tone in the season opener with a big game in a win over Class AAA opponent Bridgton, and he and his teammates never looked back after. Williston lost just once – to Class AA champion Worcester Academy – en route to the championship.
“We never got satisfied,” Edmead said. “This season was totally different. … We were all focused on the main goal. We never got too comfortable. That was our main thing. We knew we had a good record, but we never got comfortable. We were always like, championship, championship, championship. And we did that.”
Edmead certainly did his part. Defensively, he felt like he grew as part of a strong defensive unit; Farmer said he was more patient as an on-ball defender; effectively picking and choosing when to be aggressive. His playmaking improved with talented teammates like Ashton Reynolds, Ricardo Nieves, Ore Odutayo and Kyle Seltzer to spray the ball to and relieve pressure. His most impressive development? It might be his shot-making ability.
Before moving to Williston, Edmead described himself as a “solid” shooter, but that defenses would back off of him and almost dare him to shoot. Over the last two summers, he made it a focal point of his growth. Daily, early-morning workouts with his father or trainer Jerry Powell always included shooting drills or getting tons of shots up. This season, the work paid off. He pulled up with confidence from almost anywhere, which made it easier for him to drive into the paint and create for his teammates. He balanced his floor game perfectly, and his confidence carried Williston to the title.
“I knew that had to be a big part of my game and it helped me so much, getting in the gym,” Edmead said. “It’s translated well because this season, I could stretch the defense in a bunch of different ways. Like, hit shots from all the way out there and then they would have to guard up closer. … Once I know my shot feels good, I feel like I’m at the top of my game.”
Edmead’s environment was beneficial, too. He credited Farmer and the coaching staff for making him feel at home at Williston – “I’m big on confidence,” he said – and empowering him. He certainly rewarded their faith in the biggest moments. He scored 31 points in the Wildcats’ first-round win over St. Paul’s and came up big in a close semifinal win over Choate before erupting for 26 points – including six triples – in the clincher.
“I think his confidence definitely has grown in that area just because of the work he puts in,” Farmer said. “And it was his second year in the NEPSAC, he knew the work that he put in, so he earned the right to take and make those shots. And that’s also his competitiveness. He believes in himself, and we believed in him, so I think it all came together and it was why he was able to shoot the ball as well as he did and in those moments. Those shots that he made, especially in the final week (were) just big-time shots when we needed them.”
Edmead couldn’t have asked for a better final season.
“I’m super proud,” he said. “It’s cool to see that all this hard work paid off. I wouldn’t trade it for nothing because this was my senior year, I knew coming in to this, it’s my senior year, I don’t want to lose. I want to win everything I can, I want to win as many games as I can. It’s a really good moment because I set out a goal early in the year and I accomplished it.”
