Wardlaw+Hartridge School Athletic Director Mike Romeo announced that Cory Clemetson has been named as the new head coach of the boys’ basketball program.
Clemetson comes to W+H from Sage Ridge School, a small private independent school in Reno, Nevada, primarily known for academics with a total enrollment of approximately 70 students in the Upper School. Under Clemetson’s two-year tenure as coach, Sage Ridge achieved its most successful basketball seasons in school history. The school won back-to-back Nevada 1A West regular season titles, captured one regional championship and appeared in two consecutive state tournaments. Sage Ridge also defeated during its 2022-2023 season several schools with much higher enrollment classifications thereby earning Sage Ridge the reputation as one of the top basketball programs in the region regardless of division.
“We are very proud to announce that Cory Clemetson will be our new boys’ basketball coach,” Romeo said. “Coach Clemetson is exactly what we were looking for to lead our program. What Cory and his coaching staff were able to achieve in such a short amount of time at a small independent school like Sage Ridge was simply incredible.”
Romeo added, “All of the research and information we had on Cory clearly indicated that he was the perfect person to help build a foundation and take our program to a higher level. With his 30 years of experience in the world of athletics and business, he understands the vision and excellence we want to embody at Wardlaw+Hartridge with all of our student-athletes both on and off the court and he will be a great mentor to our kids and a strong addition to our coaching staff.”
“I could not be more excited to be the new boys’ basketball coach at Wardlaw+Hartridge,” Clemetson said. “It is an honor and a privilege to coach at such a prestigious school, and I want to personally thank Head of School Dr. Corinna Crafton and Mike Romeo for this incredible opportunity. Wardlaw+Hartridge has a such rich tradition as a school known for its pioneering thinking, that is consistently ranked as a top 100 academic institution in the United States, and that produces so many well-rounded and quality student-athletes. I know my family and I, and especially my wife Deb, who grew up in New Jersey, are excited to be coming home and we are honored to have our family be a part of the Wardlaw+Hartridge family.”
Clemetson, who played Division I college basketball at the University of the Pacific and has coached a top-tier Nevada-based AAU club team, comes off the 2022-2023 season where he led Sage Ridge to its most wins in school history and with the league MVP and two first team all-league players on its roster. The team was also named the 2023 Nevada Boys Basketball 1A Academic State Champion. Finally, with the team’s success both on and off of the court, Clemetson was named the 2023 Nevada State 1A West Coach of the Year.
Clemetson further stated his excitement to be a part of New Jersey high school basketball: “New Jersey is known across the country for producing both outstanding high school basketball coaches and players. It will be exciting to be a part of such an amazing basketball environment here. The teams that I have coached in the past have always been fundamentally sound, gave 100% on the floor, and demonstrated a winning spirit, all while maintaining very high academic standards off the court. I look forward to continuing that mindset and seeing that evolve even further at Wardlaw+Hartridge in the years to come.”
“This is a huge day for Wardlaw+Hartridge basketball,” Romeo added. “I am excited for Coach Clemetson and his team to get to work as we look to enhance the profile of our athletics program by building a consistent and quality basketball program that will attract families and players from across the state of New Jersey and wider area.”