Ty Henke, a 6-foot-5-inch wing from Mt. Ararat High School in Topsham, is among seven recruits set to join the men’s basketball team at Husson University in Bangor beginning with the 2022-23 season.
The Eagles also reached into the Southeast, Midwest and West Coast to add to their roster, with the reigning North Atlantic Conference champions also adding Eric Ahlers, a 6-foot-5 wing from Pinellas Park, Florida; 6-foot guard Bryce Tackett from Shady Point, Oklahoma; Luke Cramer, a 6-6 forward from Tehachapi, California; DJ Woods, a 6-foot guard from Punta Gorda, Florida; 6-3 guard Johnny Willington from Clearwater, Florida; and Gil Matondo,a 6-foot-5 wing from Johns Creek, Georgia.
Henke was a three-year starter and captain at Mt. Ararat who averaged 16.5 points, 5.5 rebounds and 2.3 assists per game for the Eagles this past season.
New England Recruiting report ranked Henke as fifth in the state’s 2022 high school basketball class and 19th overall with Maine prep school players included.
“Ty is one of the best seniors in the state, and we are pleased he is joining our program. He has a very good skill set and is a good athlete,” Husson head coach Warren Caruso said. “Ty is set to have a very good college career with his athletic ability, strong academic success, and a great mindset to be ready to play in college.”
Henke also is a standout golfer at Mt. Ararat. He was part of the Eagles’ 2018 and 2019 state championship teams, and this past season was named to the All-Kennebec Valley Athletic Conference Class A first team and finished tied for fourth place at the Class A state championships.
Ahlers played at Admiral Farragut High School, which finished 11-9 this year and won its district title before losing in the regionals. Ahlers averaged 12 points and five rebounds per game while shooting 38 percent from beyond the 3-point arc and 76 percent from the free-throw line.
Tackett averaged 18.3 points, six assists, five rebounds and 2.6 steals per game last winter for a Panama High School team that finished 22-6. Tackett shot 52 percent from the field and 44 percent from beyond the 3-point line and finished his career with 1,596 points.
Tackett was twice named conference player of the year and first-team All-Leflore County while at Panama High School. He was selected to the Oklahoma Secondary School Activities Association Class 2A all-state team as well as being named to the Native American all-state team and was honorable mention Oklahoma all-state.
Cramer averaged 13.5 points, a team-leading 7.5 rebounds and 3.2 assists per game this season while serving as captain for Paraclete High School, which finished 15-10.
Woods earned team most valuable player honors as a senior captain at Charlotte High School after averaging 15.0 points, 2.0 rebounds, 2.0 assists and 1.7 steals per contest. Woods shot 39 percent from behind the 3-point arc and won the Riverview Holiday Classic 3-point shooting contest while representing the Fighting Tarpon, who finished the winter with a 19-10 record.
Woods was one of three finalists for the Sun Prep Boys Basketball Player of the Year award as well as a finalist for Southwest Florida Association of Basketball Coaches Player of the Year honors. He was named to the All-Gulf Coast Coaches Alliance first team.
Willingham played last season at Countryside High School, which finished 16-7 and advanced to the Pinellas County championship game. Willingham was named to the All-Pinellas County first team after leading his squad with 16.3 points per game while adding four rebounds and three steals per contest.
Matondo was a three-year starter for Chattahoochee High School, which won Georgia’s Class A state championship in 2020. He averaged 11 points, a team-leading 7.8 rebounds, 2.1 assists and one blocked shot per game this past winter as his team finished 16-13 and qualified for the state tournament.
