Aiden Soumas-Fleetwood

It’s been 33 years since Fleetwood won a District 3 championship in boys basketball. The (22-3) Tigers get a shot at gold on Thursday afternoon at the Giant Center. They face #1 seed Berks Catholic in the District 3-4A Final at 12:45pm. “That was our goal this year. It’s honestly a dream come true going to Hershey and playing on that big stage,” said Aiden Soumas. Fleetwood won the Division 3 title in the Berks Conference for the second straight season. The Tigers are averaging 62 points and allowing just 42 per game. No team from Berks County is giving up fewer points. “We’re all friends off the court too so that helps a lot. We’re never getting down on ourselves or each other,” added Soumas. The junior guard, who also plays baseball and golf, provides 14 points a night. He’s a two-time, all-division selection. Fleetwood is led by Jake Karnish, the school’s all-time leading scorer with 1,378 points. The 6’2 senior was voted to the all-county team for the second consecutive year. “He’s a great teammate too, not just a player. He’s a great scorer. He distributes the ball well [and] rebounds. He can really do everything,” noted Soumas. Junior guard Nate Herb chips in with 9 ppg. 6’3 senior forward Braden Williams has splashed a team-high 34 shots from beyond the arc. Hunter Svoboda, a 6’7 junior center, finished with a career-high 15 points in the District 3 semifinals. The second-seeded Tigers took apart third-seeded Littlestown 58-37 on Monday. Soumas knows that they’re in for a tougher challenge against the (22-4) Saints. He replied, “They’re gonna be very athletic. They’ve played on the bigger stage a lot more than we have. We always gotta believe in our team…hopefully come out with the win.” We also discussed his favorite TV show, musical artists, and teachers. Since he’s making a trip to “Chocolate Town”, I asked Soumas about his top choice when it comes to candy. What would it mean to return to Fleetwood with a gold medal? “It would be crazy…winning that would be an insane feeling,” said Soumas.