Athletes from Proviso East High School stole the show at the fourth annual Night of Champions on June 20.
Night of Champions honors the achievements of elite high school teams, athletes and coaches from Proviso East, Oak Park and River Forest (OPRF), Fenwick, Riverside-Brookfield, Lyons Township and Nazareth Academy. Approximately 400 guests packed the Dominican University auditorium, receiving awards ranging from Most Inspirational to Coach of the Year, and listening to banter from Emery Lehman, a two-time Olympic speed skater and OPRF alumnus.
Proviso East’s track and field star Moses Biosah won Male Athlete of the Year, and Janet Buenrostro won Female Athlete of the Year for her tennis game. The Pirates’ tradition-rich boys and girls basketball teams came away big winners as well, winning Female and Male Teams of the Year, respectively.
Biosah, a Forest Park resident by way of Nigeria, finished first in three races at the Pirates Midwest Classic and captured two more races at the Proviso East Sectional, among many other accolades all season. He also finished fifth in the 400-meter dash at the state track meet.
“I absolutely loved it,” Biosah said about Night of Champions. “It was a great experience. I’m honored they thought about me. I also loved the part about coaches getting recognition.”
As a freshman, Buenrostro won 16 of 19 matches and became the first female to qualify for the state tournament in school history.
“I really enjoy tennis and the plan is to play until I can’t,” Buenrosto told the Forest Park Review in October 2017.
Proviso East’s boys basketball team is coached by alumnus and former NBA player Donnie Boyce, and went 17-8 this season with notable wins over rivals Proviso West, New Trier, St. Joseph and St. Patrick. In the Class 4A playoffs, the Pirates beat highly regarded Fenwick 83-70 as Trevor Moore scored 35 points with Quinlan Bennett and Jordan Morris as key contributors.
On the girls’ side, head coach Ezra PridGeon and star players Keimari Rimmer, Nachelle Rouse and Kyla Richardson powered the Pirates to a 26-3 record, which included 13 and 12-game winning streaks.
Boyce and PridGeon each accepted an award on his team’s behalf at Night of Champions.
