New Lenox resident Zach Gorecki, who is studying Occupational Safety at the University of Wisconsin-Whitewater, is competing on the men’s wheelchair basketball team for the 2024-25 season.
The UW-Whitewater men’s wheelchair basketball program is a club sport that competes nationally. The Warhawks have won 14 national championships since 1982, most recently in 2024, plus a three-peat in 2014, 2015, and 2016.
Many of the program’s alumni are Paralympic medalists, including five who claimed gold as part of Team USA at the Paris 2024 Paralympic Games. Current UW-Whitewater Coach Jake Williams, a former Warhawk student-athlete, was among the alums who competed in Paris. Current Warhawk A.J. Fitzpatrick was also a member of Team USA.
Fitzpatrick and freshman Zach Gorecki were among 20 athletes selected to the Team USA Men’s Under-23 Wheelchair Basketball Team Pool earlier this month. Fitzpatrick, a first team National Wheelchair Basketball Association All-American last season, returns to lead the Warhawks in their NWBA national title defense.
UW-Whitewater started competition October 4-6 at the Wolverine Invitational in Port Huron, Michigan, then hosted its annual home tournament Friday-Saturday, November 22-23, at the Williams Center. For more information on this year’s team, visit uww.edu/rec-sports.