Pioneering Athletics Coach To Retire
Delores Colton, a pioneer in women’s athletics at The Benjamin School, is retiring after 44 years of coaching. Colton became the first female coach at Benjamin after Mr. Benjamin hired her in 1974 to assist him with swimming and track meets.
“Delores Colton is certainly one-of-a-kind,” said Dr. Jeanmarie Burigo (Connor) ‘97, who played volleyball for Colton. “She led us to two state championships in ‘95 and ‘96. Coach Colton instilled a sense of determination and drive in all of us and made us believe in ourselves on and off the court!”
During her time at TBS, Colton has coached volleyball, girls soccer, cheerleading and girls and boys tennis. In 2017 she retired as the head varsity coach for girls soccer and volleyball, but continued on as the girls and boys tennis coach. Under her tenure, the girls’ volleyball team took home 411 wins. Colton’s teams have won a combined 43 district titles, 18 regional championships and many final four or state championship appearances. Six of her tennis athletes went on to win individual state championships.
Colton has coached many players who have gone on to play at the college level for Ivy Leagues and Top Tier schools. She has received “Coach Of The Year” awards from both The Palm Beach Post and Sun Sentinel for volleyball, soccer and boys and girls tennis. In 2010, Colton was inducted into the Palm Beach County Sports Hall of Fame.
“Delores Colton has been an incredible coach and mentor at The Benjamin School for over the last 40 years. Her records as coach of volleyball, tennis and soccer are truly remarkable, but most importantly she has been a fantastic mentor to all her student-athletes. The Benjamin School and athletic department benefited tremendously having her lead these teams,” said athletic director Ryan Smith ‘93.
Colton leaves some big tennis shoes for the new coaches to fill. Hugo Armando will assume the role of Director of Tennis and Head Girls Tennis Coach for The Benjamin School. Armando, a former professional tennis player, worked as a USTA National Coach for player development before co-founding his own tennis academy. Dr. Benjamin Harper, upper school Social Studies teacher, will serve as the new Head Boys Tennis Coach. Harper takes the helm after five years of coaching experience at the varsity level in multiple sports. He is an active member of Florida’s USTA tournament network.
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11000 Ellison Wilson RoadNorth Palm Beach, FL 33408
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A premier PK3 - Grade 12 independent, coeducational day school with campuses in North Palm Beach and Palm Beach Gardens. Since 1960, The Benjamin School has provided a challenging college preparatory education to a diverse student body in a structured, nurturing community environment.