In his 15 years of coaching Land O’ Lakes Little League, Daniel Broderick can’t recall the last time one of its youth baseball teams won a state title. “I’ve been coaching a long time, and I’ve never been a state champion,” Broderick said, during a recent interview. The last time a Land O’ Lakes Little League baseball team won a state championship was in 2002, league officials … [Read more...]
Lexi Kilfoyl named Florida’s best — again
June 19, 2019 By
One of area’s most dominant softball players ever has again proved she’s tops in the entire Sunshine State. Academy at the Lakes (AATL) senior pitcher Lexi Kilfoyl has been named 2019 Gatorade Florida Softball Player of the Year, given to the state’s best softball player, regardless of classification. When it comes to receiving the notable distinction, the Wildcats star is on familiar … [Read more...]
Stephenson steps down
June 19, 2019 By
As Lexi Kilfoyl gears up for the college ranks, the Wildcats softball program will take on even more of a new look next season, as Head Coach Diane Stephenson, who was named Florida Dairy Farmers 2019 Class 2A Coach of the Year, steps away from the program to accept a job at St. Petersburg’s Admiral Farragut Academy. Stephenson took over the Wildcats program in 2017 after a lengthy Division I … [Read more...]
Land O’ Lakes Athletics Hall of Fame adds members
June 12, 2019 By
The Land O’ Lakes Gators Athletics Foundation recently added five new members to the school’s athletics Hall of Fame, during a dinner ceremony. The inductees for the 2019 class were: Stacy Bishop, a record-setting girls soccer player from 1999 to 2003; Jerry Brewster, a state qualifying wrestler and team MVP in 1986; John Childers III, an All-Conference basketball standout in the mid 1980s; … [Read more...]
Hockey team formed for Land O’ Lakes High
May 29, 2019 By
It all started as an idea between two dads who just wanted the best for their hockey-playing sons: What if we started our own hockey team at Land O’ Lakes High School? After long months of conversations, fundraising and coordination, Joshua Whitman and Bill O’ Connor’s theoretical question became a reality. This coming fall, the Land O’ Lakes High School hockey club will begin its first … [Read more...]
Sunlake girls weightlifting coach earns statewide honor
May 22, 2019 By
In her decade-plus long tenure as the Sunlake High girls weightlifting coach, Denise Garcia has racked up her fair share of achievements. Some of the biggest came this year alone. Back in February, Garcia guided the Seahawks to the Florida High School Athletic Association (FHSAA) Class 2A state championship — marking the program’s first-ever team weightlifting title. The veteran coach … [Read more...]
AATL tops Land O’ Lakes in postseason tune-up
May 8, 2019 By
Two of the state’s top softball players matched up for the final time against one another in high school uniforms when Academy at the Lakes hosted Land O’ Lakes in a recent non-district game at Starkey Ranch District Park. In the latest matchup between crosstown foes, the Wildcats and senior ace pitcher Lexi Kilfoyl bested the Gators and their senior star pitcher, Callie Turner, en route to … [Read more...]
Locals shine at boys weightlifting
May 1, 2019 By
A handful of locals turned in top-notch performances at the 2019 Florida High School Athletic Association (FHSAA) boys weightlifting state championships, held last month in Panama City. Standouts included Sunlake High School seniors Caleb Huff and Victor Velez, who each won a gold medal in Class 2A. Huff won in the 119-pound division and Velez won in the 129-pound division. Huff … [Read more...]
Imagine School captures girls soccer title
April 17, 2019 By
Caidee Sumner and Bella Wood were determined to end their middle school soccer careers on a high note. The eighth-grade team co-captains did just that — leading the Imagine School of Land O’ Lakes Dragons to the 2019 Tampa Charter Athletic League (TCAL) girls soccer championship title. “It’s our last year here and we wanted to go out as a champion,” Wood said. The Dragons (9-2) entered … [Read more...]
Sunlake sweeps conference track championships
April 10, 2019 By
For the second straight year, the Sunlake High track and field program reigned supreme at the Sunshine Athletic Conference (SAC) Eastside championship meet, as its boys and girls teams earned first-place overall finishes to best six other east Pasco high schools. The Sunlake boys team tallied 189 points, comfortably ahead of second place Wiregrass Ranch (101) and third place Land O’ Lakes … [Read more...]
