Special to The Laker/Lutz News

By Kyle LoJacono

North Hillsborough County is quickly becoming a power in high school girls soccer and the rest of the state is starting to take notice.

Steinbrenner High girls soccer players Marley Opila and Alexis Bredeau recently returned home after a week of training with the Florida Olympic Developmental Team. They were joined by future Warriors Danielle Eule and Stephanie Hirsch, giving the new school four of the 30 girls on the team.

The top 30 girls born in 1995 were selected to the state team. The training was at the University of Montevallo in Alabama with other teams from the southeastern United States.

“There was a lot of good competition,” Bredeau said. “I got to see how other people play and learn from different coaches who see other things on the field. The other players were really good and it really pushed me to do my best. It was a good little trip I had.”

Opila was amazed by how talented the other players were.

“It was fun to get to play against players from other states,” Opila said. “The talent level was incredible. I couldn’t believe how good some of the players were. It was a great experience.”

Both Opila and Bredeau were in Alabama for five days and returned July 10. The training with the team also included two weekends in Auburndale.

Neither of the two was selected to the Southeast Regional team, but that has not dampened their spirits.

“I want to play professional soccer, so this was a great way to play against some of the best players,” Opila said. “I’ll be able to use the things I’ve learned for years and it (has made) me and Alexis better.”

Bredeau also said she wants to play soccer professionally. Opila and Bredeau will be sophomores next season.

Joining the two was incoming freshman Hirsch and Eule, sophomore, has transferred from Alonso High for academic reasons, according to Warriors coach Teresa Patterson.

“It’s really exciting to have that many athletes on our team,” Patterson said. “They’re all naturally gifted soccer players, but they are some of the hardest workers too. It’s basically the highest level for a player at their age and it speaks for what our program has been able to do in just a year.”

Patterson has been coaching soccer for about 20 years and said she has had a few athletes make such state teams in the past. The Florida team is part of the feeder system for the U.S. women’s national team.

“It’s something special and they should be very proud, all four of them,” Patterson said. “They got to play with the best girls their age and it’ll help them in the future. I’m looking forward to what we can do next season and all four players can try out for the squad again next season.”

Steinbrenner opened last fall and the team went 17-1-2, winning the Class 4A, District 10 championship. It was the second district title in Warriors sports history and the young squad also had the first playoff win by defeating Palmetto High. The season did not end the way the Warriors wanted as their first loss ended their season when they fell to Lakewood Ranch High.

Both girls play midfield and had more than 15 goals and assists in the Warriors’ initial season. Bredeau had the second most goals with 23 and added 17 assists. Opila was tied for the second most assists with 17 and also contributed 16 goals.

“That loss has really made me work harder this summer,” Bredeau said. “I’ve been running five miles a day so that I can go the whole game without stopping … I think we’re going to be tough to beat because now we have another year of experience and more good players coming in. We want to win districts again, get to states and win the first state championship in Steinbrenner High School history.”

Three in a row for Land O’ Lakes Majors

The Land O’ Lakes Majors baseball team recently won the Florida District 25 championship for the third year in a row. The team now moves on to the sectional tournament.

The team is made up of all stars from the Land O’ Lakes Little League major division.

Back row from left are coach Ricky Ware, Frankie Vinas, coach Tim Henderson, Kirby Osborn, Blake Field, Alex Reynolds and coach Jim Corning.

Front row from left are Logan Henderson, Kyle Sheffield, Zach Ware, Jonny Corning and Jacob Beckwith. Jeffrey Kriegl is also on the team, but not pictured.

Former Land O’ Lakes QB throws first Arena League touchdown

By Kyle LoJacono

A few years ago Drew Weatherford was leading the Land O’ Lakes High Gators to numerous touchdown drives on Friday nights, but his most recent score was different for him.

That latest touchdown was his first as a professional football player with the Tampa Bay Storm of the Arena Football League. The score came on a 24-yard pass to Hank Edwards in a 78-39 win over Bossier-Shreveport June 25.

“I’m just loving the opportunity to play,” Weatherford said. “Ever since I was little I wanted to play professional football. I didn’t think it would be in arena football, but it’s still great to be able to play. I mean, they pay me to play football.”

It is not Weatherford’s only job as he works full-time with Imperium Development, which is currently building a large renewable energy facility in Dover. After working all day he drives to practice to live out his football dreams.

“He certainly does whatever he can to promote the sport while helping us on the field and holding down a full-time job,” said Storm head coach Tim Marcum. “We see that with his willingness to play special teams while also developing into a top-notch quarterback in this league.”

Weatherford is the backup quarterback for the Storm (10-3), but also leads the team with 14 tackles on special teams, according to the team spokesman Jim Robinson.

“To be honest I just love playing football,” Weatherford said. “I always considered myself a football player first who just happened to be a quarterback.

“I’ve played quarterback since I was 12-years-old and I actually played linebacker in middle school, but I couldn’t do that in high school,” Weatherford continued. “I did get to play safety during my senior year at Land O’ Lakes. Then it was five or so years of just playing quarterback and being the one getting hit. Now I get to return the favor and hit people instead of getting hit.”

Weatherford has completed six of four passes for 64 yards and that one touchdown through the Storm’s first 13 games.

He first started playing football with the Citrus Park Bills of the Tampa Bay Youth Football League at Skyway Park near the Veterans Expressway and Tampa International Airport. Those were the same fields Weatherford’s tryouts were when he made the Storm’s roster.

Weatherford was the third of six brothers to play for the Land O’ Lakes High football team. As a senior he led the Gators to a 12-1 record with 2,639 passing yards and 20 scores.

“My high school experience couldn’t have been better,” Weatherford said. “I was the water boy for the team when I was little and I got to play with my older brother Sam when I was a freshman. Playing at Land O’ Lakes is something I’ll never forget.”

Weatherford’s younger brother, Stevie, is the Gators current starting quarterback and will be a senior next season.

“I wasn’t at the game he threw the touchdown, but I got to see it on TV and I was very happy to see him,” Stevie said. “I’ve gotten to some of the games and it’s great to watch him, but it is kind of weird but really cool to see him running down the field on special teams.”

Weatherford attended Florida State University (FSU) after graduating from Land O’ Lakes. He took a medical red during his first season, but became the Seminoles’ starting quarterback the following year in 2005.

FSU won the inaugural Atlantic Coast Conference his first year quarterbacking the Seminoles while setting a conference record for a freshman with 3,208 passing yards while adding 18 touchdowns, according to Florida States’ sports information department. He finished with 37 career touchdowns and nine 300-yard passing games.

After graduating from FSU, Weatherford got an invitation to a Chicago Bears rookie minicamp in 2009, but nothing came of it. Then he got his shot with the Storm before this season and quickly found the game to be different than what he has played his whole life.

“The speed is much faster here than in high school or college,” Weatherford said. “The biggest thing for me is the angles with the smaller field. The windows to throw the ball into are much tighter, so I need to be more accurate.”

Weatherford lives in Odessa, just minutes from his old high school. He plans on watching Stevie play during his senior year and said being able to stay close to home is very special to him.

“God works in funny ways sometimes,” Weatherford said. “I get to play for my home team and am getting a chance to do what I love. I couldn’t really ask for more than that.”

Former Bulldog looking to build community excitement

By Kyle LoJacono

When Reggie Roberts was named the Zephyrhills High football coach in January he showed a passion to get the program back to dominating on Friday nights.

“We are looking to bring back the Tom Fisher days of hard-hitting defense and exciting offense,” Roberts said. “We want to bring back the attack so everyone in Zephyrhills is excited about this football team.”

Fisher coached the Bulldogs for 20 years, which included Roberts’ time with the school from 1985 to 1990. Roberts was a linebacker, something that is apparent from how he speaks about the game.

“We want to play a lot of smash-mouth football and make the other team’s offense have to work for every single yard,” Roberts said. “We don’t want to be giving away chunks of yards … Offensively we’re going to throw the ball down the field. Those long passes really demoralize the opposing defense.”

The former Bulldog player is also working to bring a new level of discipline to the Zephyrhills team that finished 2-8 last season. Part of that is starting summer workouts at 6:30 a.m. Roberts said that is to bring some structure to the players.

“That also helps us a lot to get out here and done before it gets too hot,” said junior Adrian Sanchez. “The sun really drains us.”

Sanchez plays both wide receiver and cornerback and is one of the team’s more vocal leaders. Last year he had seven catches while adding 21 tackles, one interception and five passes defensed in the old system.

“Things have been better with the new (system),” Sanchez said. “I’m not the kind of guy to tell stories about that.

“It’s also just how he talks to us because we need him to be forceful with us sometimes,” Sanchez continued. “That’s how we’ll listen. Just talking nicely to me at least doesn’t work. I need someone saying ‘Adrian you need to focus on this and get your mind right.’ That’s how you get our attention to learn and get better.”

The switch in systems came with a new position for Frank “Duke” Morrison, who spent the last few years playing on the line and will see more time at tight end and linebacker in 2010.

“It’s a little bit different to move positions,” Morrison said. “As a tight end you still block and you still do a lot of the same things as a linebacker, so it’s not completely new and I like the challenge.”

As a defensive lineman last year Morrison had 33 tackles and one sack.

Running back Jacolby O’Neal is adjusting to the new system, but for a different reason. He played for Pasco High last year, but has since moved to Zephyrhills.

“I’m already ready to get after Pasco,” O’Neal said. “It’ll be exciting to play against my old team.”

Roberts said O’Neal would be a big part of the Bulldogs rushing attack and will also see time at quarterback and possibly wide receiver. Several players including Jamal Roberts will be used at multiple positions to keep their opponents off balance.

While the Bulldogs players and coaches seem ready for the 2010 season, things did not go as planned in the spring game in May. Zephyrhills took on Pasco and was handed a 56-0 loss, which was stopped at halftime because of bad weather.

“You never want that to happen again and that’s been a self motivator for the team,” Roberts said. “We just had 19 days of practice, but that’s not an excuse. I think it’s the best thing that could have happened to us in the long run. We got a lot of the young players into the game to give them game experience and it’s a lesson learned for the older players.”

To further prepare the team, Roberts got the Bulldogs into the summer 7-on-7 league in Pasco County, something Fisher never did.

“It’s been helping us get used to the new system while competing with another team,” Sanchez said. “You can only do so much in practice against yourself.”

Other new elements under Roberts is a focus on grades and community service. During the spring he required players to attend study hall before players could hit the field and is encouraging them to maintain a 3.0 grade point average. Athletes are only required to maintain a 2.0 to be eligible.

Roberts also requires the players to have 25 community service hours to be eligible under Roberts’ rules.

“We’re working hard to put a team out there the city of Zephyrhills can be proud of,” Roberts said. “We also want to put a bunch of young men out in the community with good qualities who will be positive members of society.”

Sanchez is confident the team has improved from the 2009 season.

“I won’t put a win total on it, but we will be better than last year,” Sanchez said. “I can promise you that.”

By Kyle LoJacono

Land O’ Lakes senior quarterback Stevie Weatherford has verbally committed to play at the University of South Florida (USF) after receiving numerous offers from other Division I schools.

“I really like the coaches there,” Weatherford said. “(Quarterbacks coach) Peter Vaas is a great coach and they run the spread offense like we do here at Land O’ Lakes. It’s close by and I’ve always liked the school.”

The Gators started using the spread offense, which uses four and five wide receivers, when Matt Kitchie took over the program last season. Kitchie said Weatherford has done a great job picking up the offense in a short time span. Weatherford said he likes the system because he gets to throw the ball out of the shotgun.

Weatherford had offers to play at the University of Cincinnati, East Carolina University, the University of Southern Mississippi, Boston College, Iowa State University, North Texas University and Southern Methodist University.

The Bulls were the first team to offer Weatherford a scholarship. The 6-foot-3, 205-pound quarterback said he plans to graduate from high school early so he can attend USF next spring semester. He is not sure what he will major in yet.

One of the things that drew Weatherford to USF was the Bulls quarterback situation.

“B.J. Daniels is the quarterback now and he’s a great player, but after he leaves I think I’ll be able to earn the spot as the starter” Weatherford said. “I’ve met him a couple times and he seems like a nice guy who will help teach me the system.”

Weatherford has been the Gators quarterback since his sophomore season. Last year as a junior he had 2,052 passing yards with 128 completions and 27 touchdowns. In Land O’ Lakes’ spring game against Wiregrass Ranch High he completed 11 of 17 passes for 351 yards and six touchdowns despite the game being called after two quarters because of bad weather.

Last year he helped guide the Gators to their 13th straight playoff appearance, a Pasco County record. The new Bull is the last of six brothers to play football at Land O’ Lakes and the third to play quarterback. His brothers Drew and Joe also quarterbacked the team.

Now that he has made his decision, Weatherford can focus on his senior season.

“It feels good to not have to worry about that anymore,” Weatherford said. “I’ll be going to a great school and play football for a Big East school close to home. Really it’s the perfect situation for me and now I’ll go out and do the best I can my last year here.”

The Gators will start the 2010 season at Ridgewood High at 7:30 p.m. Sept. 3.

-All stats as recorded to Maxpreps.com by coaches as of July 12.

The Wesley Chapel American All-star team won in the first ever Dixie Youth Baseball state T-ball tournament by defeating Freeport 26-4 July 4 at Avon Park in Hardee County.

The tournament was a five-team round robin in which the Wesley Chapel team went 4-0.

Game 1 was against Okeechobee, which Wesley Chapel played in the finals of the south regional tournament a few weeks earlier. Okeechobee scored seven runs in the first inning, but were held to two the rest of the game. The Americans put up eight in the second to win 19-9. Kyle Doran and Evan Richter led the way on defense. Richter had six putouts and Doran added three assists and two putouts. Jacob Rodriguez, Connor Hull and Tyler Armstrong each had three hits, including a homerun by Armstrong. Axel Torrellas had a triple and double, while Caden Kwiat had two doubles.

Game 2 had the boys slotted against host and local favorite Hardee. Both teams brought the bats to this contest. Wesley Chapel led by seven after the fourth inning. Hardee scored 14 runs in the last two innings to go up by three heading into the bottom of the sixth. The Americans scored four times capped off by a two-RBI triple by Seth Martinez to clinch the victory in walk-off fashion 25-24. Luke Fischer and Rodriguez each went 4-for-4 with four runs scored. Martinez had three triples including the game winner and Jackson Choinski had two hits and five RBI.

Games 3 and 4 of the tournament were against teams from Paxton and Freeport. In the end, the Wesley Chapel club was too much for the two teams representing the panhandle. The Americans got off to quick starts in both games and cruised to victory 24-5 against Paxton and 26-4 versus Freeport. Every member of the Wesley Chapel team had at least two hits and a run scored against Paxton. Cole Callicoat, Choinski and Torrellas had homers. Against Freeport Brad Simpson, Torrellas and Martinez each had one homerun, with Martinez’s being a grand slam.

The American’s were made up of all-star players from area Little Leagues.

“It was a great run by the team to achieve the ultimate prize,” said assistant Ed Richter. “The boys played their hearts out and all played for each other. Most importantly they had a ton of fun just being together. The postseason may have only been five weeks, but the friendships will last forever.”

Pine View soccer player scores on field, in clsss

Pine View Middle incoming seventh grader Glenn Johnson knows what it takes to be a student athlete. Not only did he manage the demands of playing competitive soccer, the Wesley Chapel Flames U12 team that finished second in the state, he also earned four consecutive straight-A quarters last year. Johnson was inducted to the school’s National Honor Society and an academic medal. Johnson is seen with his soccer coaches Nelson Rivera (left) and Danny Collins. He also plays basketball for a new AAU competitive team, the C&G Bulls in Land O’ Lakes.