Check This Out

A trio of youth tennis players affiliated with the Sarah Vande Berg Tennis & Wellness Center in Zephyrhills earned trophy honors at the 2021 “Little Mo” East Regionals at BallenIsles Country Club in Palm Beach Gardens.

They include:

• Carter Smallwood, won the 10 and under boys division
• Diego Custodio, won the 11 and under boys division
• Lauren Carpenter, took third place in the 12 and under girls division

The regional tournament featured more than 140 youth players ages 8 to 12.

The top four athletes in each division qualify for the 24th annual “Road to the Little Mo Nationals” in Austin, Texas, in September.

The event is described as one of the nation’s prestigious youth championships. Many widely known collegiate players and tennis professionals have participated in “Little Mo” tournaments over the years. Past winners include Andy Roddick and CoCo Guaff, to name just two.

 

Lutz teenager Zac Myers finished third all-around for his age group at the USA Gymnastics Junior National Championships, in Daytona Beach — earning him a spot on the U.S. men’s U14 junior national team. The 13-year-old Martinez Middle School student medaled in three events: pommel horse (first overall), high bar (second) and parallel bars. Myers trains at LaFleur’s Gymnastic Club in Tampa. He is a Level 9 gymnast.

The Lutz Baseball 18U All-Stars recently won the Florida Babe Ruth State Championship in Bunnell, defeating West Volusia Athletic Club-DeBary in a double elimination contest (10-0, 2-1). Lutz. The local all-star squad is coached by Tim Daley.

The Land O’ Lakes Girls Softball Little League Majors All-Stars (ages 10-12) won the Florida Little League State Championship, in St. Cloud. The squad defeated Viera Suntree Little League (10-2) and Estates Little League (16-0) before downing Tampa Bay Little League (3-2) in the finals. Land O’ Lakes is next headed to the Little League Southeast Regional, which features eight states, in Warner Robins, Georgia.

Land O’ Lakes resident Niko Spilotro was chosen to play in the Sports Illustrated National Junior Liberty Bowl All-Star Showcase at Bradenton’s IMG Academy, from July 1 through July 4. The event is comprised of standout football players throughout the country ages 7U through 14U. Spilotro, a 6-foot-2.5, 285-pound lineman, recently graduated from Pine View Middle School and plans to attend Land O’ Lakes High School. Spilotro has been a part of several other prestigious all-star teams, including Future Stars Game (FSG) and Football University (FBU). He helped lead the Pine View football team to a conference championship, and also claimed a middle school track and field conference title in discus.

Roy Woodhouse, left, and Rick Schueller teamed to win the South Pasco Bassmasters (SPBM) June tournament on the Kissimmee Chain, hauling five fish that weighed a combined 17.91 pounds. The catch also included the biggest bass of the tournament, at 6.60 pounds. The duo caught their fish using swimbaits, flipping grass and pads. The next SPBM tournament is July 17 on the Winter Haven Chain. For information, visit SouthPascoBassmasters.com.

Wharton High senior baseball standout Zach Ehrhard was honored with the 2021 Wade Boggs Athletic Achievement Award, by the Hillsborough County Commission at its May 19 meeting.

The Wade Boggs Athletic Achievement Award honors a high school baseball player or a team in Hillsborough County on the basis of outstanding athletic, scholastic and community achievements.

The annual award is named in honor of Baseball Hall of Fame member and 12-time All-Star Wade Boggs, who has been a resident of the Tampa Bay area since he was a boy. He played for the Boston Red Sox and the New York Yankees before finishing his career back at home with the Tampa Bay Devil Rays. He is a Plant High School graduate, a Wharton High School coach, and a resident of Hillsborough County.

Ehrhard, who hit .438 this season, lettered in varsity baseball for the fourth straight year and has been a starter since the first game of his freshman year.

A shortstop, pitcher and team captain, Ehrhard finished with a .407 career batting average, with over 40 stolen bases — 26 this season alone.

The Oklahoma State University baseball signee also got it done in the classroom. He has a cumulative grade point average of 5.9, was named Wharton’s male scholar-athlete recipient and is a National Honor Society member.

In the community, Ehrhard donated his time to numerous causes, including Relay for Life, Students Against Destructive Decisions, and WinterFest, an event for needy children.

Baseball talent runs in the Ehrhard family. Ehrhard’s older brother, Drew, was a recipient of the prestigious award in 2017 and went on to play baseball at the University of Tampa.

Honorable mentions for the Wade Boggs Achievement Award went to Riverview High’s Kipp Kochera and Alonso High’s Zen Hiatt. An award was not given last year due to the coronavirus pandemic.

The Cypress Creek High School varsity girls lacrosse team wrapped up a banner 2021 campaign, winning a district championship en route to an impressive 15-5 mark. The program, in its fourth year, is coached by Jason Alvis and Sydney Maziarz.

Jashua Dunn, left, and Calvin Crowe won the South Pasco Bassmasters (SPBM) May tournament in Lake Tarpon, hauling five bass for a total weight of 18.15 pounds. The catch also included the biggest bass of the tournament, weighing 5.43 pounds. The duo’s strategy included fishing shoreline vegetation and residential canals using plastic frogs. The next SPBM tournament is June 19 on the Kissimmee Chain. For information, visit SouthPascoBassmasters.com.