The Laker/Lutz News

Serving Pasco since 1981/Serving Lutz since 1964

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State champs bound for regionals

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(Courtesy of Mike Connell)

The Lutz-based FC Tampa Rangers Newcastle U17 boys were crowned U17 Florida President’s Cup Champions in April, and the squad has now advanced to the Southern President’s Cup. That competition runs through June 17 at the Mesa Soccer Complex, in Greenville, South Carolina.

As part of the regional competition, FC Tampa Newcastle faces off against teams from Alabama, Arkansas, Georgia, Louisiana, Mississippi, North Carolina, Oklahoma, South Carolina, Texas, and Tennessee; with hopes to secure a spot at the 2018 U.S. Youth Soccer National President’s Cup in July, in Westfield, Indiana.

AATL’s Kilfoyl named Gatorade State Softball Player of the Year

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A local softball sensation has achieved yet another honor in a growing list of accolades.

Academy at the Lakes’ junior Alexis Kilfoyl, who recently guided the Wildcats to its first state softball title, has been named the 2017-2018 Gatorade Florida Softball Player of the Year.

The honor, which takes into account athletics and academics, distinguishes Kilfoyl as the state’s best high school softball player.

She now becomes a finalist for the prestigious Gatorade National Softball Player of the Year award.

Academy at the Lakes’ Alexis Kilfoyl (No. 9) has been named 2017-2018 Gatorade Florida Softball Player of the Year, given to the state’s best high school softball player.
(Courtesy of Academy at the Lakes)

The 6-foot-2 right-handed pitcher led the Wildcats to a 26-4 record and the Class 2A state championship this past season.

Kilfoyl posted a 23-1 mark in the circle with a 0.32 earned run average and 249 strikeouts in 154 innings pitched.

Likewise dominant at the plate, Kilfoyl produced a .482 batting average with five home runs, 35 RBI, a .585 on-base percentage and a .788 slugging percentage.

In the state title game on May 22, Kilfoyl fired an 11-inning shutout and knocked the game-winning double in the Wildcats’ 1-0 win over Monticello Aucilla Christian Academy.

Besides in-state success, Kilfoyl has been on the national radar for some time.

Last summer, Kilfoyl was a member of the 2017 USA Softball Junior National team, the youngest of the 24-player roster.

And in January, FloSoftball.com ranked Kilfoyl as the nation’s No. 1 player in its “2019 Hot 100” recruiting list.

She has been a verbal commit to the University of Alabama since her freshman season.

Off the field meanwhile, Kilfoyl has maintained a 3.78 grade-point average and is a member of the Mu Alpha Theta mathematics honor society.

The Gatorade Player of the Year program annually recognizes one winner in the District of Columbia and each of the 50 states that sanction high school football, girls volleyball, boys and girls cross country, boys and girls basketball, boys and girls soccer, baseball, softball, and boys and girls track & field, and awards one National Player of the Year in each sport. The selection process is administered by the Gatorade Player of the Year Selection Committee, which works with top sport-specific experts and a media advisory board of accomplished, veteran prep sports journalists to determine the state winners in each sport.

District Champs!

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(Courtesy of Mark Steckman)

The Land O’ Lakes Little League Major Division won the Florida District 25 President’s Cup championship on May 22 by defeating Zephyrhills Little League 8-7 at North Seminole Little League, in Tampa.

Big Bass!

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Courtesy of John Medvid

Land O’ Lakes residents Noam Soash, left, and Bud Hogens, teamed up to win first place at the South Pasco Bassmasters (SPBM) May 19 tournament, hauling in five bass for whopping weight of 18.60 pounds at Lake Hernando. The haul included the biggest bass of the tournament, weighing 9.37 pounds.

The duo caught their fish using isolated patches of pads.

The next SPBM tournament is June 16 at Lake Tarpon. For information, visit SouthPascoBassmasters.com.

Local athlete signings

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The national spring signing period opened in April for athletes to sign their national letters of intent to respective colleges and university. Here is a list of athletes from The Laker/Lutz News coverage area who participated in the spring signing period, making their college commitments official:

Saddlebrook Preparatory School
Golf
Kevin Lin — Webber International University (Partial Athletic Scholarship)

Alex Chen — Penn State-Behrend, Pennsylvania (Academic Scholarship)

Kihei Hayashi — Old Westbury College, New York (Academic Scholarship)

Mai Intanant — Drew University, New Jersey (Academic Scholarship)

James Parker — Chapman University, California (Academic Scholarship)

Matthew Singer — Drew University (Academic Scholarship)

Tennis
Myu Tezuka — Bradley University, Illinois (Full Athletic Scholarship)

Hina Nishisa — University of Hawaii-Hilo (Partial Athletic Scholarship)

Lillian Cameron — DePauw University, Indiana (Academic Scholarship)

Ryu Kozuki — Fairleigh Dickinson, New Jersey (Academic Scholarship)

Dennis Moses — Stetson University (Academic Scholarship)

Maciej Sobolewski — Florida Institute of Technology (Academic Scholarship)

Victor Stoyanov — Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, New York (Academic Scholarship)

Freedom High School
Softball
Kristina Calixto — Santa Fe College

Track
Navarra’ James — Saint Leo University

Wrestling
Alex Kiester — George Mason University, Virginia

Steinbrenner High School
Cross-Country/Track
Sophia Piniella — University of Florida

Football
Daniel Craig — Jacksonville University

Lacrosse
Madison Ulvenes — Florida Institute of Technology

Sunlake High School
Basketball
Elizabeth Moran — Mary Baldwin University, Virginia

Mary Moran — Mary Baldwin University

Kasia Ramirez — Lees-McRae College, North Carolina

Andrea Wallace — Saint Petersburg College

Football
Jeremiah Baker — Carthage College, Wisconsin

Bryant Beacham — Carthage College

Justice Goodloe — Maryville College, Tennessee

Ibrahim Saunders — Saint Vincent College, Pennsylvania

Soccer
Grant Presson — Shorter University, Georgia

Volleyball
Elizabeth Spalding — Mars Hills University, North Carolina

Wiregrass Ranch High School
Baseball
Cameren Douglas — North Carolina Wesleyan

Basketball
Val Garcia — Ave Maria University

Cross-Country
Gio Duran — Tallahassee Community College

Kevin Jaquez — Tallahassee Community College

Football
Daniel Biglow — Florida Atlantic University

Jacob Hill — Baldwin Wallace University, Ohio

Devaun Roberts — Ohio Wesleyan University

Adrian Thomas — Thiel College, Pennsylvania

Soccer
Ryan AlKhatib — Florida College

Ian Flores — Oglethorpe University, Georgia

National tennis player of year

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Saint Leo University’s men’s tennis standout Thomas Grinberg has been named Intercollegiate Tennis Association National Senior Player of the Year.

Saint Leo’s Thomas Grinberg (Courtesy of Saint Leo Athletics)

Grinberg, a product of Vincennes, France, wrapped up a stellar senior campaign posting a 21-1 first singles record — including an undefeated regular season singles mark — and a 20-3 first doubles record with junior Vincent Suillerot.

Last month, Grinberg was named Sunshine State Conference Player of the Year.

Saint Leo names assistant athletic director

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Erin Bean

Saint Leo University announced Erin Bean, a former school employee, to the position of assistant athletic director for external operations.

The former Saint Leo employee returns to the school by way of the University of South Florida, where she spent the past three years as the primary contact for its nationally ranked women’s basketball team, the men’s soccer team, and assisted with the football program.

In her new role at Saint Leo, Bean will oversee all aspects of external relations and oversee the athletic communications office.

Bean has seven years of experience in collegiate athletics, including experience in all three NCAA Divisions. That includes stints at Tennessee Technological University, the Northeast Conference, and Juniata College.

Saint Leo assistant honored

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Saint Leo University assistant women’s basketball coach Amber Moore has been named to the 2018 Women’s Basketball Coaches Association (WBCA) Thirty under 30 list.

Amber Moore (Courtesy of Saint Leo University)

The list recognizes 30 up-and-coming women’s basketball coaches age 30 and under, at all levels of the game. Each honoree was selected based upon involvement in community service, mentorship, professional manner and professional association involvement.

Moore joined the Lions’ staff in October 2017, after a brief coaching stint at Urbana High School in Illinois.

She helped the Lions to the second-most Sunshine State Conference (SSC) wins in program history, finishing 13-16 overall, 8-12 in league play. The Lions’ 2017-2018 season was highlighted by a six-game winning streak.

Moore played collegiate at Division I University of Illinois, where she holds the school record for career three-pointers made (295) and career free-throw accuracy (84.7 percent). She also played professionally overseas for two years.

Fishing duo keeps reeling ’em in

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(Courtesy of John Medvid)

Dave Panno, left, and Ken Willis, teamed up for another first place win at the South Pasco Bassmasters (SPBM) April tournament, hauling in five bass for a total weight of 11.94 pounds at the Harris Chain of Lakes. It marks the fishing duo’s third tournament victory this year — also taking first at SPBM events in January and February. Panno and Willis caught their winning haul with Spinner Baits, Finesse Worms, and Lipless Crankbaits along residential canals. The next SPBM tournament is May 19 at Lake Hernando. For information, visit SouthPascoBassmasters.com.

Pasco all-star baseball and softball rosters announced 

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Baseball and softball rosters have been announced for the 2018 Pasco County East-West Classic.

The second annual all-star showcase, organized by the Fellowship of Christian Athletes, features some of the top high school seniors in Pasco County.

Players on the East team will represent Land O’ Lakes, Pasco, Sunlake, Wesley Chapel, Wiregrass Ranch and Zephyrhills high schools.

Players on the West team will represent Bishop McLaughlin, Fivay, Gulf, Hudson, Mitchell, Ridgewood and River Ridge high schools.

The softball and baseball games are each scheduled for May 12 at noon, at Bishop McLaughlin Catholic High School.

Tickets are $10; parking is $5.

For information, contact Bob Durham at (813) 784-4410 or .

All-Star rosters:

Baseball
East team
Head Coach: Rick Giles, Pasco High School

Land O’ Lakes High
Ryan Ricardo, pitcher
Edgar Vasquez, outfielder
Remington Walls, outfielder

Pasco High
Luby Fields, first baseman
Zach Murphy, outfielder
Liam Wynne, catcher

Sunlake High
Michael Bean, pitcher
Josh Denig, outfielder
Austin Wu, pitcher

Wesley Chapel High
Colton Bierly, first baseman/outfielder
Malik Melvin, second baseman/shortstop

Wiregrass Ranch High
Cameron Douglas, catcher
Jacob Hill, outfielder
Michael Joyce, pitcher
Enrique Trevino, first baseman

Zephyrhills High
Drew Brown, pitcher
Cherokee Hagans, outfielder
Kolbe Lupinek, catcher
Trey Owens, second baseman

West team
Head coach: Jeff Swymer, Bishop McLaughlin Catholic High School

 Bishop McLaughlin
Cam Diaz, outfielder/pitcher
Carter Garlitz, catcher/first baseman/designated hitter
Preston Perez, pitcher
Jared Rodriguez, infielder

 Fivay High
Gunner Hoglund, pitcher/first baseman/third baseman
Thomas Delfel, outfielder
Tyler Derner, outfielder
Casey Schaub, outfielder
Sal Zito, infielder

Gulf High
Jakob Warren, outfielder

Hudson High
Scott Meitzler, catcher/first baseman
Daniel Williams, pitcher
Levi Wohfiel, outfielder

Mitchell High
Carrington Adler, catcher
Johnny Arcaro, infielder
Jordan Garcia, outfielder
Zach Henderson, pitcher/infielder
Jakob Mattos, pitcher/infielder
Mike Risener, outfielder

Ridgewood High
Jorge Febus, pitcher/infielder

River Ridge High
Kyle Chigar, outfielder/pitcher
Ben Martin, infielder
Hunter Watson, infielder

Softball
East team
Head coach: Nelson Garcia, Sunlake High School

Land O’ Lakes High
Brianna Lindner, catcher
Ashley Smith, pitcher/third baseman
Tia Williams, shortstop/second baseman/outfielder

Pasco High
Kaci Huber, outfielder
Brianna Hicks, first baseman/designated player

Sunlake High
Riley Baxter, first baseman
Isabella Huff, third baseman
Mariah Melendez, pitcher/shortstop
Emma Sica, catcher

Wiregrass Ranch High
Faith Sebio, outfielder

Zephyrhills High
Chase Booker, shortstop/second baseman
Halee Karppe, outfielder
Kaleigh Rhoden, outfielder/pitcher

West team
Head coach: Scott Bisbe, Mitchell High School

Bishop McLaughlin
Madison Janning, catcher/infielder
Dani Jones, third baseman/outfielder
Kaylee Woods, first baseman

Gulf High
Hayley Zackeru, third baseman
Marde Collins, first baseman

Mitchell High
Ashley Autuori, pitcher
Lexi Clark, first baseman
Anna Dumovich, third baseman
Keegan Phillips, catcher
Taylor Platt, leftfielder
Rachel Ryel, pitcher
Bayley Williams, centerfielder

Ridgewood High
Ashley Clark, catcher

River Ridge High
Emily Barrington, third baseman
Bre Blankenship, catcher/leftfielder
Lauren Jarnagin, rightfielder
Teah Steel, catcher/leftfielder
Sarah Wilson, first baseman