Kevin Merrell, a former standout on Steinbrenner High School’s baseball team and current shortstop on the University of South Florida’s baseball team, has been named a first team All-American Athletic Conference selection by the conference’s coaches. Merrell, a sophomore, leads USF in batting average (.309) and on-base percentage (.405), and is third on the team in stolen bases (16). Merrell was a four-year letter winner at Steinbrenner, and batted .462 during his senior year. He was also a standout track athlete and currently holds the school’s 100-meter dash record at 10.6 seconds, which he set in 2014.
Check This Out
Fishing club grants available
The Fishing League Worldwide (FLW) Foundation has announced the availability of grants of up to $500 per school to Student Angler Federation (SAF)-affiliated high school fishing clubs in Florida. The grants are aimed at establishing new clubs or expanding clubs.
The grants can be used by school teams or clubs to pay SAF dues for participating students, cover the cost of running team-sponsored tournaments, purchase student jerseys or other club costs. The initiative seeks to help recruit new anglers, retain existing anglers and reactivate former anglers.
The Florida High School Fishing Grant application is available at FLWFishing.com/Foundation.
For information, contact Dave Washburn by emailing , or call (270) 252-1607.
Winning on the field, and in the classroom
The Wharton boys track and field team received the Academic Athletic Team of the Year award on May 19 during a Hillsborough County school board meeting.
The Wildcats had a combined 3.40 unweighted grade point average during the third nine weeks, which is the second highest GPA since the county started giving out the award more than 12 years ago. It is also the first time Wharton boys track and field has received the award.
“It was a great honor for the team to win this,” said third-year Wharton boys coach Kyle LoJacono. “What is truly special about the award is that it is a team award. Everyone’s GPA counted evenly. I’m also very pleased that our kids are getting the job done in the classroom as well as on the track, because they are students first and athletes second.”
LoJacono also received the Western Conference National Division Coach of the Year award on May 18 during Hillsborough County’s annual coaches’ banquet. The honor is given to the person who receives the most votes by coaches within the division.
Saint Leo wins national golf championship
Saint Leo University’s men’s golf team made history on May 21 by claiming the school’s first national championship in any sport by capturing the 2016 NCAA Division II National Championship in Denver, Colorado.
The Lions used a 3-2 score in match play to defeat Chico (California) State, just two days after Saint Leo freshman Hugo Bernard claimed the NCAA Division II Men’s Golf Individual Title.
“We got off to a good start, and that makes it easier on the coach and the players,” head coach Chris Greenwood said in a release.
“I didn’t have to say anything special, I just told them to keep doing what they were doing. We didn’t make any changes, just go out and play as aggressive as you can.”
The Lions smashed the 54-hole team record at the NCAA Championships at -26 — 10 strokes under Florida Southern’s mark in 1999 — and followed up with stellar performances in match play.
Saint Leo made it through the quarterfinals and semifinals with wins over Wilmington (Delaware), and Sunshine State Conference foe Lynn University, before facing Chico State in the finals.
Oppenheimer signs with Southeastern University
Zephyrhills High School basketball standout Jeremy Oppenheimer has signed to play college basketball with Southeastern University in Lakeland, in the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics.
The 6-foot-2 senior led the Bulldogs in scoring (22.6 points per game), rebounding (8.2 rebounds per game), assists (5.4 assists per game) and steals (4.8 steals per game) last season, helping to guide Zephyrhills (27-5) to the Class 6A state semifinals. The team, which lost to Poinciana High in February on a score of 70 to 52, had not made an appearance at the state semifinals since 1966.
“Jeremy’s a very good player, and he was a very good on-court presence,” former Zephyrhills coach Alan Reed said after the 2015-2016 season. “He scored a lot of points, but a lot of times he distributed the ball.”
The now-retired Reed said he was surprised Oppenheimer didn’t receive more college looks, but acknowledged his former star player needed to add size and explosiveness to succeed at the next level.
“I think he’s got to get a little more physically stronger,” Reed said. “I think he’s got some things to work on, basically his physical strength and his quickness are two things he needs to improve a little bit.”
Sunshine Athletic Conference softball teams selected
The Sunshine Athletic Conference (SAC) East Division softball teams were recently selected by the conference’s coaches:
East Division
Player of the year: Shannon Saile, senior, Land O’ Lakes
Coach of the year: Mitch Wilkins, Land O’ Lakes
First team
P Shannon Saile, senior, Land O’ Lakes
C Kameron Aitken, junior, Wiregrass Ranch
INF Tia Williams, sophomore, Land O’ Lakes
INF Gianna Basilone, senior, Sunlake
INF Brianna Lindner, sophomore, Land O’ Lakes
INF Ashley Nickisher, freshman, Wesley Chapel
OF Ashley Smith, sophomore, Land O’ Lakes
OF Kacie Huber, sophomore, Pasco
OF Dana Mumaw, junior, Wesley Chapel
UTILITY/DH Shelby Lansing, junior, Sunlake
Second team
P Mariah Melendez, sophomore, Sunlake
C Tayler Holt, senior, Land O’ Lakes
INF Cassidy Roberts, senior, Sunlake
INF Jordyn Kadlub, freshman, Pasco
INF Kacie Lemanski, sophomore, Wiregrass Ranch
IF Tylah Remaley, senior, Wiregrass Ranch
OF Jessie McCallister, senior, Land O’ Lakes
OF Jaime Valenta, junior, Wiregrass Ranch
OF Samantha Hiley, junior, Wiregrass Ranch
Utility/DH Logan Coward, freshman, Pasco
Saint Leo baseball player semifinalist for national award
Saint Leo junior first baseman Troy Sieber was one of 40 Division II baseball players named as a semifinalist for the 2016 D2 Baseball News Tino Martinez Award, which recognizes the national player of the year in Division II baseball.
As of May 18, Sieber leads the Sunshine State Conference (SSC) with a .457 batting average, which ranks sixth among Division II leaders. The New Jersey native also ranks second in all of Division II with a .553 on base percentage, and is among the SSC’s top five in slugging percentage (.873, 2nd), runs scored (68, 2nd), runs batted in (55, T-5th), hits (79, T-3rd), and home runs (16, 3rd).
The winner of the 2016 Tino Martinez Award will be named on June 6, following the NCAA Division II Baseball Championship in Cary, North Carolina. The award is named after former University of Tampa player, United States Olympian, first-round MLB draft pick, and MLB All-Star Tino Martinez. A three-time All-American, Martinez still holds several Tampa records and led the Spartans to national championships in 1986 and 1987. He was inducted into the College Baseball Hall of Fame in 2013.
Lutz summer basketball league forming
Registration is open until May 26 for the Our Lady of the Rosary (OLOR) and Saint Tim’s Catholic Church’s inaugural Basketball League. There will be a boys and girls league, for players age 5 to 18, as well as an adult league for those 18 and older. The season runs from June 11 to July 31. All games will be played on Saturdays at the St. John Paul II Youth Center, at 17520 Lakeshore Road in Lutz. To register, visit OLORSports.org. For additional information, contact Patrick Poland at (813) 484-8621 or .
Hurdling to victory
Bishop McLaughlin Catholic High School junior Owen Clanahan, far left, took first place in the Class A 300 meter hurdles in 38.65 seconds at the Florida High School Athletic Association state track and field championships on May 7 at IMG Academy in Bradenton. The Dade City resident also took fifth place in the Class A 200 meters (22.43).
Gaither and Steinbrenner advance to state semis
Both Gaither and Steinbrenner high schools’ baseball teams have advanced to the Florida High School Athletic Association state semifinals for Class 7A and Class 8A, respectively. Gaither (18-9) will face Miami Belen Jesuit (20-12) on May 19 at JetBlue Park in Fort Myers, while Steinbrenner (25-5) will face Westland Hialeah (22-11) on May 20. To reach the “Final Four” in the state bracket for their respective class divisions, Gaither defeated Melbourne 5-3, and Steinbrenner shut out East Lake 3-0 back on May 10. Gaither is on an eight-game winning streak, while Steinbrenner has won 12 in a row.