The Laker/Lutz News

Serving Pasco since 1981/Serving Lutz since 1964

Local Sports

Area softball players among best in state

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The high school softball season has come and gone, but local athletes are still picking up accolades from their 2019 campaigns.

Land O’ Lakes senior pitcher Callie Turner was named Class 6A Defensive Player of the Year. (File)

The 2019 Miracle Sports All-State teams were released last month honoring the top players in Florida — and area players were well-represented.

Sixteen athletes from The Laker/Lutz News coverage area were recognized, either as first-team, second-team or honorable mention.

Predictably, the back-to-back Class 2A state champion Academy at the Lakes Wildcats garnered the most representatives from the area among all classifications, with a total of seven selections in Class 2A.

That included Wildcats senior pitcher/first baseman Lexi Kilfoyl, who was named Class 2A Player of the Year/first-team All-State.

In the circle, Kilfoyl went 23-1, posting a 0.32 earned run average and 249 strikeouts in 154 innings pitched, with opposing batters hitting a mere .097 against her. At the plate, Kilfoyl led the Wildcats in batting average (.482) and RBIs (35), along with five home runs, nine doubles and 41 hits.

Academy at the Lakes Wildcats had seven All-State softball selections, including Class 2A Player of Year Lexi Kilfoyl. The Wildcats (19-7) won the Class 2A state title for the second straight year. (Courtesy of Academy at the Lakes Athletics)

Other Wildcats on the first-team included junior Jessica Mott, sophomores Devyne Davis, Vanessa Alexander, Caitlin Blankenship, and freshman Hannah Church; seventh-grader Mia Fields was a second-team choice. Additionally, Wildcats coach Diane Stephenson was named Class 2A Coach of the Year, for the second straight year.

The Wildcats finished the season with a 19-7 record, defeating Mount Dora Christian Academy 11-0 in the FHSAA (Florida High School Athletic Association) Class 2A state finals on May 22 in Vero Beach.

Academy at the Lakes wasn’t the only Land O’ Lakes-based school well-represented on the All-State team.

In Class 7A, the Sunlake High Seahawks, who finished the season with a 24-3 mark and won its first-ever district crown, garnered six All-State picks.

Most notably was sophomore shortstop/catcher Jenna Lord, who was named Class 7A Offensive Player of the Year/first team All-State. Lord posted a .542 batting average, 13 home runs and 46 RBIs in 83 at-bats.

The Sunlake High Seahawks garnered six All-State softball selections, including Class 7A Offensive Player of the Year Jenna Lord. The Seahawks (24-3) claimed their first district crown this past season. (Courtesy of Sunlake High School Athletics)

Seahawks sophomore Kendra Falby and senior Alexis Duff joined Lord on the first-team, while junior Daisy McQuain and senior Paige Maseda were second-teamers, and senior Shea Forgas an honorable mention.

In Class 6A, the Land O’ Lakes High Gators had two first-team All-State selections, in senior pitcher Callie Turner and senior outfielder Shelby Westbrook. Turner was also named Class 6A Defensive Player of the Year.

The Gators went 22-6 and reached the regional quarterfinals.

Elsewhere, Bishop McLaughlin Catholic High senior pitcher/utility Savannah Lee was named Class 3A second team All-State.

There were no All-State representatives in our coverage area from Classes 9A, 8A, 5A, 4A or 1A.

2019 Miracle Sports All-State teams
Class 7A
Offensive Player of the Year: Jenna Lord, Sunlake, sophomore (first team)

Kendra Falby, Sunlake, sophomore (first team)

Alexis Duff, Sunlake, sophomore (first team)

Daisy McQuain, Sunlake, junior (second team)

Paige Maseda, Sunlake, senior (second team)

Shea Forgas, Sunlake, senior (honorable mention)

Class 6A
Defensive Player of the Year: Callie Turner, Land O’ Lakes, senior (first team)

Shelby Westbrook, Land O’ Lakes, senior (first team)

Class 3A
Savannah Lee, Bishop McLaughlin, senior (second team)

Class 2A
Coach of the Year: Diane Stephenson, Academy at the Lakes

Player of the Year: Lexi Kilfoyl, Academy at the Lakes, senior (first team)

Hannah Church, Academy at the Lakes, freshman (first team)

Jessica Mott, Academy at the Lakes, junior (first team)

Devyne Davis, Academy at the Lakes, sophomore (first team)

Vanessa Alexander, Academy at the Lakes, sophomore (first team)

Caitlin Blankenship, Academy at the Lakes, sophomore (first team)

Mia Fields, Academy at the Lakes, seventh grade (second team)

2019 Miracle Sports final team rankings
Class 7A
Fifth — Sunlake (24-3)

Class 6A
Honorable mention —  Land O’ Lakes (22-6), Wesley Chapel (15-7)

Class 2A
First — Academy at the Lakes (19-7, state champion)

Published July 10, 2019

Banner year for Lutz soccer team

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It’s a season they’ll surely never forget.

Under the umbrella and storied history of the FC Tampa Rangers soccer organization, the Lutz U13 Lady Rangers’ 2018-2019 campaign will go down as one of the more impressive in memory.

The squad went 34-6-5 overall this season — including an 18-3-2 run since the beginning 2019.

Ranked as one of the state’s top teams and earning a top seed in the Florida State Cup, the year culminated with the girls program’s first-ever appearance in the U.S. Youth Soccer Regional Championships in Baton Rouge, Louisiana.

The Lutz U13 Lady Rangers recently closed their 2018-2019 season with the program’s first-ever appearance in the U.S. Youth Soccer Regional Championships in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. The team finished 34-6-5 on the season. (Courtesy of Kris Carson)

The Lady Rangers were one of just 16 U13 girls teams from the Southern U.S. Youth Soccer State Association to qualify for the tournament, and just one of two from Florida — the other being the Wellington Wave. The tournament also included squads from Alabama, Tennessee, Oklahoma, Texas, Georgia and South Carolina.

They held their own, going 3-1 and reaching the region semifinals.

The regional berth marked a longtime coming for a Lady Rangers team that has kept much of the same corps for more than five years, dating back to U8.

In that way, they’re unlike many of the larger competitive soccer clubs, which pools hundreds of players all throughout Tampa Bay and frequently experiences roster turnover.

When Lady Rangers head coach Chris Cole meets parents inquiring about the soccer club, he poses this question: “Are you looking for your daughter to join a group of players, or, are you looking to join a team?”

With many of the dozen or so girls from the same Lutz community, and nearby Land O’ Lakes and Carrollwood, the squad’s philosophy and longevity has cultivated a tight-knit, family like atmosphere that extends well beyond the practice fields at Oscar Cooler Sports Complex.

“We’re closer than most teams I feel like, instead of just a bunch random girls coming together to play soccer,” said midfielder/defenseman Kaitlin Vinson, a team co-captain.

“I think one of the biggest strengths is how close we are, and we know almost everything about each other, both personally and soccer-wise. … That helps us to build off each other, and just play soccer better, and it’s part of the reason why I think we’re good.”

Fellow Lady Rangers co-captain Chloe Carson agrees.

“Our whole team has a bond,” said Carson, a center midfielder who’s been on the Lady Rangers since its inception. “Even with the new girls, they fit in right away.”

It’s a bond that’s yielded better on-field chemistry over the years for a team now comprised mostly of rising eighth graders.

Carson explained: “We know each other’s skills, each other’s habits, so we know what to do ahead of time, and it helps us work together and keeps our emotions down, which really helps the play of the game. Some teams, you’ll see girls arguing or yelling at each other.”

Cole, a former USF men’s soccer player in the 1990s and former member of the U.S. Armed Forces men’s soccer team, added this of the club team’s congenial dynamic: “As anything with sports and teams that have been together for a while, you tend to know each other’s tendencies and what you do, but that camaraderie off the field really is important. …I think that really shows on the field as far as just feeling comfortable with each other.”

The coach also noted the team’s unselfish nature.

“With these girls teams, there’s not too much drama,” Cole said. “We certainly don’t have that ‘me, me, me’ mentality. We don’t emphasize one player, ‘Get it to this player and let her do everything.’ Really, a lot of playing time is evenly distributed.”

On quick glance, the Lady Rangers are a smaller, more undersized group compared to other programs in their age division.

It’s become something of a motivating factor for Rangers players against larger, more physical opponents.

Vinson put it like this: “When other teams see us, we don’t look that good because most of our players are smaller, and it just gives us one more reason to want to win, because it’s just kind of proving them wrong.”

But, whatever the Lady Rangers may lack in stature, they’ve made up for with skill, speed and cohesion.

The approach served them well — evident in their 185-33 goal differential through the regular season and postseason combined.

“Because of the (lack of) size,” Cole said, “I really emphasized possession with the ball, a lot of touches, and I think that that really has been our forte early, instead of playing kick ball, which a lot of teams do. The quicker we can get rid of the ball, the better for us. We don’t want to be on the ball too long and get knocked off the ball with our size. …That’s the kind of soccer we like to play here.”

Following their banner season, the team’s success appears likely to continue, as much of the roster is expected to join together in U14. It’s also where new, exciting opportunities lie ahead.

The Lady Rangers will be partnering with the IMG Academy’s soccer development academy in Bradenton. IMG officials reached out to the Lutz-based club after seeing them play in the Florida State Cup.

The partnership means practicing multiple times per week at IMG’s world-class training facility and an uptick in out-of-state competition, as the team will regularly match up against elite programs throughout the southeastern United States.

“Every year we look for challenges,” Cole said of the IMG development academy initiative. “It’s a huge opportunity for these girls to consistently play tough teams.”

As part of the IMG development academy, the Lady Rangers are expected to have a larger coaching staff and a handful of new players added to the roster.

Those fresh faces will be a net positive for the club going forward, Vinson said.

“I think it’ll be good for us because we’ve always heard the same things from our coaches because we’ve had the same coaches, and so I think with different coaches and different players we’ll have different perspectives that’ll help us be better,” she said.

2018-2019 Lutz U13 Lady Rangers roster
Head Coach: Chris Cole

  • Chloe Carson (co-captain)
  • Skylar Cole
  • Jolie Farmer
  • Sarah Frazer
  • Jordan Fulop
  • Alexa Gilland
  • Sienna Gillespie
  • Maddie Green
  • Allison Souers
  • Melody Taylor
  • Miranda Valdes
  • Lola Vargas
  • Kaitlin Vinson (co-captain)

Published July 03, 2019

Construction nearing on Zephyrhills tennis center

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After more than two years of planning and design, a multi-million dollar tennis center in Zephyrhills will soon break ground and become a reality.

Construction is expected to begin in August on the Sarah Vande Berg Tennis and Wellness Center, Zephyrhills deputy city manager Billy Poe said during a special June 17 council meeting on the issue.

With the project’s final engineered site plan set to be completed this month, the city then will  seek construction bids through July, Poe said.

Construction is expected to begin in August on the Sarah Vande Berg Tennis and Wellness Center, situated west of Simons Road in Zephyrhills. The $3.5 million project is expected to be complete around summer 2020. (Courtesy of City of Zephyrhills)

Site and road work also is scheduled to begin next month by another contractor at the future facility’s location, which will be situated on nearly 5 acres of land, north of Dean Dairy Road and west of Simons Road.

The timeframe for the project’s completion is around summer 2020, Poe told city council members.

“I think we’ve accounted for everything,” Poe said of the design plans.

The $3.5 million tennis facility is being funded largely through combination of state appropriations, Penny for Pasco and recreation impact fees from several new housing developments.

The project is a public-private partnership between the City of Zephyrhills and Tennis P.R.O. and its owner Pascal Collard, who will operate and manage the tennis facility. It’s a similar arrangement the city has with the East Pasco YMCA.

Renderings show 11 outdoor  tennis courts (eight clay surface, two hard surface, exhibition court), built to USTA (United States Tennis Association) standards, as well as eight pickleball courts and four padel courts.

The tennis center also includes a 7,000-square-foot indoor clubhouse that will include a fitness and rehabilitation center, restaurant and cafe, pro shop and kid’s club, among other amenities.

The facility will be open approximately 80 hours per week.

More amenities also may come on line later.

Collard told council members at some point he is looking to phase in a 30,000-square-foot multi-purpose indoor sports complex which could accommodate four tennis courts and a soccer field made of artificial turf.

Indoor sports field house aside, Collard said the tennis center will draw people from inside and outside Zephyrhills and will become a draw for various regional, national and international tournaments.

He described the facility as “a community sports center for everybody.”

“I think that to have a place like this in Zephyrhills, it’s unique,” said Collard, a professional tennis instructor and former tennis director at Saddlebrook Resort in Wesley Chapel. “If you build something like this, we do believe that a lot of people will come.”

The meeting also included a discussion of the tennis center’s membership fees, which Collard presented to the council.

An annual individual tennis-only membership is listed at $65 per month. Cheaper price points will be offered for four-person households ($120), individual seniors over 65 years old ($50) and household seniors over 65 years old ($90).

There will be a series of other annual membership packages with various levels of access (bronze, silver, gold, platinum), along with a six-month snowbird membership option to run from October through March.

A platinum membership, for instance, provides access to all courts and in-house tournaments, as well as the center’s fitness room, cryotherapy/salt room, and kid’s club. It also includes a golf membership at Silverado Golf & Country Club. An individual platinum membership (ages 17 and up) is listed at $1,999 annually, paid in full.

By comparison, an individual gold membership, which includes all amenities except golf, is $1,296 annually.

All memberships will include a one-time $250 initiation fee. However, the fee will be waived for the first 250 Zephyrhills residents to sign up for a membership.

There will be a 20 percent discount in memberships for nurses, teachers, military veterans and local and state government employees.

In addition to memberships, the tennis center will offer non-member day passes, daily guest passes and hourly court rental opportunities. It also will be used for receptions, fundraisers and other community events.

The facility also will host free tennis camps and lessons to underprivileged youth on a regular basis through its non-profit counterpart, Sarah Vande Berg Tennis Foundation.

“It’s nothing set in stone,” Collard said of the membership prices. “We can tweak it, we can change it, but it’s pretty much what is done in the U.S. and different places.”

“It reflects in the pricing that we’re really giving everybody the opportunity to benefit from this center,” he added.

The breakeven point for the facility is roughly 450 members, Collard said.

In determining membership costs, Collard and city staffers analyzed membership fees at several other tennis and athletic clubs throughout the Tampa Bay region, such as the Beerman Family Tennis Center in Lakeland and the Cindy Hummel Tennis Center in Auburndale.

“Really, our numbers were very comparable and even sometimes less,” city planning director Todd Vande Berg said of the membership fees. “We’re offering so much more, and we’re not even talking about the restaurant (inside the tennis center clubhouse), so we did take a careful look at the comparisons to make sure they were in line.”

Council members didn’t seem to have qualms about the various price points, instead expressing their eagerness for the forthcoming tennis venture.

“I’m excited about it,” councilwoman Jodi Wilkeson said. “I think about the people that I know that play tennis, that’s a great investment for them and would like to have that opportunity.”

Added councilman Lance Smith: “I think it’s a good partnership and I think we’re going to learn as we go along. I’m just anxious to get the facility going.”

Council president Ken Burgess said it’s “good timing” for the city to get a tennis center, pointing out roadway developments along State Road 54, State Road 56 and the Interstate 75-Overpass Road interchange extension to Zephyrhills.

“I think this is one more thing that’s going to put Zephyrhills on the map,” Burgess said. “I mean, I realize that probably a lot of our (tennis) members may come from not necessarily the city limits, but it’s still going to put Zephyrhills on the map. It’s a great design and I think everything’s coming together, all at the right time, too.”

The tennis center is named after the Sarah Vande Berg, a former Zephyrhills High School district champion, who died in an automobile accident at the age of 21 in October 2015. She was the daughter of longtime city planning director Todd Vande Berg.

Published June 26, 2019

Lexi Kilfoyl named Florida’s best — again

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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.

Academy at the Lakes senior Lexi Kilfoyl repeated as Gatorade Florida Softball Player of the Year. (File)

When it comes to receiving the notable distinction, the Wildcats star is on familiar ground.

The 6-foot-2 right-handed ace and first base slugger won the award last year, too, making her just the third two-time winner from the state, joining Dunnellon’s Kasey Fagan (2009-10) and Spruce Creek’s Kelsi Dunne (2006-07). Kilfoyl is the only Pasco County softball player to have ever won the award.

The Gatorade State Player of the Year award was established in 1985 “to recognize the nation’s most outstanding high school student-athletes for their athletic excellence, academic achievement and exemplary character.”

The 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 honor is surely deserved for Kilfoyl, who’s set to join the University of Alabama softball program on scholarship this fall.

Equipped with a powerful arm and bat, Kilfoyl buoyed Academy at the Lakes to a 19-7 mark and its second straight FHSAA (Florida High School Athletic Association) Class 2A state title last month in Vero Beach.

In the May 21 state championship game — an 11-0 shutout over Mount Dora Christian Academy — Kilfoyl fired a six-inning no-hitter with 10 strikeouts in the circle, and drove in two runs and scored another on two hits at the plate.

Kilfoyl also pitched a one-hit, nine strikeout complete game shutout in the Class 2A semifinals win over Palatka Penel Baptist Academy, while adding in four runs on two hits of her own.

The state finals were a microcosm of sorts for Kilfoyl’s senior campaign and her entire Wildcats career, for that matter.

She registered a 14-1 record with a 0.48 ERA, striking out 134 batters in 72.2 innings pitched, while allowing just 15 hits in 2019. She also produced the best hitting season of her varsity career, posting a .563 batting average with 12 home runs and 37 RBIs, compiling a .653 on-base percentage and a 1.188 slugging percentage.

Making it all the more impressive: Kilfoyl did it all while nursing a trapezius strain, which forced her to abstain from pitching for about a month in the middle of the season.

Because of that, Kilfoyl actually wasn’t expecting to repeat as state player of the year.

“It definitely was kind of a shocker,” Kilfoyl said, “because my pitching stats weren’t the greatest compared to other pitchers that had that month to get their stats up that much more, so I definitely was very surprised and it almost felt very relieving to know that missing one month can’t kill you.”

What Kilfoyl may have lacked in total innings pitched, she more than made up for with the bat, notching career highs in virtually every statistical category.

The month of pitching missed allowed her to better fine-tune her approach at the plate, she said.

“I think because hitting was mainly the only thing I could do, that was my main focus, and I think definitely had something to do with it,” Kilfoyl said, of her batting numbers.

The 2019 season puts a bow on what’s been a lengthy varsity career at AATL, one that began when Kilfoyl was in the seventh grade.

In her previous five seasons combined, Kilfoyl had a 76-15 record, with a 1.13 earned run average and 842 strikeouts across 571.1 innings pitched. She also generated a .466 batting average with 17 home runs, 38 extra base hits and 129 RBIs in 104 games.

For most of her career, Kilfoyl has been widely regarded as one of the nation’s top prep pitchers and college prospects, being named the No. 5 recruit overall in the Class of 2019 by Softball America.

Kilfoyl and Land O’ Lakes High School senior pitcher Callie Turner are among just 20 athletes nationwide who’ve been selection to the 2019 USA Softball Junior Women’s National Training Team. Kilfoyl also made the junior national squad back in 2017, then the team’s youngest member as a 16-year-old sophomore.

Reflecting on her prep career, Kilfoyl said: “I feel like I did accomplish everything that was possible. I definitely feel like I’ve done everything that I could, and couldn’t have done it any other way, no better way to end it.”

And, helping the AATL softball program win its first state title last year goes down as her all-time favorite moment. It was an 11-inning, rain-soaked pitcher’s duel in which the Wildcats defeated Monticello Aucilla Christian 1-0.

“Winning states last year was the most memorable,” Kilfoyl said. “The game was such neck-and-neck, and we didn’t know if we were going to win.”

Kilfoyl, who also was a standout volleyball and basketball at AATL, isn’t the only high-profile athlete in her family, remarkably.

Her older brother, Darin, is a 6-foot-8 right-handed pitcher at Division I University of North Florida. He previously starred on the baseball diamond at AATL and St. Johns River State College. Their younger brother, Andrew, is a rising junior offensive lineman at Gaither High School, who is already garnering Division I interest as a 6-foot-5, 275-pound left tackle. Andrew transferred to Gaither after earning All-State honors in the eight-man football ranks at AATL each of the last two seasons.

Kilfoyl said the family regularly works out together, challenging one another for athletics accomplishments.

“We definitely push each other,” Kilfoyl said, “but then there is also kind of a little bit of competitive side to us, like, ‘Oh I did this better than you,’ just how like siblings are.”

Lexi Kilfoyl – 2019 stats

Pitching: 72.2 innings pitched, 12-1 record, 0.48 ERA, 134 strikeouts, 15 walks, .061 batting average against, .122 on-base percentage against

Batting: .562 batting average, 12 home runs, 12 doubles, 37 RBI, 21 runs, 45 hits, .653 on-base percentage, 1.187 slugging percentage

Published June 19, 2019

Stephenson steps down

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Academy at the Lakes’ Coach Diane Stephenson gives a pep talk to batter Kacey Atkins during a regular season game. (File)

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 coaching career that took her to Indiana, Purdue and Iowa universities, among other stops.

In three seasons at AATL, Stephenson steered the program to three straight district titles, three straight region finals and back-to-back consecutive state championships, to go along with a combined 65-14 mark.

Aside from Kilfoyl and Stephenson, however, much of the 2019 15-player roster could return next season. Outfielder Tristen Gittens was the team’s only other graduating senior.

Land O’ Lakes Athletics Hall of Fame adds members

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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; Vicky King, longtime varsity girls soccer coach; and Mike McBride, an All-State football player and standout wrestler from 1989 to 1993.

The ceremony marked the school’s seventh Hall of Fame induction class, which began in 2013 after the Gators Athletics Foundation was established as a 501c3 nonprofit organization.

Former Tampa Bay Buccaneer and Florida Gators All-American receiver Reidel Anthony served as the keynote speaker for the May 16 induction ceremony.

The foundation’s purpose is to “raise funds through donations and fundraising events for the direct benefit of the athletic programs at Land O’ Lakes High School.”

The mission of the foundation is to enhance the athletic programs at Land O’ Lakes by providing additional funds for facilities, uniforms, transportation and other athletic program needs not covered by traditional school funding.

Here’s a closer look at this year’s inductees:

Stacy Bishop: Female Athlete
Stacy Bishop (Class of ’03) was an All-County and All-District soccer player all four years at Land O’ Lakes, where she registered 192 goals (still a Pasco County record) along with 90 assists. In addition to those accolades, Bishop in 2003 was named Pasco County Athlete of the Year and recognized as an National Soccer Coaches Association of America (NSCAA) Academic All-American.

Former Land O’ Lakes girls soccer standout Stacy Bishop, left, with her former coach Vicky King at the 2019 Land O’ Lakes Athletics Hall of Fame induction ceremony. (Courtesy of Michael Williams)

Bishop went on to play Division I collegiate soccer at Louisiana State University and Florida, developing into a first-team All-American and MAC Hermann Trophy semifinalist (annually given to the nation’s top collegiate soccer player).

Following her collegiate career, Bishop played professional soccer in the Women’s Professional Soccer league, earning stints with the Boston Breakers and Atlanta Beat franchises, respectively.

Vicky King: Coach/Administrator
Vicky King has been a coach at Land O’ Lakes for 33 years, since she joined the school in the mid-1980s.

In her lengthy career, King has racked up a number of achievements coaching both girls soccer and athletes with special needs.

In varsity girls soccer, King is the longest tenured and winningest coach in Pasco County, with a career record of 509 wins, 198 ties and 75 losses. That includes a state championship in 2003 and four other state semifinals appearances (2004, 2015-2017).

Meanwhile, King in 2015 guided the Land O’ Lakes unified soccer team (which joins athletes with and without disabilities) to represent Team USA at the Special Olympics World Games in Los Angeles, which yielded a bronze medal when the team defeated China 2-1. That year she was also named Florida Special Olympics Coach of the Year.

Jerry Brewster: Lifetime Achievement Award
Jerry Brewster (Class of ’86) was a member of both the football and wrestling team at Land O’ Lakes. Among his biggest accomplishments in athletics came on the mat — qualifying for the state wrestling tournament and earning team MVP honors his senior year. He went on to wrestle collegiately for a short time at College of DuPage in Illinois before continuing his education to earn a bachelor’s degree at University of South Florida and a Master of Business Administration (MBA) from the University of Tampa.

Former Land O’ Lakes wrestling standout Jerry Brewster

Upon graduating with his MBA, Brewster has embarked on a career in the wealth management industry, building one the leading wealth management groups in the Tampa Bay area. He was named a 2019 Best-In-State Wealth Advisor by Forbes Magazine, becoming the only wealth advisor in Pasco County to receive the honor.

Aside from his professional career, Brewster has a maintained presence in the Pasco community.

In recent years, he has served on the board of directors of HCA Regional Medical Center-Bayonet Point, Chasco Fiesta, and Rotary Club of New Port Richey. He also has been the auction chairman of the Rotary Club of New Port Richey’s annual Wild Game Dinner for over a decade.

Brewster was instrumental in helping to establish the Land O’ Lakes High School Athletic Hall of Fame in 2013.

John Childers III: Lifetime Achievement Award
John Childers III (Class of ’86) played both basketball and baseball at Land O’ Lakes, with some of his biggest achievements coming on the hardwood.

Former Land O’ Lakes basketball and baseball standout John Childers III

In three seasons on the varsity basketball team, Childers III earned team MVP honors and was a second team All-Gulf Coast Conference selection. He went on to receive a full basketball scholarship to Pasco-Hernando Community College where he was a two-year starter.

Professionally, Childers III advanced through the ranks at Chase Bank and eventually started his own mortgage solution company in 2001, JCIII & Associates Inc. The company grew to 650 employees before being sold in 2015.

Through the company, Childers III helped contribute more than six figures to local charitable causes, such as Moffitt Cancer Center, Derrick Brooks Charities, and others.

Even well into his professional career, Childers III would still attend Land O’ Lakes athletic events and supported various athletic programs. He also helped spearhead the Land O’ Lakes Athletic Hall of Fame with other volunteers.

Mike McBride: Male Athlete
Mike McBride (Class of ’93) was a football and wrestling standout at Land O’ Lakes, earning All-State honors in the former and All-District honors in the latter, while also competing in track and field.

Former Land O’ Lakes football and wrestling standout Mike McBride

On the gridiron, McBride starred as a two-way lineman to become the school’s first All-State football player in 1992 — and is currently one of just five Land O’ Lakes football players to have earned the All-State designation all-time.

On the mat, McBride qualified and finished at or near the top in a number of local, regional and state tournaments. That included a 29-3 mark his senior season, where he won a district individual championship and placed third at regionals, along with collecting individual titles at the East Lake and Springstead Invitational meets.

McBride’s father, Charlie McBride, was inducted into the Land O’ Lakes Athletics Hall of Fame in 2015, for his contributions as a coach and teacher. It marks the first father-son combo to be inducted into the school’s athletics Hall of fame.

Past Land O’ Lakes Athletics Hall of Fame inductees

2018

  • William Gebauer
  • Jeff Hendrix
  • Don Meredith
  • Kirk Peterson
  • Karla Walsh Graziano

2017

  • Allen Claggett
  • Desiree Croteau
  • Doug Hutchinson
  • Michael Keough
  • Stephen Querns

2016

  • 2002-2003 girls soccer team
  • Jerry English
  • Lt. Col. Rhett Hierlmeier
  • Dianne McClendon
  • Phil Teston

2015

  • Kevin Dowling
  • Kenny Gorman
  • Charlie McBride
  • Sharmine McCreary
  • David Singleton

2014

  • John Benedetto
  • Dennis Blankenship
  • RJ McKenna
  • Tina McWithey
  • Will Weatherford

2013

  • Colleen Bentz
  • Tim Harvey
  • Kenneth McCurry
  • Robert Shirmohammad
  • Henry Walls

Published June 12, 2019

Pasco All-Conference spring awards announced

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High school coaches from the Pasco County School District recently announced the Sunshine Athletic Conference (SAC) All-Conference Teams, Athletes of the Year and Coaches of the Year, for the 2018-2019 spring sports season, which included baseball, lacrosse, softball, tennis, track & field, and weightlifting.

Selections were made for both the East and West division for all sports except lacrosse, which consisted of combined All-Conference teams.

The following high schools from the newspaper’s coverage area were represented in the East: Cypress Creek, Land O’ Lakes, Pasco, Sunlake, Wesley Chapel, Wiregrass Ranch and Zephyrhills.

Recipients within The Laker/Lutz News coverage area:

Spring sports (Boys)
All-Conference Boys Lacrosse
Team Champion: Wiregrass Ranch
Coach of the Year: TJ Fitzsimons, Wiregrass Ranch
Offensive Player of the Year: Nick Ferrini, Mitchell
Defensive Player of the Year: Mikel Macias, Sunlake

First Team All-Conference
Robbie Sinibaldi, Mitchell, junior

Ryan Farquhar, Wesley Chapel, junior

Ryan Furlong, Sunlake, junior

Jacob Schwarz, Sunlake, junior

Nick Ferrini, Mitchell, senior

Marc Ciccone, Wiregrass Ranch, sophomore

Mikel Macias, Sunlake, senior

Alex Perugini, Wiregrass Ranch, senior

Sam Saunders, Wesley Chapel, senior

Caleb Embry, Wiregrass Ranch, senior

Second Team All-Conference
Payton Risinger, Mitchell, senior

Sean O’ Brien, Wiregrass Ranch, junior

Christopher Slay, Wesley Chapel, senior

Kyle Santiago, Wesley Chapel, senior

Jalen Seales, Sunlake, freshman

Josiah Barness, Sunlake, senior

Noah Midthun, Mitchell, junior

Donovan Passarello, Sunlake, sophomore

Jason Mazursky, Wiregrass Ranch, senior

Honorable Mention
Marshall Mengel, Sunlake, senior
Aren Rosales, Wesley Chapel, senior
Colton Billett, Sunlake, junior

East All-Conference Baseball
Team Champion: Land O’ Lakes
Coach of the Year: Marshall McDougall, Wiregrass Ranch
Player of the Year: Nick Jennings, Land O’ Lakes

First Team All-Conference
Pitcher: Nick Jennings, Land O’ Lakes, senior

Catcher: Ray Camacho, Cypress Creek, senior

Infielder: Matt Snyder, Cypress Creek, junior

Infielder: Ethan Frasca, Land O’ Lakes, senior

Infielder: Dakota Harris, Land O’ Lakes, junior

Infielder: Nick Plaisted, Sunlake, junior

Outfielder: Austin Coultas, Wesley Chapel, sophomore

Outfielder: Peyton Petry, Cypress Creek, sophomore

Outfielder: Patrick Groark, Land O’ Lakes, junior

Utility/DH: Dawson Place, Sunlake, senior

Second Team All-Conference
Pitcher: Brian Holiday, Land O’ Lakes, sophomore

Catcher: Noah Johnson, Wiregrass Ranch, junior

Infielder: Ethan Petry, Cypress Creek, freshman

Infielder: Spencer Stephens, Land O’ Lakes, junior

Infielder: Bryce Braxton, Pasco, sophomore

Infielder: Robert Boser, Wiregrass Ranch, sophomore

Outfielder: Chris Ferguson, Land O’ Lakes, junior

Outfielder: Zachary Showalter, Wesley Chapel, freshman

Outfielder: Arvind Latchana, Cypress Creek, freshman

Utility/DH: Nick Jennings, Land O’ Lakes, senior

Honorable Mention
Ricky Dunn, Zephyrhills, senior

The Wiregrass Ranch High boys tennis team captured its 10th straight district championship and eighth straight regional championship this season. (Courtesy of Wiregrass Ranch High School Athletics)

East All-Conference Boys Tennis
Team Champion: Wiregrass Ranch
Coach of the Year: Dave Wilson, Wiregrass Ranch
Player of the Year: Kanishkh Ramesh, Wiregrass Ranch, junior

First Team All-Conference
Kanishkh Ramesh, Wiregrass Ranch, junior

Jonathan Judy-Hansen, Zephyrhills, senior

Logan Haga, Pasco, sophomore

Destiny Okungbowa, Wiregrass Ranch, senior

Caelen Arreola, Land O’ Lakes, junior

Second Team All-Conference
Adam Mansour, Wiregrass Ranch, sophomore

Josh Abrams, Wiregrass Ranch, junior

Takashi Xu, Land O’ Lakes, junior

Ryan Kantor, Sunlake, junior

Jake Albrighton, Pasco, sophomore

Honorable Mention
Kai Penalosa, Cypress Creek, freshman
Dillon Kemble, Wesley Chapel, junior

The Sunlake High boys and girls track & field teams both captured conference and district titles during the 2018-2019 season. The boys program also won a regional title, while the girls finished regional runner-up. (Courtesy of Sunlake High School Athletics)

East All-Conference Boys Track & Field
Team Champion: Sunlake
Coach of the Year: Randal Reeves
Track Athlete of the Year: Donte Sol, Wesley Chapel
Field Athlete of the Year: Cartrell Strong, Zephyrhills

First Team All-Conference
4×800 relay: (Sunlake) Dominic Burleson, senior; Luke Scheid, junior; Cade Whitfield, sophomore, Ludcheel Colas, junior

110-meter hurdles: Brian Parker, Wiregrass Ranch, junior

100-meter dash: Cartrell Strong, Zephyrhills, senior

1600-meter run: Dominic Burleson, Sunlake, senior

4×100 relay: (Zephyrhills) Maguire Neal, freshman; Ja’Quan Sheppard, senior; Clayton Cornelius, sophomore; Cartrell Strong, senior

400-meter dash: Donte Sol, Wesley Chapel, senior

300-meter hurdles: Brian Parker, Wiregrass Ranch, senior

800-meter run: Luke Scheid, Sunlake, junior

200-meter dash: Donte Sol, Wesley Chapel, senior

3200-meter run: Dominic Burleson, Sunlake, senior

4×400 relay: (Sunlake) Issac Taveras, junior; Ludcheel Colas, junior; Cade Whitfield, sophomore; Luke Scheid, junior

Shot Put: Kasean Ridgel, Wiregrass Ranch, senior

Pole Vault: Shayne Tenpow, Sunlake, senior

High Jump: Isaiah Burns, Wesley Chapel, sophomore

Long Jump: Jacquez Mobley, Pasco, senior

Triple Jump: Cartrell Strong, Zephyrhills, senior

Discus: Joey Perez, Sunlake, senior

Second Team All-Conference
4×800 relay: (Wiregrass Ranch) Alejandro Medina, senior; Alex Morales Ramos, junior; Sebastian Hernandez, sophomore; Anthony Dimarco, junior

110-meter hurdles: Abdullah Mbowe, Sunlake, senior

100-meter dash: Keith Walker, Wiregrass Ranch, junior

1600-meter run: Gavin Kennedy, Sunlake, junior

4×100 relay: (Wesley Chapel) Donte Sol, senior; Brandon Hitch, senior; Jelani Vassell, senior; J.T. Anderson, sophomore

400-meter dash: Alex Hayden, Wesley Chapel, junior

300-meter hurdles: Maguire Neal, Zephyrhills, freshman

800-meter run: Ludcheel Colas, Sunlake, junior

200-meter dash: Keith Walker, Wiregrass Ranch, junior

3200-meter run: Drew Knobl, Sunlake, junior

Shot Put: James Kirkley, Sunlake, senior

Pole Vault: Chandler Tucker, Land O’ Lakes, senior

High Jump: Gabriel Vazquez, Cypress Creek, senior; Michael Adeshina, Wiregrass Ranch, senior

Long Jump: Ja’Quan Sheppard, Zephyrhills, senior

Triple Jump: Ja’Quan Sheppard, Zephyrhills, senior

Discus: Isaac Tavo, Land O’ Lakes, sophomore

The Zephyrhills High boys weightlifting team won both conference and district titles this season. They also finished regional runner-up. (Courtesy of Zephyrhills High School Athletics)

East All-Conference Boys Weightlifting
Team Champion: Zephyrhills
Coach of the Year: Chris Barrick, Zephyrhills
Athlete of the Year: Caleb Huff, Sunlake

First Team All-Conference
119 pounds: Caleb Huff, Sunlake, senior

129 pounds: Victor Velez, Sunlake, senior

139 pounds: Connor O’ Malley, Cypress Creek, senior

154 pounds: Wesley Colas, Sunlake, senior

169 pounds: Kevin Sacco, Land O’ Lakes, senior

183 pounds: Ja’varrius Wilson, Zephyrhills, junior

199 pounds: Samuel Bergeron, Zephyrhills, senior

219 pounds: Caleb Keeling, Zephyrhills, senior

238 pounds: Cameron Helms, Zephyrhills, senior

Heavyweight/Unlimited: Ethan Vest, Zephyrhills, senior

Second Team All-Conference
119 pounds: Garrett Ellison, Zephyrhills, senior

129 pounds: Alex Alvarez, Wiregrass Ranch, senior

139 pounds: Jerimiah Wolfe, Sunlake, senior

154 pounds: Alex Hall, Sunlake, senior

169 pounds: Andreas Portillo, Sunlake, sophomore

183 pounds: Kyle Leivas, Land O’ Lakes, senior

199 pounds: Kris Chandler, Wesley Chapel, senior

219 pounds: Ethan Forrester, Land O’ Lakes, junior

238 pounds: Corbin Doers, Land O’ Lakes, senior

Heavyweight/Unlimited: Kasean Ridgel, Wiregrass Ranch, senior

Spring sports (Girls)

The Pasco High girls tennis team won conference and district titles this season, and reached the Class 3A-2 regional finals. (Courtesy of Pasco High School Athletics)

East All-Conference Girls Tennis
Team Champion: Pasco
Coach of the Year: Don Charlick
Player of the Year: Courtney Piltaver, Land O’ Lakes

First Team All-Conference
Sitara Sriram, Pasco, junior

Courtney Piltaver, Land O’ Lakes, junior

Phoebe Teo, Wiregrass Ranch, junior

Hope Johnson, Zephyrhills, senior

Alex Barath, Pasco, sophomore

Second Team All-Conference
Paige Johnson, Zephyrhills, senior

Regina Lugo, Wiregrass Ranch, junior

Mariel Camino, Wiregrass Ranch, sophomore

Taylor Moore, Pasco, junior

Natalia Rivera, Wiregrass Ranch, sophomore

East All-Conference Girls Track & Field
Team Champion: Sunlake
Coach of the Year: Brett Hodros, Sunlake
Track Athlete of the Year: Liina Winborn, Sunlake
Field Athlete of the Year: Lauryn Beacham, Sunlake

First Team All-Conference
4×800 relay: (Sunlake) Shannon Gordy, sophomore; Ashley Spires, sophomore; Emma Burleson, freshman; Justine Ruhlman, senior

100-meter hurdles: Allison Fleming, Wiregrass Ranch, junior

100-meter dash: Delcina Gillespie, Cypress Creek, junior

1600-meter run: Liina Winborn, Sunlake, junior

4×100 relay: (Sunlake) Nia Johnson, junior; Jaymonda Calmes, senior; Gianna Levy, junior; Hannah Kilmer, junior

400-meter dash: Gianna Levy, Sunlake, junior

300-meter hurdles: Allison Fleming, Wiregrass Ranch, junior

800-meter run: Liina Winborn, Sunlake, junior

200-meter dash: Gianna Levy, Sunlake, junior

3200-meter run: Natalie Abernathy, Land O’ Lakes, senior

4×400 relay: (Land O’ Lakes) Ashley Doers, junior; Lauren Bates, junior; Abigail Perez, junior; Lizzie Epps, freshman

Shot Put: Lauryn Beacham, Sunlake, senior

Pole Vault: Juliette Pacheco, Sunlake, junior

High Jump: Ondrasha Joel, Wiregrass Ranch, freshman

Long Jump: Gianna Levy, Sunlake, junior

Triple Jump: Jayda Forester, Sunlake, junior

Discus: Lauryn Beacham, Sunlake, senior

Second Team All-Conference
4×800 relay: (Wiregrass Ranch) Kate Moore, junior; Guadalupe Guerra, sophomore; Madelynn Abrahamasen, senior; Mya Hill, sophomore

100-meter hurdles: Kat Fleming, Wiregrass Ranch, freshman

100-meter dash: Zharia Wilson, Wesley Chapel, junior

1600-meter run: Natalie Abernathy, Land O’ Lakes, junior

4×100 relay: (Cypress Creek) Shaniqua Hicks, senior; Alyssa Pollicita, freshman; Ashleigh Lacey, sophomore; Delcina Gillespie, junior

400-meter dash: Lauren Bates, Land O’ Lakes, junior

300-meter hurdles: Hannah Kilmer, Sunlake, junior

800-meter run: Shannon Gordy, Sunlake, sophomore

200-meter dash: Nia Johnson, Sunlake, junior

3200-meter run: Estafania Acosta, Land O’ Lakes, senior

4×400 relay: (Wiregrass Ranch) Emily Beazley, senior; Dahlia Williams, freshman; Mya Hill, sophomore; Madelynn Abrahamasen, senior

Shot Put: Antoinette Farmer, Sunlake, junior

Pole Vault: Micala Jones, Sunlake, senior

High Jump: Emiliana Sorrell, Sunlake, junior

Long Jump: Ashleigh Lacey, Cypress Creek, sophomore

Triple Jump: Allison Fleming, Wiregrass Ranch, junior

Discus: Antoinette Farmer, Sunlake, junior

Honorable Mention
Journee Byrd, Pasco, senior
Jaydean Ireland, Zephyrhills, junior

The Sunlake High softball team won its first Sunshine Athletic Conference East title in program history this season. They went on to reach the Class 7A regional finals, ending the season with a 24-3 mark. (Courtesy of Sunlake High Athletics)

East All-Conference Softball
Team Champion: Sunlake
Coach of the Year: Nelson Garcia, Sunlake
Player of the Year: Jenna Lord, Sunlake

First Team All-Conference
Pitcher: Callie Turner, Land O’ Lakes, senior

Catcher: Neely Peterson, Cypress Creek, senior

Infielder: Jenna Lord, Sunlake, sophomore

Infielder: Miranda Perez, Wiregrass Ranch, senior

Infielder: Jasmine Jackson, Cypress Creek, senior

Infielder: April Lorton, Zephyrhills, senior

Outfielder: Kendra Falby, Sunlake, sophomore

Outfielder: Paige Maseda, Sunlake, senior

Outfielder: Shelby Westbrook, Land O’ Lakes, senior

Utility/DH/DP: Alexis Duff, Sunlake, senior

Second Team All-Conference
Pitcher: Jordan Almasy, Wesley Chapel, junior

Catcher: Jolene Bodner, Land O’ Lakes, sophomore

Infielder: Ashley Nickisher, Cypress Creek, senior

Infielder: Nehanda Lewis, Land O’ Lakes, freshman

Infielder: Logan Coward, Wesley Chapel, senior

Infielder: Ashley Garrison, Wesley Chapel, sophomore

Outfielder: Miranda Schwartz, Cypress Creek, freshman

Outfielder: Emma Coon, Cypress Creek, sophomore

Outfielder: Brooke Stanley, Land O’ Lakes, junior

Utility/DH/DP: Mackenzie Petty, Pasco, sophomore

Honorable Mention
Alyssa Cordoba, Sunlake, junior

Mikayla Hoschak, Sunlake, sophomore

Haylee Fernandez, Land O’ Lakes, senior

Ally Fraley, Wesley Chapel, junior

Madelyn Golka, Wesley Chapel, freshman

Anna Margetis, Cypress Creek, junior

Avery Lee, Cypress Creek, senior

Ashtin Jordan, Wiregrass Ranch, senior

Loryn Finn, Wiregrass Ranch, junior

Kelsey Kadlub, Pasco, sophomore

De’onna Brown, Pasco, sophomore

Kyleigh Smith, Zephyrhills, junior

Hayley Myers, Zephyrhills, sophomore

All-Conference Girls Lacrosse
Team Champion: Wiregrass Ranch
Coach of the Year: Craig Havemann
Offensive Player of the Year: Charlotte Vari, Mitchell
Defensive Player of the Year: Sydney Maziarz, Cypress Creek

First Team All-Conference
Charlotte Vari, Mitchell, junior

Morgan Gregory, Wiregrass Ranch, senior

Jenna Kiley, Wiregrass Ranch, junior

Dinah Hardin, Wesley Chapel, senior

Addison Metcalf, Cypress Creek, junior

Madison Gregory, Wiregrass Ranch, senior

Patricia Batchelor, Land O’ Lakes, senior

Grace Young, Mitchell, sophomore

Jordan Alvis, Cypress Creek, senior

Lauren Williams, Wiregrass Ranch, senior

Chadee Smith, Mitchell, sophomore

Sydney Maziarz, Cypress Creek, senior

Second Team All-Conference
Emily Huntzinger, Land O’ Lakes, junior

Emily Rushing, Mitchell, junior

Kyleigh Lashuk, Mitchell, freshman

Peggy D’Alessandro, Wiregrass Ranch, senior

Annabel Murk, Cypress Creek, junior

Amanda Erenberg-Diaz, Land O’ Lakes, junior

Mallori Hotaling, Land O’ Lakes, junior

Jenny Endres, Wiregrass Ranch, senior

Kamryn Smart, Wesley Chapel, sophomore

Lily Jacey, Cypress Creek, sophomore

Brianna Seagers, Cypress Creek, sophomore

Alexa Dusch, Mitchell, sophomore

Published June 05, 2019

Hockey team formed for Land O’ Lakes High

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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.

Joshua Whitman, team manager and one of the people responsible for creating the newly formed Land O’ Lakes High School hockey team, watches the first period of game play through the glass. The Land O’ Lakes resident uses his tablet during the game to do live tracking of stats and to manage the live stream video. (Christine Holtzman)

This coming fall, the Land O’ Lakes High School hockey club will begin its first season in the Lightning High School Hockey League, or the LHSHL.

The Gators becomes the 19th school to join the league. The league is operated by the Tampa Bay Lightning, and features varsity level programs throughout Hillsborough, Manatee, Pasco, Pinellas, Polk and Sarasota counties.

Hockey is not a sanctioned sport by the Florida High School Athletic Association, the official governing body for interscholastic athletics in Florida.

And, since most high schools don’t have enough players to field a team, the LHSHL has what’s called catchments, where it combines players usually from three or four different high schools to form a team.

Previously, Land O’ Lakes students would be zoned to play for the Mitchell Mustangs hockey team, which also includes players from Mitchell and Sunlake high schools.

While the other players keep their eyes on the ice, Peter Tedeschi, of Land O’ Lakes, turns to wave to some friends who came to support the team. The Gators squared off against the Wiregrass Ranch Hockey Club in their inaugural game on April 19 at Advent Hospital Center Ice in Wesley Chapel.

With their sons, who play travel league hockey together, set to be high school freshmen next year, Whitman and O’Connor didn’t want them to get lost on an already overpopulated Mitchell roster.

They also wanted them, and others, to get a true high school athletic experience — able to solely represent the Gators with their fellow Land O’ Lakes classmates.

O’ Connor put it this way: “It’s fun because we all live in the same community and we all see each other at school. It’s like playing on the high school football team, with all the people from the same area. That’s what’s cool about it. You can tell the enthusiasm from the kids.”

The parents got the blessing of the LHSHL to start a team and enlisted the help of USA Hockey to determine if Land O’ Lakes had enough players to make it all work.

They also canvassed social media to gauge interest from Land O’ Lakes families.

Gators player Michael Yevstratov, center, No. 5, heads the attack into the offensive zone after a center ice face-off win. His teammate, Ian Ravens, right, No. 13 , prepares to join Yevstratov in the battle.

The response was overwhelmingly positive.

“I was so surprised how enthusiastic everybody was and how supportive everyone was. That was the key. That’s what I think was good,” O’ Connor said.

Once it was confirmed their community had the hard numbers to fill a club roster, the dads created a nonprofit foundation, Central Pasco Youth Hockey Foundation Inc., to help with fundraising and sponsorships efforts, and oversee the general operation of the team.

They also went about filling a coaching staff, which is now led by Bill Karas, a Minnesota native who brings more than 50 years of coaching and scouting experience to the club.

The entire endeavor took all of about six months.

Joe Eisenberg, the team’s assistant coach, is calling out to his players during the first period of the game. The coach is generally yelling instructions on where to go on the ice or for players to return to the bench for a shift change.

“We just kept moving forward, and it just kind of snowballed,” Whitman said. “Looking back now, it did fly by. It was good we started early and got things done as fast as possible.”

Unlike most LHSHL teams, the Gators will have what’s called a “pure” team, with its entire roster made up of players who attend Land O’ Lakes High or are home-schooled and live within school boundaries.

It undoubtedly adds a school spirit factor to the team.

The hockey club raised about $1,800 selling Gators hockey sweatshirts alone, Whitman said, to help offset equipment and registration costs.

“It’s created quite a buzz at the school,” said Whitman. “One of the things that we want to try to do is kind of change the culture about high school hockey here in Florida, because it kind of is a secondary thought for most kids.”

The Gators hockey club actually began play this spring in a league operated by local rinks that’s independent of the LHSHL. The spring league is designed as a prelude to the fall season for current eighth-graders through high school juniors.

Gators Head Coach Bill Karas watches his players on defense. Karas, a Minnesota native, is a USA Hockey Level 4 certified coach and brings nearly 50 years of hockey experience to the Gators bench.

The spring roster has 28 players. That includes three high school juniors, a sophomore and a freshman, 15 eighth graders, and 10 seventh graders on the practice squad.

The club’s first-ever game was on April 19, when it faced Wiregrass Ranch High at AdventHealth Center Ice in Wesley Chapel.

It was a memorable game for all, including the Gators head coach, who has seen just about everything in his five decade-long hockey career.

“First game here, we probably had 200 people. It was incredible. You don’t see that at a Minnesota high school game,” Karas said. “I was very impressed with the support that we’re getting from the Land O’ Lakes community, and I’m just glad to be part of it.”

The hockey dads and coaches aren’t the only ones excited about the Land O’ Lakes hockey venture. Players are, too, of course.

Leftwing Ian Ravens is one of the roster’s older, more experienced players, as a 16-year-old junior.

After the historic game, the Land O’Lakes High School Gators and the Wiregrass Ranch Hockey Club gathered for a group picture on the ice.

After playing in recreation leagues for many years, Ravens is glad to finally represent his high school in hockey gear.

“It’s a big thing. I’m looking forward to our senior nights, stuff like that, things that I wouldn’t be able to do playing for Mitchell or another team,” said Ravens.

“I think we’re going to get a lot of recognition in the school. We have a lot of fans,” he added.

Meantime, Ravens is confident about the team’s prospects in the LHSHL regular season, which runs roughly from September through February.

Though the fall roster will mostly be composed of incoming freshman, the rising senior feels the upstart team can hold its own. In the spring league, the Gators have won a few games and remained competitive in others.

“I think that we’re going to go in strong, which we have to,” said Ravens, who’s been playing recreational hockey for about 11 years. “We’re going to be playing a lot of different teams, not just the teams that we’re playing now (in the spring). We’ve got to be more physical, which I definitely see in everyone. I see that we have a lot of potential. I think we’re going to go far with it.”

Published May 29, 2019

Sunlake girls weightlifting coach earns statewide honor

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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.

Sunlake High girls weightlifting head coach Denise Garcia hoists the Class 2A state championship trophy at the 2019 Florida High School Athletic Association state meet in Panama City. Garcia has coached the school’s girls weightlifting program for 11 years. (Courtesy of Denise Garcia)

The veteran coach groomed eight lifters who competed in this year’s state meet. Six earned state medalist honors by placing among the top six individual finishes. The awards came across various weight classifications.

All told, the Seahawks registered 22 points collectively to defeat second-place Vero Beach High, which finished with 19 points.

Sunlake’s title also marked the end of the sport’s longest active streak of consecutive team state championships, which had been held by Navarre High School. Navarre had claimed four titles, from 2015 through 2018. This year, Navarre tied for seventh place.

Garcia’s efforts earned her the distinction of being named Florida Dairy Farmers Girls Weightlifting Coach of the Year. The award was announced last month.

Despite her program’s memorable 2019 campaign, Garcia remains taken aback by the designation as the state’s top girls weightlifting coach.

“As far as me getting this award, it’s a total surprise. It’s amazing, because there’s so many great coaches out there,” said Garcia, who wrapped up her 11th year as Sunlake girls weightlifting coach.

The recognition is always nice, of course.

But, for Garcia, it’s more important to see her high school lifters reach their potential and succeed in competition.

The coach put it this way: “All the awards you get, it all means a lot, (but) you don’t do it for getting an award, you do it for your team and to make them better. You do what you’re supposed to do for the team.”

Garcia praised her athletes — past and present — for being coachable and working hard along the way.

“I’ve just been blessed and I’m lucky enough to have girls with a good work ethic that want to learn, that want to buy into my program, and you see what happens,” Garcia said.

Under head coach Denise Garcia, the Sunlake varsity girls weightlifting team won its first-ever state crown. The Seahawks took eight lifters to the state meet, six of whom earned medalist honors on the way to the Florida High School Athletic Association’s Class 2A state title.

The coach outlined the recipe for success in the sport: “It’s a balance. It’s a balance of good work ethics, your program, being coachable. It’s just an everyday thing. They need to listen. It’s this formula they have to have. It’s got to be the whole, total package.”

Garcia said most of the girls she coaches initially begin with little background in weightlifting. Often, they discover a passion for the sport.

In Florida, high school weightlifters compete in the bench press and clean-and-jerk.

“It’s just teaching from the bottom up, and they absolutely fall in love with weightlifting,” Garcia said. “It’s something about weightlifting, and once they get hooked, that’s it.”

Garcia herself got her first taste of weightlifting as a student at Leto High School in Tampa. A softball and volleyball player, she learned “old-school” weight training techniques from the likes of FHSAA Hall of Fame coach and athletic director Vernon Korhn, and others.

“It’s just old-time coaches that would let me go in the weight room and work out, and I just fell in love with it,” she said.

Garcia figured she could take her knowledge of pumping iron and develop a program for girls when she was hired to work at Sunlake.

“I was like, ‘My god, I can do something with this program.’ I love weightlifting, so I put something together and there it is, it worked out,” said Garcia.

Garcia said she will be coaching the team again next year.

It’s frankly a no-brainer, with a roster that expects to return all but two of its individual state qualifiers from last year.

That includes rising junior Madison Guincho and rising seniors Gianna Levy, Juliette Pacheco, Abigail Schmook, Antoinette Farmer and Brianna Caban.

There’s also other up-and-coming lifters in the program, Garcia said, that could help Sunlake repeat as state champs.

“We have a lot of talent on this team,” the coach said.

And, besides the possibility of securing another state crown, Garcia hopes to witness one of her own lifters be named Florida Dairy Farmers Miss Weightlifting. Vero Beach senior Jayda Jenkins earned that honor this year after claiming the Class 2A individual state title at 119 pounds.

“That would be awesome. Oh my gosh, that would be awesome,” Garcia said.

The Florida Dairy Farmers High School Sports Awards program annually honors the state’s top athletes and coaches in all 30 FHSAA sanctioned and recognized sports. The program is in its 27th year.

Published May 22, 2019

Locals stand out at track championships

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Wharton junior Zach Godbold, center, was crowned state champion in the FHSAA’s first-ever javelin event, posting a 171-11 mark. (Courtesy of Wharton High athletics)

Local high school athletes ran, jumped and tossed their way to standout showings at the 2019 Florida High School Athletic Association (FHSAA) state track and field championships.

More than two dozen boys and girls athletes from The Laker/Lutz News coverage area earned medalist honors, or top-eight finishes, across all classifications at the state meet, on May 4 and May 5 at the University of North Florida in Jacksonville.

That included a pair of individual state champions — Zephyrhills senior Cartrell Strong and Wharton junior Zach Godbold.

Strong took first place in the Class 2A triple jump (47-5.25), edging Tallahassee Rickards High’s M’Kharis Lindsey (47-2.5).

Strong, a Morehouse College football signee, also placed fourth in the boys long jump (23-0.5) and was the anchor leg of the Bulldogs’ eighth place 4×100-meter relay team that clocked 43.14. The relay team also featured junior Ja’varrius Wilson, senior Ja’Quan Sheppard and sophomore Clayton Cornelius.

The Zephyrhills boys track and field team finished in ninth place overall in Class 2A, tops among all local programs. This is the Bulldogs’ medalist-earning 4×100 relay team, from left: junior Ja’varrius Wilson, senior Cartrell Strong, sophomore Clayton Cornelius and senior Ja’Quan Sheppard. (Courtesy of Zephyrhills High athletics)

Godbold, meanwhile, captured the state individual title in the boys javelin, posting a 171-11 mark.

The throw bested Calvary Christian’s Jack Garey, who finished second overall with a 163-8 mark.

Godbold’s feat holds some extra significance as he becomes the FHSAA’s first individual boys champion in the javelin. The governing body added the javelin as a provisional event and opted to crown a champion this year after it had been an exhibition event the past two years. Next season, the javelin will begin to accumulate points toward team scores when it becomes the FHSAA’s 18th sanctioned track and field event.

Meantime, Gaither senior LaSarah Hargrove registered the highest finish among local girls by placing second in the Class 3A 100-meter dash, timing 11.74. Hargrove, a University of Iowa track signee, also placed fourth in the 200-meter run (24.15).

Local schools that earned points in the state meet were: Carrollwood Day, Gaither, Steinbrenner, Sunlake, Wesley Chapel, Wiregrass Ranch and Zephyrhills.

The Zephyrhills boys track and field team finished ninth overall in Class 2A, tops among all local teams. That was followed by the Carrollwood Day and Gaither girls teams, who earned 14th-place finishes in Classes 1A and 3A, respectively.

Published May 15, 2019

Gaither High senior sprinter LaSarah Hargrove finished Class 3A state-runner up in the 100-meter dash. Hargrove, a University of Iowa track commit, also finished fourth in the 200 meters. (Courtesy of Gaither HIgh athletics)

Class 1A
Boys –Teams
Carrollwood Day School (24th place)

Medalists

110-meter hurdles- Seth Cribben, Carrollwood, senior (third, 15.33)

Triple Jump – Christopher Sheppard III, Carrollwood, junior (fifth, 43-2.5)

Girls
Teams
Carrollwood Day (14th place)

Medalists

4×100 meter – Carrollwood: Camila Garanton, freshman; Emma Architetto, junior; Stephanie Bainbridge, sophomore; Sophie Haag, eighth grade (third, 49.35)

Pole vault – Hailey Crow, Carrollwood, senior (second, 10-4)

Triple jump – Tionna Waters, Carrollwood, junior (fifth, 35-10)

Class 2A
Boys – Teams
Zephyrhills (ninth place)

Medalists

4×100 meter – Zephyrhills: Ja’varrius Wilson, junior; Jaquan Sheppard, senior; Clayton Cornelius, sophomore; Cartrell Strong, senior (eighth, 43.14)

Long jump – Cartrell Strong, Zephyrhills, senior (fourth, 23-0.5)

Triple jump – Cartrell Strong, Zephyrhills, senior (first, 47-5.25); Ja’Quan Sheppard, Zephyrhills, senior (sixth, 45-0.25)

Girls – No results

Class 3A
Boys – Teams
Wesley Chapel (34th place); Sunlake (37th)

Medalists

400 meter – Donte Sol, Wesley Chapel, senior (third, 48.12)

1600 meters – Dominic Burleson, Sunlake, senior (sixth, 4:24.19)

Discus – Joseph Perez, Sunlake, senior (seventh, 152-2)

Girls – Teams
Gaither (14th place); Sunlake (38th)

Medalists

100 meter – LaSarah Hargrove, Gaither, senior (second, 11.74)

200 meter – LaSarah Hargrove, Gaither, senior (fourth, 24.15)

Pole vault – Elizabeth Lydon, Gaither, sophomore (third, 11-3.75); Juliette Pacheco, Sunlake, junior (seventh, 10-10)

Class 4A
Boys – Teams
Wharton (32nd place); Steinbrenner (46th); Wiregrass Ranch (53rd)

Medalists

3200 meter – Tre Rivers, Wharton, senior (third, 9:24.85)

Long jump – Aidan Bitter, Steinbrenner, junior (fifth, 22-1)

Shot put – Kasean Ridgel, Wiregrass Ranch, senior (seventh, 50-0.75)

Javelin – Zach Godbold, Wharton, junior (first, 171-11)

Girls – Teams
Wharton (23rd place); Steinbrenner (40th)

Medalists

100 meter – Zayne Jack, Steinbrenner, junior (fourth, 11.98)

400 meter – Ken’Naria Gadson, Wharton, junior (third, 54.75)

Pole vault – Marley Derigo, Wharton, junior (fifth, 10-4)