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Wiregrass Ranch is ready to defend state tennis title

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The Wiregrass Ranch boys’ tennis team earned a share of the Class 3A state championship last season. As a result, they knew expectations would be high headed into 2015. For his part, coach David Wilson has already admitted he doesn’t think the team will be as good as last year.

He thinks it will be better.

Alejandro Feliciano is a nationally ranked player by the United States Tennis Association, and he’s just one of many threats that opponents will face when they challenge Wiregrass Ranch on the court. (Courtesy of Alejandro Feliciano)
Alejandro Feliciano is a nationally ranked player by the United States Tennis Association, and he’s just one of many threats that opponents will face when they challenge Wiregrass Ranch on the court.
(Courtesy of Alejandro Feliciano)

“This will be the deepest team we’ve had,” Wilson said of the current lineup. “We actually added depth and strength to our team.”

Part of that depth and strength will come from a familiar last name.

Augie Moreno, defending state champion and a top player on the team, will welcome his little brother, Daniel, to the squad as a freshman. And with the championship team mostly intact from last year, the Bulls look to be stronger than ever.

That’s a significant statement, since Wiregrass Ranch has had successful tennis teams almost from its inception. Wilson has built a strong program since he took the job for the school’s opening athletic season in 2006-07. While the tennis title was the first state championship in school history, it was their third trip to the state tournament. And the district title was nothing new, either. Wilson said it was the team’s fifth-straight district championship.

Part of the team’s success stems from the excellent competition they face in practice. Wilson said the top players are all very competitive, and are capable of beating each other on any given day. So, honing their skills against each other makes the team stronger.

“If you’re always playing against competitive players within your own team, then you’re just going to keep getting better,” Wilson said.

Senior Alejandro Feliciano, who was ranked fourth on the team last season, agrees that the team has taken steps forward as it tries to defend its title.

“We actually have better players this year,” he said.

Feliciano is one of those great players, with a United States Tennis Association ranking inside the top 100 and a national ranking around 306 for players 18 and under.

While sheer talent gives Wiregrass Ranch a clear advantage over most schools, Feliciano said that their coach plays a big role as well. Instead of trying to force them to adapt to his strategies, he gives them the leeway to simply put their talent on display while he provides support however he can.

“I think it’s the fact that he bonds with us as if he were somebody our own age,” he said. “It’s like he’s one of us.”

Wilson is part of the tennis program because he had a characteristic nobody else had when the school began athletic play: He was willing to do it.

“When I took the job, nobody else wanted it,” he said. A recreational player, he knows that many of his players can beat him on the court. But his job is to provide support, let them have fun and create a positive experience that keeps them wanting to participate in high school sports.

Creating that desire is no easy accomplishment, since many players have their own personal coaches, a bright future in tennis and don’t really need the high school team to further their careers.

“I think that’s the one thing that makes me the proudest, is that kids want to play in my program,” Wilson said. “My saying for all my sports (Wilson is also the school’s boys’ soccer coach and athletic director) is the experience outweighs the outcome. If it’s not a great experience for them, what’s the sense of doing it?”

Part of that experience includes hitting the road to face elevated competition. Wiregrass Ranch will travel to Florida State University in Tallahassee next month to face Pensacola Catholic High School, one of the state’s top tennis teams. In March, they’ll travel to Chattanooga, Tennessee for the national high school tournament.

Wilson isn’t concerned about a letdown after achieving a state title. The team is full of skilled players with plenty of experience and a good working relationship together. But they also know that they had to share their state title with Barron Collier High School in Naples, since they finished with the same amount of points in the competition.

Being “co-champion” helps to motivate them to claim the title for themselves in 2015, Wilson said.

“The fact that we weren’t outright champions by ourselves, we still have something to prove,” he said.

Published January 21, 2015

Table For One: Local Claims Silver at Senior Games

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Bruce Holck of Wesley Chapel won a silver medal at last month’s Florida International Senior Games & State Championships. But the road to that medal began seven decades earlier in a New Jersey home.

“My father had a table in the basement,” Holck said. “That’s what started it all.”

At 78 years old, Bruce Holck of Wesley Chapel is still taking home medals for table tennis. He placed second (and qualified for the national tournament) at the Florida International Senior Games & State Championships last month. (Michael Murillo/Staff Photo)
At 78 years old, Bruce Holck of Wesley Chapel is still taking home medals for table tennis. He placed second (and qualified for the national tournament) at the Florida International Senior Games & State Championships last month.
(Michael Murillo/Staff Photo)

The game was table tennis, also known as pingpong, and he learned how to play as a young boy. It stayed him over the years, from starting a table tennis club in Delaware to regular games in New York. He then decided to see how he stacked up by joining the Senior Games.

That was 20 years ago.

Holck, 78, competed in the New York Senior Games for a couple of decades, earning medals in both individual and doubles matches. By finishing in the top three in his age group he also earned several berths into the national games, which are held every other year. He won the doubles competition at the national games around 10 years ago.

So when he came to Wesley Chapel last year, Holck knew he wanted to participate in Florida’s version of the games. But with more players here, he had to qualify through a regional system. He attended several regional competitions throughout the state, even after he qualified, to get a feel for the state’s talent and scout out some of the competition.

Holck said the state has excellent players, and he enjoys competing against Florida’s best. He also appreciates playing people in his own age group, which isn’t always possible when he plays recreationally.

“I play in Land O’ Lakes (at the Land O’ Lakes Recreation Complex), and I’m quite sure I’m the oldest person playing there. I’m playing people who are younger and can move quite a bit better than I can now,” Holck said. “When you play in the Senior Games you’re playing somebody in your own age group.”

While Holck said the game is still fun for him — he even enjoys watching competitive table tennis — playing at a top level can be serious business. The game has changed a bit over the decades, he said, from reducing the number of points that make up a game to playing with a slightly larger ball.

But one of the biggest changes is in the paddle. Over time, it’s become a complicated piece of sports equipment. At one time there were simply the traditional rubber dimples on a paddle with nothing behind it. Now there’s a sponge-like material behind the rubber, and different groove designs that will cause different reactions with the ball. And when paddles have different designs on each side, they have different colors so the opponent might predict how the ball will be responding.

For Holck, another thing that’s changed is his age. Over the years he’s retained his hand-eye coordination, but isn’t as fast as he used to be. But he still plays at a high level, so when he defeats a young player, he’s philosophical about the victory.

“I’ll congratulate them and say ‘Well, that’s the last time I’ll be able to beat you because you’re getting better and I’m slowing up,'” Holck said.

But he isn’t slowing up too much, as evidenced by his second-place finish last month in Estero. He also qualified for the national tournament in singles and doubles, but isn’t sure if he’ll travel to Minnesota for the competition next year. His current schedule usually involves weekly play with the locals, and he also has a table at home, like his father did, so he can play when the mood strikes him. Holck even has a special robot that can simulate serves instead of just playing alone against a flat surface.

He also has a supportive wife of 55 years, Louise, who used to play herself. As she got older she let the game go, but she still cheers on her husband in his competitive contests.

“He takes it very seriously. It’s his passion,” she said.

And while he loves table tennis and plans to keep playing, he knows it’s not the most important thing in his life.

“She sometimes claims I think more of table tennis than her,” he said with a laugh. “But that’s not right, of course.”

Saint Leo claims fifth place in Directors’ Cup standings

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When it comes to National Collegiate Athletic Association Division II sports, not many schools are faring better than Saint Leo University.

In the final fall standings for the Learfield Sports Division II Directors’ Cup, Saint Leo is sitting in fifth place with 242 points, best in its Sunshine State Conference. That is the highest current standing for any Florida school — the University of Tampa is currently 14th with 179 points.

Saint Leo’s soccer success is just one of the reasons that the university sits in fifth place in the Directors’ Cup standings. (Courtesy of Saint Leo University)
Saint Leo’s soccer success is just one of the reasons that the university sits in fifth place in the Directors’ Cup standings.
(Courtesy of Saint Leo University)

In a competition that includes hundreds of schools, the Lions find themselves in a position that’s new to them.

“I have seen the good and the bad,” said Fran Reidy, director of athletics for Saint Leo University. “For a number of years we’d be happy if we were inside in the top 100.”

Reidy has been with the school for many of those years. Aside from heading up the athletic department since 1999, he’s been involved with the school for 27 years, including a role as their soccer coach.

In that time, he’s seen a renewed commitment to athletic play at the university. An increase in sports participation (the school had just 10 sports programs in 1998 compared to 19 today), commitment to hiring good coaches, and more resources in scholarships have led to a strong overall program. And that’s the key to a good showing in the Directors’ Cup.

Rather than judge a school’s best sport, the competition is a measure of all the sports in an athletic program. Schools receive points based on their finish in each respective sport. But if a school doesn’t participate in a particular sport, they get zero points. Saint Leo doesn’t have a football or women’s field hockey program, for example, so it did not receive points in those categories.

The university does have strong soccer programs, and with top-10 finishes for both the men’s and women’s teams they were able to collect the majority of their points. Good showings in cross-country and volleyball (all of their fall sports reached their respective post-seasons, which means they all collected points) rounded out the fall scoring.

While the fifth place ranking is the school’s highest, it’s really a continuation of its upward trajectory. Last year Saint Leo was 20th after the fall standings and finished 18th when winter and spring contests were completed. The men’s teams have won the conference’s Mayors’ Cup the past two years.

For a former soccer coach, serving as director of athletics allows Reidy to execute a game plan on a schoolwide scale, and see it play out across a number of sports.

“There’s a competitive atmosphere that’s exciting,” Reidy said.

Along with that competitive atmosphere is a feeling of camaraderie. Each sport’s athletes support the others in an effort to collect points for the school and move up the standings, Reidy said. Even though each team has its own goals, they also want to see the school finish higher in the standings, which requires success across a variety of sports.

If the fifth-place standing is good news for Saint Leo, the upcoming sports offer even more reasons for optimism. A total of 14 sports remain, including a few where the university really shined last year. Women’s tennis reached the semifinals in the national tournament last year, and the men’s swimming team already has some athletes whose times have already qualified for national competition. And while the baseball team hasn’t reached the tournament for years, Reidy said they were very close to qualifying last year and have a good opportunity to break through in 2015.

There are still several months to go before the final standings will be released. The winter schedule sports wrap up April 2. The spring schedule concludes the Directors’ Cup scoring June 4. The best finishes from 14 of a school’s programs will be counted in the standings.

The success in athletics has not come at the expense of the classroom. More than half of the student athletes have a grade point average above 3.2, and the average grade point average for all athletes is 3.17.

“Last year was our best academic year,” Reidy said.

With so many sports left to be counted, Reidy believes they can finish even better than last year. Another top-20 finish for the Lions would show that they have a strong foundation for all their programs, and last year’s good showing was no fluke.

“We want to make sure we’re building something that’s going to last, and that’s happening,” he said.

Published January 7, 2015

 

Athletes met lofty expectations in 2014

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Athletic competition typically is marked by athletes and teams with lofty goals for the upcoming year. Many times, however, they fall short of those goals despite a great deal of determination and hard work.

Sunlake’s Terrence Jackson and Zephyrhills’ Antwione Sims go up for a ball when the schools met late in the year, a game the Bulldogs won. Both football teams had big plans for 2014, and their hard work paid off during the season. (File Photo)
Sunlake’s Terrence Jackson and Zephyrhills’ Antwione Sims go up for a ball when the schools met late in the year, a game the Bulldogs won. Both football teams had big plans for 2014, and their hard work paid off during the season. (File Photo)

But there also are cases where that hard work really pays off, and both individuals and teams meet their goals.

Here are a few sports stories that had successful endings across a variety of athletic contests.

Missions accomplished
Before the season started, the Sunlake Seahawks wanted something that had eluded them throughout their history: A district championship.

“That’s one of our goals, to win the district title,” Sunlake head coach Bill Browning said last August. “It’s missing right now, but it really just provides more motivation for us.”

Middle linebacker and tight end Austin Yeloushan felt the same way.

“We’re planning on doing that this year,” he said. “We’ve been working hard in the weight room.”

Whether it was the weights or the program’s history of success, Sunlake had another strong year, finishing the regular season at 8-2. They also survived a three-way tiebreaker with Mitchell and Springstead high schools to claim their first-ever championship in Class 6A-District 6.

At Zephyrhills High School, Head Coach Reggie Roberts knew people would be focused on the Bulldogs’ rivalry with Pasco High School. But Roberts was concerned about something else: The postseason.

“Contrary to what people believe, I’m not worried about Pasco,” Roberts said ahead of the season last August. “We have a lot of games. If we lose all our games and win the Pasco game, we’re still not in the playoffs.”

Instead, things turned out almost the exact opposite of Roberts’ hypothesis: The Bulldogs lost to Pasco again, this time a tough 35-34 loss. But they won nearly all of their other games, finishing the regular season 8-2 and earning a playoff spot through Class 5A-District 6 in another tiebreaker.

As a result, an eight-year playoff drought was snapped, and Roberts took his team to the postseason for the first time in his tenure as coach at Zephyrhills.

Getting gold, again
As a freshman in 2013, Abbey Duncan was a state champion for Wesley Chapel High School’s swim team, and was even profiled by The Laker/Lutz News in March.

But things change from year to year, so it shouldn’t be a surprise that the outcome was a little bit different in 2014.

Not the part about being a state champion. Duncan did that again. But this time it was for a different school.

Duncan transferred to Academy at the Lakes and helped that program achieve success in her sophomore year. Her state championship also was a little different, claiming the 100-yard backstroke in 2014.

Duncan took the championship in a freestyle event last year.

She enters 2015 as a two-time state champion, and she’ll only be a junior.

New coach, similar success
On the baseball diamond, the Wiregrass Ranch Bulls had a few question marks as they tried to follow up on their 2013 campaign, which included their first-ever playoff berth and a spot in the regional final.

A big one was their coach.

Marshall McDougal was not only a new coach at the high school, he had never coached high school baseball before. But as a recently retired professional baseball player, he brought a lot of experience and optimism to the Bulls’ job.

“As a whole, our team is pretty solid all the way through,” McDougall said last April during his inaugural season as coach. “It’s a matter of keep pushing the kids, keep improving, and keep playing hard, and I think our kids can go a long way.”

McDougal turned out to be right, taking Wiregrass Ranch right back to the playoffs. This time they fell in the regional semifinals, but proved that the program was ready to continue its success streak, even with a new coach at the helm.

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Bull Run: Wiregrass Ranch soccer team still undefeated

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Sunlake High School is considered a powerhouse boys soccer program in Pasco County.

And for good reason: The Seahawks have a long track record of success, a winning coach, and they’re undefeated so far this season.

But they’re not the only ones.

Brendan Duran and his soccer teammates at Wiregrass Ranch High School are off to a perfect start. (Michael Murillo/Staff Photo)
Brendan Duran and his soccer teammates at Wiregrass Ranch High School are off to a perfect start. (Michael Murillo/Staff Photo)

Wiregrass Ranch High School has had five straight winning seasons, and the sixth already is in the bag after just 13 regular season games.

The Bulls are 13-0, including 5-0 in Class 4A-District 8. They’ve scored 62 goals compared to just five against, with nine shutouts. Their closest opponent in the district standings, Mitchell High School, lost 2-0 to Wiregrass Ranch last week.

And according to coach David Wilson, they don’t need to be micromanaged to succeed.

“They’ll run the first 25 minutes of practice without me having to do anything,” he said. “I say one thing to them, and they’ll be gone. They go on their run, they come out and stretch, they do their preliminary practice stuff and their preparation stuff.

“There’s expectations that we’ve set and these kids know what to do when they come in.”

Part of knowing what to do comes from playing at the local club level, Wilson said. Including the junior varsity team — which also undefeated — around 90 percent of their players participate in club soccer.

While the Bulls are dominating offensively and defensively, the coach said their strength lies in their depth. Injuries, sickness and club soccer commitments have required the team to dig deep into the roster frequently, and their bench players are able and ready to perform at a high level when called to the pitch.

“There’s not a drop-off when we have to go to the bench,” Wilson said. “You can wear teams down if you can go to your 20th player and have the kid not drop off too much from your No. 11 player.”

There isn’t any drop-off when they switch goalkeepers, either. While the shutouts and low goals against are impressive, it doesn’t come from one standout player. The Bulls actually rotate dominating goalkeepers, including Wilson’s son, Payton.

They have another goalie getting work at the junior varsity level, so an area that causes some teams to struggle is a very deep position at Wiregrass Ranch.

Wilson hopes that depth helps the team go farther than they did last year, even though it was a successful season. They reached the regional semifinals before falling to district rival Mitchell, 5-1.

That loss — at home, no less — stung some of the players. Providing a little payback with a 2-0 victory on Dec. 9 was an important win for them.

“That felt great. It was sweet revenge,” said Brendan Duran, the team’s assist leader.

After not playing their best in their final game last year, he said it’s important to start out this year strong and keep expectations high so they can advance farther.

But expectations alone won’t get it done, and Duran believes the team has the skill to reach the state finals. But even skill isn’t enough, and he knows what else is required to reach their potential.

“It’s going to have to take dedication,” Duran said. “And definitely hard work.”

His coach agrees that the team has the ability to compete for a state title, but he won’t be running around on the sidelines and screaming at his team to get there. Wilson isn’t that kind of coach, preferring to keep things in perspective and build strong foundations that aren’t swayed by the emotions of one game.

But he’s proud of the program, noting that alumni frequently come to games or practices to support the current players and reminisce with him about previous seasons.

Wilson, who also coaches tennis and is the school’s athletic director, has been coaching soccer for 26 years. But if other schools are hoping he might hang it up soon and give them a chance to topple Wiregrass Ranch, they’ll probably have a long wait.

“There’s really nothing else I want to do,” Wilson said. “I still really enjoy it.”

Published December 17, 2014

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Extra innings for Wesley Chapel baseball park?

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An ambitious plan to bring a major youth-oriented baseball complex to the Wiregrass Ranch area of Wesley Chapel might be coming apart. Yet, the developers of the plan aren’t giving up, and are even willing to continue on without $11 million in funding from Pasco County.

Pasco Sports LLC, a partnership between Blue Marble Strategic’s James Talton and retired Major League Baseball star Gary Sheffield, missed a deadline to file a financial plan with Pasco County officials Friday, a little more than a week after county commissioners gave them more time to get money together.

Major League Baseball star and Tampa native Gary Sheffield talks to some representatives of Florida Hospital Wesley Chapel after a September meeting with the Greater Wesley Chapel Chamber of Commerce. Sheffield and development partner James Talton have a new plan to bring a youth baseball complex to Pasco County. (File Photo)
Major League Baseball star and Tampa native Gary Sheffield talks to some representatives of Florida Hospital Wesley Chapel after a September meeting with the Greater Wesley Chapel Chamber of Commerce. Sheffield and development partner James Talton have a new plan to bring a youth baseball complex to Pasco County. (File Photo)

“I am very disappointed that they were unable to obtain the financing by today’s deadline,” Pasco County administrator Michele Baker said last week in a statement. “However, we still believe very strongly in the concept. Youth sports are an important component of our tourism plan, and the Wiregrass location is geographically well positioned for the region. We look forward to continued dialogue with interested parties in order to bring a sports complex like this to Pasco County.”

Pasco Sports was looking to get $11 million in county tourism funding to help construct the project, along with $23 million of its own money. However, getting a financial backer to front the private side of the deal has been problematic for Talton and Sheffield in recent weeks, forcing some scale-back from what was originally a $70 million project.

The key to the deal, at least in the eyes of the Pasco County commission, was a $3 million pledge to guarantee loans on the project, something Sheffield told commissioners just before Thanksgiving that he would be willing to front himself, if need be.

“In our minds, this is just another step in the process, and we have every intention of getting this project completed,” Talton told The Laker/Lutz News in an email over the weekend.

The commission, based on what Ted Schrader told Talton and Sheffield at the pre-Thanksgiving meeting, is expected to terminate the agreement it has with Pasco Sports at its next meeting in January. Talton, however, said that’s exactly what he now wants to happen.

“The current agreement is being terminated,” he said. “I literally cannot work based on the current financing environment. We will negotiate new terms and have financing in place upon execution so we can move forward immediately.”

In fact, Talton said the county would no longer be asked to invest $11 million into the project, as long as it releases Pasco Sports from its obligation to pay fixed and contingent county revenue, as well as the company’s obligation to secure funding by a specific date and at a specific amount. Talton shared this in a letter to Pasco County administrator Michele Baker Nov. 25.

The county, however, would still be responsible for funding and construction of the connector road between Wiregrass Ranch Road and the park, Talton said. While Pasco would save the $11 million, it would not receive a piece of the revenue generated by the sports park when it goes into operation under this revised plan.

Talton told members of the Greater Wesley Chapel Chamber of Commerce last October that his project — consisting of 19 baseball fields, dormitories and other sports-related amenities — could create an estimated 8,000 jobs and a $318 million annual economic impact boost to the county.

Commissioners wanted to make a final decision on the $11 million investment at its January meeting, but in order to do that, the developers needed to have paperwork submitted by the end of the day Dec. 5. That would then give county officials time to review the paperwork before it was presented to commissioners.

Published December 10, 2014

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A spike in success: PHSC finishes eighth in national volleyball tournament

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When Pasco-Hernando State College began spring preparations for the 2014 volleyball season, only four players showed up.

That wasn’t a sign of poor attendance. They really only had four players at the time.

The Lady Quistas brought a stout defense into the NJCAA Division II national tournament last month. Their successful season ended with an eighth-place finish for Pasco-Hernando State College. (Courtesy of Pasco-Hernando State College)
The Lady Quistas brought a stout defense into the NJCAA Division II national tournament last month. Their successful season ended with an eighth-place finish for Pasco-Hernando State College. (Courtesy of Pasco-Hernando State College)

While the athletes were honing their skills, the coaching staff was busy recruiting a class of 11 freshmen players. And with all the new faces came a lot of questions.

“Bringing in 11 freshmen, you have no idea if they’re going to be able to manage the practices and how they’re going to get along together,” Coach Kim Whitney said. “You can’t really predict all that. There’s a lot to factor in.”

Whitney might have seen a lot of potential in her young team, but it would have been tough to predict the kind of success they had this year. Of those 11 freshmen, nine players stuck with the team, and they finished with a regular season record of 35-5.

They qualified for their regional tournament, which has happened every year at PHSC during Whitney’s successful 11-year tenure as coach. But they also won that tournament, held Nov. 7-8 in Wilmington, North Carolina. That accomplishment qualified them for the National Junior College Activities Association national volleyball tournament for Division II, held Nov. 20-22 in Phoenix, where they finished eighth.

The national tournament appearance ended up being the second-best finish in school history, slotted only behind their national title run back in 2010. Overall, they closed out the season with a 39-8 record.

Earning the regional championship was a special moment for both the coach and the team.

“Getting that win at regionals was really big,” Whitney said. “It was a moment I really celebrated, and I know the girls really celebrated also. It’s not just a given. You have to work hard no matter how well your season has gone.”

While their regular season went well, it didn’t start out that way. The Conquistadors were just 5-3 after eight games, and even making their regional tournament was no sure thing. But they pulled together like a family, Whitney said, with the sophomores guiding and encouraging their younger teammates.

As a result, they went on two separate 15-match win streaks and established themselves as a successful and talented group.

So talented, in fact, that they overcame some jitters to win their first game against Waubonsee Community College of Illinois in straight sets at the national tournament, which put them in the winners bracket. But afterward, they ran into tough opponents from Columbus State Community College of Ohio, Des Moines Area Community College, and Illinois Central College. Despite some tinkering with the lineups, PHSC closed out its national tournament appearance with three losses.

While that isn’t the finish they wanted, Whitney said the experience — including coming up short at the end — was good for her team.

“I definitely think you learn a lot when you go through losses,” she said. “You hate to go through them. And the kids who hate losses, you know that those are the kids who are competitive and they want to win.

There wasn’t a dry eye among the players after their first tournament defeat.

“Sometimes you have to face those moments,” Whitney said. “But I think sometimes they make you better.”

Even though they lost their final contest against Illinois Central, she said, they played more like their regular selves and battled hard in a close, five-set match.

While Whitney is proud of the team’s accomplishments, she knows the future looks pretty bright for PHSC volleyball as well. The team is losing its experienced sophomores, yet the coach believes the regional success and tournament experience will help her freshmen when they take the court in 2015.

In fact, Whitney’s players are so enthusiastic about their prospects, they aren’t waiting for next year.

“They’re playing volleyball already,” she said. “You’d expect them to be like, ‘I just need a break, and this has been a long season.’ But they’re out there ready to play.

“I think that they’re really excited about the group that’s coming back.”

Published December 10, 2014

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After playoff exit, Sunlake looks again toward future

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Sunlake head coach Bill Browning knows that to win a playoff game against a quality opponent, a team needs to play four good quarters of football.

On Nov. 21, he only got three.

Sunlake’s Bruce James Cooley, 66, can only watch as the Zephyrhills Bulldogs score a touchdown in the final game of the season, while quarterback Dayton Feiden, 11, and running back Naejaun Jackson, 1, look on. Sunlake finished the season as district champs before being knocked out in the second round of the playoffs. (Fred Bellet/Photo)
Sunlake’s Bruce James Cooley, 66, can only watch as the Zephyrhills Bulldogs score a touchdown in the final game of the season, while quarterback Dayton Feiden, 11, and running back Naejaun Jackson, 1, look on. Sunlake finished the season as district champs before being knocked out in the second round of the playoffs. (Fred Bellet/Photo)

“We won the second, third and fourth quarters,” he said. “Unfortunately, we lost the first quarter, but we lost the first quarter bad.”

Bad enough to put the Seahawks in a 17-0 deficit they couldn’t overcome against Gainesville, and they fell 27-19. It was the second year in a row that the Hurricanes eliminated Sunlake from the playoffs.

While on paper it looks like just another successful season for Sunlake with another playoff appearance, there’s more to it than that. They achieved a goal that Browning and Sunlake have pursued since the program started back in 2007.

“It was Sunlake’s first district title, and the school’s only eight years old,” Browning said. “There are schools that are still struggling for a district title in football that have been around a lot longer than us.”

Holding opponents under 100 points for the season — something they’ve done each year since 2012 — and presenting a balanced offensive attack were other highlights for the longtime football coach, now with 25 years on high school sidelines.

And while he’s proud of the district crown, Browning also is proud of the team that accomplished it. Many players had to overcome injuries, academic and personal issues to not only take the field, but perform at the level required to reach the postseason as a district champion.

As a result, Browning believes his players gained a lot more than points, yards and wins on the gridiron.

“The football field is an extension of the classroom, and there are some things in the classroom that aren’t taught,” Browning said. “I think all these kids learned valuable life lessons.”

While several players answered the call this past season, next year has many question marks.

Quarterback Dayton Feiden. Running back Nathan Johnson. Running back and linebacker Logan Wolfe. Linebacker Austin Yeloushan. All of those players were important cogs in Sunlake’s wheel, and all of them have played their last down for the Seahawks.

But while the team will look to replace more than half its starters next season, important pieces remain in place. Aside from center, the entire offensive line will return next year, which Browning said will be key to letting a running back settle into his new role.

He also has confidence in young quarterback Justin Hall, who impressed the coach with his mental preparations, even in a backup role. Talented receiver Nick Valdes also is returning, and Browning believes other players will emerge in the off-season based on their workout regimen and desire to step into a more prominent role on the team.

While he’s proud of the team’s accomplishments, he knows the team will have to focus on next year sooner or later. As for Browning, it’s definitely sooner: He plans to take just a few days off before getting back to work and starting preparations for next season.

And when it’s time to return, the players will find out that losing key players isn’t going to be an excuse to come up short of team goals. After going 0-10 their inaugural campaign, Browning has built a program with five straight winning seasons — and no more than three losses in any of them — a new district championship, and high expectations.

And lowering those expectations isn’t in his vocabulary. Neither is the word “satisfied.”

“I don’t think as a coach you’re ever satisfied,” Browning said. “Proud of what we accomplished? Absolutely. Satisfied? The day you’re satisfied is the day you better get out of coaching.”

Published December 3, 2014

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Bulldogs look past playoff loss to promising future

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The Zephyrhills Bulldogs played approximately 540 minutes of football this season — but it was the final two minutes that were the most disappointing.

Zephyrhills Bulldog junior linebacker Kevin Lee swats down a pass from Sunlake quarterback Dayton Feiden during the final game of the season that Zephyrhills won 22-7. The Bulldogs would lose a heartbreaking first-round playoff game, while the Seahawks would move to the next round after beating Ocala’s Vanguard High School. (Fred Bellet/Photo)
Zephyrhills Bulldog junior linebacker Kevin Lee swats down a pass from Sunlake quarterback Dayton Feiden during the final game of the season that Zephyrhills won 22-7. The Bulldogs would lose a heartbreaking first-round playoff game, while the Seahawks would move to the next round after beating Ocala’s Vanguard High School. (Fred Bellet/Photo)

The team came up short on a fourth-and-one that would have sealed a victory in their first playoff game in eight seasons. Instead, their opponent — Suwannee High School from Live Oak — drove down the field quickly and scored a touchdown.

Suwannee then recovered a fumble on the ensuing kickoff for another score. And just like that, Zephyrhills’ season was gone.

But not forgotten.

“We’re a little disappointed about the loss, not getting the win up in Live Oak, especially being ahead most of the game,” Bulldogs head coach Reggie Roberts said. “But we played good football to get there, and we played good football when we got there. But we just have to finish at that level.”

As the sting of not finishing a winnable playoff loss subsides — the team led 24-9 at the half — it will be replaced by memories of the good football that brought them to that point in the first place. Their 8-3 final record is the best of Roberts’ tenure, which began in 2010.

It was their fourth straight year with a winning record, and the playoff appearance snapped an eight-year drought without postseason play. The Bulldogs took the field for that game ready to play their brand of football, not like a team that was just happy to be there or wanted to play conservatively.

For his part, Roberts has no regrets about going for it on that critical fourth down at the end of the game. Converting that yard would have meant a victory, he said, and the circumstances at that time and the field position dictated it was the best move for the team.

But that decision was made and the playoff game is over. And Roberts, like all successful coaches, doesn’t like to dwell in the past. He’s already looking ahead to 2015, and he likes what he sees.

While he admits that replacing offensive cogs like quarterback Ty Tanner, receiver Tyler Kirby and running back Jaylen Pickett won’t be easy, Roberts believes the team’s depth will step up and fill the gaps.

“Our seniors will be missed, but by the same token, we have a lot of young players that know how to play football,” he said.

The Bulldogs will welcome back known talent like receiver Jackie Tucker and running back Antwione Sims, who distinguished himself this season and in the playoff game. They also have a number of junior varsity players who are ready to graduate to varsity and contribute immediately.

If there’s an early area of concern, it’s the kicking game. Somebody will need to fill punter and kicker Zach Gleaton’s spot, but there’s time to find a replacement. But from offensive line to other skill positions, the coach feels good about the talent he’ll carry into 2015.

“I like what we have coming back,” Roberts said.

He also likes the renewed community interest in Zephyrhills football, and the fact that coaches are now coming to him asking for advice on how to build and maintain a successful program.

The returning players will bring a renewed desire to win and a lot of pride in what they’re building, but they’ll also carry some bitterness about the way the season ended. After the playoff loss, he found the younger players hurting after the game, even if they didn’t get on the field much.

They were upset at the way things ended for the team, and the coach wants them to use that frustration as fuel for next season.

“They’re going to remember that pain,” Roberts said. “They’re going to remember this experience. They’re going to remember it takes blood, and hopefully that’s going to just energize them and motivate them to get back there (to the playoffs) every year.”

If Roberts is looking for indications that the team will learn from this year’s lessons, he’s already seen some positive signs as the long off-season gets underway.

The players aren’t interested in taking extended breaks, even when offered by the coach at the end of a hard-fought playoff game and a successful 2014 campaign.

“I gave the kids two weeks off, and the kids were in the weight room” four days after the playoff game, he said. “If that doesn’t tell you anything, it tells me a lot.”

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Early interception sets tone for Sunlake playoff win

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The Vanguard Knights had a long bus trip from Ocala to Pasco County to face the Sunlake Seahawks. And they weren’t going to leave without an upset in the first round of the Class 6A high school playoffs.

Sunlake Seahawks kicker Chris Wilkinson reflects on a missed field goal early in the team’s final regular season game against Zephyrhills, but bounced back with an opening field goal from 18 yards out to help Sunlake beat Vanguard in the first round of the state playoffs. (Fred Bellet/Photo)
Sunlake Seahawks kicker Chris Wilkinson reflects on a missed field goal early in the team’s final regular season game against Zephyrhills, but bounced back with an opening field goal from 18 yards out to help Sunlake beat Vanguard in the first round of the state playoffs. (Fred Bellet/Photo)

Darryn Lake fell on the ball on the Knights’ own 37-yard-line following the kickoff, giving Vanguard great field position to start the game. But just eight seconds later, senior cornerback Mosi Davis would change everything.

In the very first snap of the 2014 playoffs between Sunlake and Vanguard, Knights quarterback N’Kosi Perry immediately tested the Seahawks’ defense with a long pass downfield. Davis, however, read the pass the entire way, and was there on his own 28-yard line to intercept the ball and set the tone for a 24-6 first round Sunlake win on Friday.

Sunlake (9-2) dominated the ground with 280 yards and three touchdowns. The Knights, on the other hand, were powerful in the air. Perry recovered quickly from his first-pass interception to complete 17-of-29 passes for 189 yards and a touchdown. Perry’s defense, however, limited Sunlake to just a Chris Wilkinson field goal early in the first quarter off two interceptions.

“We’ll enjoy this one, but we better not be satisfied,” Sunlake head coach Bill Browning said after the game. “Everyone in the playoffs is good.”

After Davis’ game-starting interception, the Seahawks took 12 plays to reach Vanguard’s 1-yard line. However, senior running back Nathan Johnson just couldn’t cross the end zone, forcing the Seahawks to settle on an 18-yard field goal from senior Chris Wilkinson to give Sunlake an early 3-0 lead.

Both teams would trade three-and-outs right after that, with Perry breaking that cycle late in the first by moving to his passing game. He converted a third-and-20 with just 23 seconds left with a 50-yard pass to Lake. And after running 5 more yards himself, Perry found Lake one more time 14 yards away, this time in the end zone, to give Vanguard a 6-3 lead to start the second.

Knowing they may not get too many more chances to score, Vanguard head coach Edwin Farmer opted for a fake point-after kick, but could only watch as Rashard Laiz was stopped just inches from the goal-line, preventing a two-point conversion.

The Knights never really had a chance after that. Sunlake consistently moved the ball and burned clock, staying on the ground as much as possible. They added touchdowns along the way as well, including a 46-yard mad dash by Davis that put the Seahawks up 10-6 less than a minute after Vanguard took the lead.

Naejaun Jackson tacked on two touchdowns of his own, the first on a 7-yard scamper late in the first, and the second a 6-yard end zone run in the third.

Johnson led the rushing attack with 102 yards, while quarterback Dayton Feiden added 64 yards of his own. Feiden spent very little time in the air, finishing 4-of-6 for 63 yards with no touchdowns, and no interceptions.

Lake led all Knights receivers with 108 yards and a touchdown, while Justin Watkins picked up 38 yards on three catches. The Seahawks’ defense, however, sacked Perry five times in the game, costing Vanguard 22 yards.

Sunlake now heads on the road this week to face Gainesville, which outlasted Mitchell 24-17 in the first round. And like Vanguard before it, Sunlake has experience against what is expected to be a tough Hurricanes team that is far better than its 6-5 record might indicate.

“We played Gainesville before, so we know what to expect,” Browning said, citing the 17-14 loss to the Hurricanes last year that knocked Sunlake out of the playoffs in the first round.

And how will the Seahawks prepare?

“We’ll just keep believing in ourselves,” Browning said, “and work hard.”

Sunlake statistics
RUSHING—Nathan Johnson 20-102, Dayton Feiden 8-64, Mosi Davis 1-46, Naejaun Jackson 5-26, Logan Wolfe 4-25, Terrence Jackson 1-7.
PASSING—Dayton Feiden 4-5-0-63.
RECEIVING—Terrence Jackson 1-37, Nick Valdes 2-33, A.J. McClendon 1-4.
QB SACKS—Austin Yeloushan 1.5, Dylan Franklin 1, Spencer Jarvis 1, Will Alvarez 1, Kalon Gipson 0.5.
INTERCEPTIONS—Mosi Davis 1, Dylan Stanton 1

Published November 19, 2014

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