Local Sports

Sunlake’s cheerleaders named ‘Best of Pasco’

December 25, 2013 By Michael Murillo

The high school football season is over, and the Sunlake Seahawks had a good year.

They made the playoffs and defeated most of their competition. Now, the team’s cheerleaders have begun their own competitive season, and they’re on track for similar success.

The cheerleading squad from Sunlake High School helped earn coach Pennye Garcia yet another Best of Pasco cheerleading title, defeating 11 other squads during a recent competition. Garcia has won the title in the past with Land O’ Lakes and Hudson high schools. (Photo courtesy of Tammy Price)

After placing first at the Universal Cheerleading Association’s Central Regionals on Dec. 7, the squad moved on to the Best of Pasco Sunshine Athletic Conference Cheerleading Competition. There they defeated 11 other squads to take first place in the county, claim the competition’s highest score, and earn another title for the school.

According to Head Coach Pennye Garcia, there were tense moments before the winner was named.

“We dropped two stunts in our routine, so we were really down. We didn’t think that we were going to win,” she said. But because the rest of their two-and-a-half-minute performance was so strong and had earned such a high degree of difficulty, the team was able to overcome a couple of mistakes and still claim the county title.

Garcia is proud of her team’s ability to work hard throughout the competition and earn the top spot despite the challenges.

And praise from Garcia carries significant weight. When the team walked into Land O’ Lakes High School for the competition, they saw plenty of cheerleading titles indicating that school’s own success.

“I coached at Land O’ Lakes for a long time,” Garcia explained. “It was kind of funny being over there and seeing the banner in the gym. I said, ‘Those are my winnings.’ I won Best of Pasco for a lot of years when I was at Land O Lakes.”

Garcia left Land O’ Lakes to start Sunlake’s cheerleading program when the school opened back in 2007. But soon after, she left Sunlake for a short stint at Hudson, where she claimed a Best of Pasco title for that school. Now she’s returned to Sunlake and another first-place finish has followed.

Since the team has shown an ability to overcome adversity, Garcia said they’re proving they deserve a designation not always associated with cheerleaders. “They’re the athletes that they say they are,” Garcia said. “With cheerleading, a lot of people still don’t see it as a sport. So I put it in front of them that if they’re true athletes, then they need to act like athletes and be able to overcome whatever they do and move on and make it better the next time.”

Senior Joy Wennlund, a team captain who has spent her entire high school career on the cheerleading team, understands that many people don’t consider it a sport. But she says that’s because they usually see the team when they’re supporting the football program. While that’s important for school spirit, there’s more to cheerleading than what fans see on the sidelines.

“There’s another side to that; the competitive side,” Wennlund said. “When we’re at practice is the only time we’re showing all of those skills. So no one really gets to see that competitive edge that we have until we go to competition.”

Although football games are played every week, there are only a handful of cheerleading competitions each season.

“There’s a lot less opportunities to show all the hard work and dedication we’ve put in as a team,” she said.

Still, Wennlund finds the experience rewarding and likes seeing the team come together, experience success and execute their routines after working so hard on them.

Those routines are Garcia’s own creations, and the longtime coach understands that a good team can’t focus on previous victories. Just like any group of successful athletes, she wants her cheerleading team to remain on an even keel and prepare for the competitions ahead of them.

“They need to be level-headed, but they also need to be focused on what they need to do to keep their stamina up,” Garcia said. “Because when they come back in January they need to be ready to go, and they know that I’m going to be pushing them.”

Bonk finds peace in busy career as tennis official

December 18, 2013 By Mary Rathman

You always know when a professional tennis player is performing well. They’re defeating opponents, earning trophies and hearing cheers from the crowd.

The best players become popular and wealthy, and tennis enthusiasts know their name.

Kim Bonk enjoys her love of tennis as an official, working at all levels of the game — from amateur to professional. She was recently recognized by the U.S. Tennis Association for her work behind the scenes of tennis.

But what about tennis officials? They don’t hear any supporters cheer their success. They aren’t popular. They don’t endorse athletic shoes or equipment. And fans don’t know their name.

Usually when they’re recognized it’s because of an unpopular call or a verbal dispute with a player, like the famous court conflicts with player John McEnroe back in the 1980s.

Officials don’t get the accolades, the glory or the money that some players earn, but their job is just as difficult. A player makes several mistakes each game, but can forget about them and bounce back for a victory. But an official is expected to be perfect all the time, stay focused for every point of every game in every set of a match, and stay composed no matter what challenges they have to face.

And they do it sitting by themselves in a large chair overseeing the match, both an integral part of the contest and an invisible spectator.

But occasionally, the best officials will get some recognition for their hard work. On Dec. 7, the U.S. Tennis Association’s Florida section awarded Lutz resident Kim Bonk the Official of the Year award at its annual meeting in Orlando.

“It’s an honor and it’s very humbling,” said Bonk, who also was elected president of the Bay Area Tennis Officials Association in 2013. “After 10 years of hard work, it’s an honor to be recognized.”

Bonk’s desire to become an official stemmed partially from her late entry into the world of tennis. She didn’t start playing until her mid-30s — when many singles players would be retiring — so a lucrative professional career wasn’t in the cards. But after her husband (and avid player) Pete drew her into the game, she wanted to be part of the action.

When the opportunity came up to learn officiating, Bonk took advantage and excelled in the role. Now she works matches at the junior, collegiate and professional level, even serving as line judge at U.S. Open matches.

But regardless of the level of play, Bonk maintains the same attitude heading into the match: She wants to know everything about the rules, and almost nothing about the players.

“Unless I’m in the chair, a lot of times I don’t know who the players are,” she said. “I’ll recognize the face, but I don’t like to know their name, I don’t like to know their seeding, I don’t like to know their ranking. To me they’re just another player on the court. I try not to know anything about them or their playing history so that (the officiating) stays as a non-biased opinion.”

While Bonk remains non-biased, she realizes that those playing the game are naturally biased and emotional, and sometimes that emotion turns into anger and conflict with officials. But when coaches or players get upset, she responds calmly.

When they react unprofessionally, she doles out the appropriate punishment (such as warnings or point or game penalties). And when they later come back and apologize for their behavior — which they often do — she accepts and doesn’t take offense at the outburst.

“People can be upset at you, but it’s not necessarily that they’re upset with you,” Bonk said. “As an official, you have to be there and willing to listen to them, not take it personally and make a decision based on the rules.”

If it sounds like Bonk has an almost superhuman ability to stay calm, her background contributed to her officiating skills. As a former pharmaceutical sales representative, she learned how to interact with a wide variety of customers, read body language, and hone people and listening skills. Now, those same traits have helped her deal with players of different ages, abilities and personalities in her job as an official.

And while it’s a full-time job, being an official is not a traditional 40-hour a week position. She’ll spend many days on the road, then have some time off, then gear up for the start of different seasons. Currently she’s on break, but will have a full schedule from January until May, which will mean officiating junior, college and professional matches all in the span of just a few months.

When Bonk does get some free time, she doesn’t stray far from the court. She’s happy to grab a racket and play recreationally or in a league, and said that playing the game is an important activity for a good official because it allows them to better understand the players and their motivations. But when asked whether she would prefer a great day on the court as a player or as an official, she made a tough-but-decisive call befitting an award-winning official:

“That’s a draw,” she said with a laugh. “They’re both good.”

Pee Wee Predators cheer way to nationals

December 11, 2013 By Michael Murillo

When you attend a Pop Warner football game, you might not realize that you’re seeing more than two teams on the field.

The first, of course, is the football team. But there’s another group of athletes performing, and they also practice, work hard and compete against opponents at the conference, regional and national levels. And they’re part of every game.

They’re the cheerleaders.

Kate Allmond, Shae-Lynn Gibbs and Kylee Brown lift Lila Zois as part of the award-winning routines of the South Pasco Predators in the Pop Warner Pee Wee division. The girls are heading to Orlando to compete at the national level. (Photo courtesy of Kayla Hensley)

Cheerleading isn’t simply a side activity that complements the football programs. It’s an organized sport in its own right that requires patience and skill to compete at a high level. And in the Pee Wee division, the South Pasco Predators have demonstrated their ability to not only compete, but stand out: The team took first place at the conference level, compiling the highest score and earning a trip to regionals.

But there were more reasons to cheer for the Predators. At the regional competition, the team again placed first and again had the highest score of any squad (including teams from the rest of Florida, Alabama, Mississippi and Georgia). That accomplishment has earned them a spot in the national competition, which will be this week at Walt Disney World in Orlando.

For Coach Kayla Hensley, the team’s success validates not just the Pee Wee Predators, but the sport of cheerleading.

“If you don’t have any experience watching cheerleading, they make it look so easy that it doesn’t seem like it should be a sport,” she said. “That’s the real challenge of cheerleading. You’re supposed to make it look easy and effortless.”

People see cheerleaders from professional football teams — who mostly perform dance routines — and they think that’s all there is to it, Hensley said. But competitively, there’s a lot of skill necessary, a lot of dedication required and a lot of preparation and practice to perform the team’s complex routines correctly.

Hensley seems to have found the formula for cheerleading success: This is the second team she’s coached that reached nationals (she coached Junior Pee Wee for the Predators last year, and that team placed fourth at the national competition). She’s also a former Predator herself, cheerleading in her youth for the team before becoming a cheerleader for Land O’ Lakes High School.

Hensley said that she feels more stress as a coach than when she was doing the routines herself.

“It’s way more nerve-racking on the coaching side of things, because you have no control over their performance,” she said. “You’re not out there so you can’t do anything to help them.”

But her athletes think she’s done a lot to help them get where they are today.

“Kayla, she’s amazing. I really like her,” said Kylee Brown, one of the team’s cheerleaders. “She encourages us. Every time we go on the stage, she gives us a pep talk.”

Hensley also reminds the team that no matter how the national competition turns out, they should be proud of making it this far and enjoy the level of success the Predators have already attained, Brown said.

Another cheerleader, Elizabeth Harmon, said that Henley’s experience has helped them recognize what’s important to judges and how to maximize their points to have the best showing possible.

“She knows what’s expected, and she knows how many points you can get (for different parts of a routine) so she knows how to get us a really high score,” Harmon said.

She admits to be a little nervous about competing at nationals, but also is excited about the chance to perform at Disney World.

Hensley will be proud of the team regardless of how they finish. But that day will be a mix of pride and anxiety, and the coach might even be more nervous than the girls who will be competing.

“The nervous feeling that I used to get right before I went on the mat, I have the whole entire day of the competition,” she said. “Whenever I watch them, I just have a huge smile on my face and my eyes get watery. I feel like I’m watching my own kids out there.”

Land O’ Lakes girls soccer: Undefeated and focused

December 4, 2013 By Michael Murillo

When a high school team is undefeated after winning games by scores such as 8-0, 7-0, 9-1 and 6-1, you might think they have a very good baseball program with talented athletes on offense and defense.

And that assumption would be correct. Except for one thing: Those aren’t baseball scores. They’re soccer scores.

Land O’ Lakes coach Vicky King gives a pep talk last winter to a team that finished with its second straight district title. The Gators have a strong start to this season, off to an 11-0 start, and averaging just under six goals a game. (File photo)

The girls soccer team at Land O’ Lakes High School isn’t just beating their opponents on their way to an 11-0 record, they’re burying them with 65 goals in 11 games, versus just eight goals scored against them. Only two games have been close (each decided by one goal), and they rule Class 3A-District 8 with a 10-0 record.

Land O’ Lakes has a strong history — they’ve won their district the past two seasons — and a very bright future this year. But don’t tell that to Coach Vicky King. She doesn’t let her players rest on their laurels or look past opponents toward the end of the season. They focus only on the practice ahead of them, the next opponent and playing good soccer every time they step onto the pitch.

“We don’t even talk about our wins and losses. No one has talked about our record at all,” King said with a decisive tone. “We don’t take anything for granted. We have to earn every goal. Nothing will be given to us.”

In fact, King said she doesn’t even remember her team’s record last year, even though they won the district title. Her time isn’t spent on the past, but getting the Gators ready for their next opponent.

Now in her 27th year coaching soccer at Land O’ Lakes, King has guided dozens of different teams. She noted that this squad is very talented, and while they do have a standout scorer — sophomore Victoria Cannata leads the team with 12 goals — the Gators have 16 players who have scored at least one goal so far this season. That diversity in offense makes them difficult to defend, and gives the team a number of options they can use to attack their opponent.

“You can’t shut us down by shutting down one person,” King said. “We have a lot of depth. We’ve created a lot of scoring opportunities that we haven’t created the past two years.”

Senior Brooke Silvest has played soccer all throughout high school, and notices something special about this year’s team. Even though they’re very young and skilled, it’s been improved team chemistry that has made a difference.

“We all work really well together,” she said. “We all get along much better than we ever have in the past. That helps a lot.”

Players aren’t selfish with the ball, often choosing to earn an assist rather than take the shot themselves. Talented underclassmen have chemistry with the more experienced players, and as a result, Silvest believes this is the school’s best girls soccer team since she’s been a member.

Silvest and the team have also bought into King’s philosophy, making no assumptions before a game and maintaining focus throughout their matches, regardless of the score. She admits that some of the earlier games were closer than they should have been because they weren’t playing their best (and possibly looking ahead on the schedule), but their focus is now always on the task in front of them.

The team goes into each match with the simple goal of working hard, rather than considering opponents’ records or their own past performances, Silvest said.

And while she doesn’t want to deviate from that strategy, Silvest has a lot of optimism about the team’s potential, and believes they have a chance to eclipse last year’s accomplishments.

“Last year we got knocked out in regional semis, and I think we can go to state this year,” Silvest said. “We’re a much better team, and I think we can beat the team that knocked us out.”

The Gators still have a half-dozen district games remaining on the schedule, including a rematch against Sunlake, whose only loss was a 2-1 defeat to Land O’ Lakes last month. But whatever they accomplish this year, it will be with a commitment to growing as a team and getting better with each game.

“We should improve,” King said. “We don’t want to peak too early. We want to improve as the season goes on.”

Concept of putting fun back into youth sports turns 10

November 27, 2013 By Michael Murillo

When parents sign their children up with i9 Sports, they notice that it’s missing a lot of things one might expect in a youth sports league.

There’s no ultra-competitive atmosphere, no tryouts, and no fighting for playing time. There are no crazy practice schedules, either — it’s just one day a week, prior to the actual game.

There are changes for the adults as well, such as no mandatory volunteer hours and a lack of incessant fundraisers.

With short practices, reduced parental involvement, and sports for everyone, the i9 Sports franchise has grown from a small operation in Tampa to 600,000 players in more than half the country over the last decade. (Photo courtesy of i9 Sports)

In fact, a lot of the things that can take the fun out of youth sports has purposely been eliminated. What i9 offers (and what’s missing) is part of the reason the Tampa-based organization, now celebrating its 10th year, has grown to more than a half-million participants across 26 states — including through Pasco and Hillsborough counties.

“In most other youth sport programs, they’re really adult sports played by kids,” said Brian Sanders, president and chief operating officer of i9 Sports. “And research study after study has shown that kids want to have fun. That’s the reason they play sports.”

Many recreational leagues have become a lot of work, especially for parents. The idea behind i9 was to bring it back to the children themselves.

“So we’ve tried to reinvent youth sports and take it back to where people wanted the programs to be to begin with,” Sanders said. That means an emphasis on learning fundamentals and good sportsmanship instead of simply winning, and a focus on having fun instead of the stress associated with having their on-field performance critiqued and evaluated.

Teams are co-ed and the leagues try to accommodate children who already are friends so they can play on the same team. But every child, regardless of ability, gets equal playing time and participation recognition.

Special awards are given out, but they’re not based on athletic ability. Instead, teams focus on one aspect of leadership and good play each week, and the child who best demonstrates those traits earns a sportsmanship medal. The end result is what Sanders calls healthy and age-appropriate competition, and an atmosphere where kids truly enjoy playing.

That includes Lorraine Gallo’s son, Anthony, who she admits didn’t enter i9 sports as an enthusiastic athlete.

“He was an Xbox boy,” Gallo explained. But after starting out on a soccer team, he’s added flag football to his sports schedule and has learned the value of making new friends and being part of a team. Now he’s anxious to get back on the field during season breaks, and has even joined his middle school’s football team.

Gallo herself appreciates the fact that, as a parent, she isn’t spending time manning a concession booth or selling chocolate, which can be a normal part of the youth sports experience for adults. Instead, she sits in the stands and watches him play, along with other parents from both teams who are all there to lend support in a positive environment.

Since all parents sign a “parental pledge” affirming their commitment to a fun, nonstressful atmosphere for the children, Gallo doesn’t have to worry about over-competitive parents who yell at the players, badger referees about missed calls and diminish the experience for the rest of the team and the families. Instead, everyone can cheer on their children and enjoy the experience.

But the biggest change has come from Anthony, and Gallo said what he’s learned has made the experience very worthwhile for her family.

“He’s learned patience, he’s learned teamwork. He’s learned sportsmanship. He’s a totally different child,” she said.

Sanders will try to reach more children in that same way as the organization continues to grow. i9 operates by selling franchises in various areas, and all follow the basic concepts of minimal commitment needed to participate.

i9 plans to accelerate its expansion goals and highlight the differences between them and other youth sports offerings Sanders said.

“Our program format is working well. There’s no one else that is doing what we’re doing right now, and we believe there’s a huge need for what we provide,” he said. “You can sum up what we offer as fun, safety and convenience, and it’s something that both parents and the kids are really finding is different versus the other programs.”

For more information about i9Sports, visit www.i9sports.com.

Sunlake, Wharton football squads fall in playoffs

November 20, 2013 By Michael Murillo

High school football teams fight all year for a shot at the district title. If they fall short, the backup plan is to be district runner-up, because that spot (like the title winner) earns a trip to the playoffs.

Neither the Wharton Wildcats nor the Sunlake Seahawks were able to achieve their top goal of a district title, but both earned a hard-fought runner-up spot to earn a playoff berth. And both battled right to the end in the first round of the playoffs, before falling to their opponents.

Neither team had an easy road to earning second place in the district. For Wharton, two straight district losses put them in a must-win situation at the end of the year against Bloomingdale. The team had faced a big deficit heading into the final period, but scored 22 unanswered points and came away with a 30-23 win, a tie-breaker over the Bulls and that coveted runner-up spot in Class 8A-District 6.

Sunlake dropped its first district game, then rallied to win their next three to earn their second place finish. A tough 28-21 win over Land O’ Lakes in October proved to be the difference between the two teams, and the difference between second and third place. In the end, the Seahawks’ 3-1 record was good enough for runner-up status in Class 6A-District 6.

While those were satisfying finishes for each school, it was really just the end of the regular season: Both teams then entered a separate 32-team regional tournament to determine the state champion. But for both clubs, the beginning of their playoffs would also be the end. Wharton fell in their playoff opener to Orlando’s Dr. Phillips Panthers, 37-10, while Sunlake was a field goal short to the Gainesville Hurricanes, 17-14.

Sunlake Head Coach Bill Browning explained that, despite the loss, he was impressed with the way his team played.

“Gainesville’s a very talented team. They have a ton of speed,” he said. “We played exceptionally well. Physically, we beat them up. The effort was fantastic. Close ballgame.”

The Seahawks out-gained the Hurricanes and had a lead late in the game, but some untimely penalties and a late surge by Gainesville ended their season.

For Wharton, although the final score indicated the game wasn’t close, it really didn’t break open until the final period. The Wildcats were behind 14-3 at halftime and still within two scores in the fourth quarter. Head Coach David Mitchell said it was a few game-changing snaps and some self-inflicted wounds that turned the tide against them.

“They scored based on big plays,” he said. “We had problems with penalties. That’s what hurt us a lot.”

While he didn’t want Wharton to end their year with a loss, Mitchell believes they had a good season and already is looking toward next year. He has a number of returning players, and several of them will participate in other high school sports, which he said will help them on the gridiron.

In 2014, the key will be keeping them on top of their grades (and eligible to play sports), focused and ready for the new season.

Browning has his team looking forward to 2014 as well. He said the Seahawks have plenty of good talent returning — especially on offense — and they’ll be able to use some of the school’s junior varsity players, who enjoyed an 8-0 season this year.

Looking back, the coaches know that making the playoffs is an achievement in itself, both for themselves and the players who work so hard to get there. And for those graduating, many can look back on not just a good year, but a good career at their respective schools.

“For some of those players, it’s the third opportunity (to participate in the playoffs) in three years for them. That’s pretty good,” Mitchell said.

And Browning agrees. “For the kids coming back we’ll have to learn from it (the playoff loss), and for the seniors, we had a great senior bunch. They’re the winning-est senior class in the short history of the school.”

Better than ever: Steinbrenner Volleyball reaches state semis

November 20, 2013 By Michael Murillo

With their victory over Wiregrass Ranch on Oct. 25, the Steinbrenner Warriors can now say they’re Class 7A-District 8 volleyball champions.

Of course, they were able to say the same thing last year, and the year before that, and the year before that. In fact, in the five years the school has had a volleyball program, they’re a perfect 5-for-5 in district titles.

Junior Avery Bradshaw slams the ball over the net during Steinbrenner High School’s recent volleyball playoff run that named the Warriors regional champions.

But while the district results were always the same, so were the regional ones: The previous four years found the team 0-4 when it came to an elusive regional title.

Until this year.

The Warriors finally claimed their first Class 7A regional crown by besting the Lake Nona Lions on Nov. 9 in three sets. That win took them to the state semifinals for the first time in school history, where they fell to Gulf Coast in a tough five-set match.

But while their season ended with a loss, the team is proud of their accomplishments in claiming a regional title and advancing farther than any previous Steinbrenner volleyball team before them.

“They were the first group in school history to attain that goal, and I think that was most exciting for them,” said Head Coach Laura Stegenga, who has coached for several years, but just completed her second season with Steinbrenner. This squad stood out, she said, because the school’s team historically is a young team. Yet they benefited from having a number of juniors and seniors to provide experience this season.

And with 10 juniors helping lead the way, Stegenga can also look forward to coaching a large portion of this year’s successful team again in 2014.

One of those players, Avery Bradshaw, admits the state semifinal was a tough loss after coming so far this season. But the junior, now in her third year with the Steinbrenner volleyball team, soon recognized the importance of the school’s first regional title.

“We wanted to be the first year (the 2013 squad) on the banner in the gym that said we are regional champions,” Bradshaw said. “That was a great accomplishment for us.”

She was also consoled by the outpouring of support the team received from the school. Originally unsure of the reaction she’d receive and hoping nobody was disappointed in the team following the loss, Bradshaw said she was grateful to see students and faculty — including some she didn’t know were even following the team’s success — offering congratulations and letting her know how proud they were of her and her team.

“That made everything a lot better,” she said.

While the team can look back on 2013 as the best volleyball season in school history, Stegenga knows that there will be new challenges next season. Each year the team wants to live up to the school’s history of claiming the district title, but she admits that winning a regional title and coming so close to the state finals has raised the bar when it comes to team expectations.

The matchups, Stegenga said, will determine how challenging their draw is in the postseason, but she believes that this year’s experience and the desire to improve will provide a lot of motivation for her returning players.

However, the moment they claimed the first regional title in school history is one that will stick with her.

“I remember that game point of the third set against Lake Nona (in the regional final) and the girls’ celebration and the tears. It was very powerful,” Stegenga said. “That’s really the reason why I coach, is to have moments like that with the players.”

Butash among local gridders competing in Orlando next month

November 13, 2013 By Michael Hinman

Christopher Butash’s life is filled with football, from his time on his squad with Academy at the Lakes, to his extra playing time recreationally with the Lutz Chiefs.

And he loves it. In fact, as long as the 13-year-old is not cooped up inside doing something, he’s happy.

Christopher Butash prepares to make a pass during a Lutz Chiefs football game this past season. Butash and three other teammates from the Chiefs are heading to Orlando next month to play among the best in recreational football. (Photo courtesy of Lisa Butash)

“I love being outside,” Butash said after a recent practice. “I love going to my friend’s house who has an outside basketball court. When it’s basketball season, we play basketball. When it’s football season, we’re out there throwing the football.”

That throwing and catching has helped Butash a lot. As a quarterback for the Chiefs, he scored nine touchdowns this season, seven of them in the air. And that was before he moved to the wide receiver position, where he continues to excel.

And in December, he’ll have a chance to show those skills at a much more regional level through the Offense-Defense Youth All-American Bowl Week activities taking place at the Citrus Bowl in Orlando. The weeklong event includes a number of instructional camps as well as the Offense-Defense All-American Bowl game that features 88 of the top high school seniors in the country.

Butash joins teammates Jaxson Bless, Nick Testa and Sebastian Bove, all of whom were named All-Americans during a summer camp hosted by Offense-Defense, a South Carolina company that hosts such camps around the country.

Butash’s father, Michael, is a defense attorney in Lutz, while his mother Lisa works at her husband’s office, and spends a lot of time volunteering as well — especially for Christopher’s athletics.

Yet all of them work to make it to the dinner table each night, in what seems to be a dying tradition elsewhere, to share valuable time with each other.

“I’m very proud of my dad for keeping our family in shape,” Christopher Butash said. “My mom has to plan ahead of time for dinner, but she does it, and that keeps us together.”

In fact, Butash said he would like to follow his father’s footsteps and become an attorney as well, but seems more attracted to personal injury law like another football player-turned lawyer, Brad Culpepper.

Where he’ll go to college is a question he’s probably too young to answer. But Butash said he’s working hard not just on the field, but also in the classroom, maintaining an A average at Academy at the Lakes, especially in his favorite class, language arts.

“I need to work hard, because working hard and getting good grades gets you into college to play football, and it helps get you recognized,” Butash said.

Bowl week in Orlando begins Dec. 30 and runs through Jan. 5. It includes plenty of practice sessions as well as parties for New Year’s and awards, as well as autograph signings for some of the standout senior players taking part.

For more information, visit O-D.com.

A perfect 2013 for Sunlake … junior varsity

November 13, 2013 By Michael Murillo

A local high school football team just completed an undefeated season in which most of the games were shutout victories.

The last game was the closest, a one-point win where the margin of victory was a blocked extra point. That capped a three-game winning streak, all on the road.

Freshman wide receiver Rakeem ‘Kimme’ Jones grabs a pass against the River Ridge Royal Knights in a 36-0 win last September. The Sunlake Seahawks junior varsity team would go on to an undefeated 8-0 season. (Photo courtesy of Belinda Kasper)

They finished a perfect season, and most people had no idea they were even playing. And it’s all because of one word: “junior.”

As in, junior varsity football. They don’t get the crowds, the accolades or the press, but the Sunlake Seahawks went 8-0 this season, just one year after completing a 7-1 campaign.

There won’t be any playoffs and there are no district or regional titles to earn. But for the players, coaches and those who followed the team, there’s a lot of pride in what they accomplished.

“It feels great. It’s what we worked hard for, it’s what I drilled into their heads: 8-0 was the goal, and we finally reached that goal,” explained Head Coach Ryan Horan.

But it wasn’t an easy goal to attain. Even though the games weren’t at the top tier of high school sports, the Seahawks certainly felt varsity-level drama this season.

They avenged their only loss last year with a close 7-0 victory against the Pasco Pirates to open their schedule, and they closed it out with a win on the road against the Wiregrass Ranch Bulls, another undefeated team looking to avoid its first loss. A blocked extra point and a go-ahead touchdown later, and Sunlake had finished its season undefeated.

Junior varsity football isn’t usually a big draw. There might be a few fans, but often there’s family, friends and a lot of empty seats. But the last game was different, because both teams wanted a perfect season. For that game there were a lot of fans in the stands and a lot of energy to motivate both teams.

“Believe it or not, you would’ve thought it was a varsity game,” Horan said.

One of those fans was a former player: Justin Hall, a freshman quarterback who played five games with Sunlake’s junior varsity team before leaving the squad. His absence was justified, however — he caught the eye of the varsity team and was called up for the remainder of their season.

Since there are no playoffs, the real payoff for the players is the opportunity to eventually work their way up to the varsity level. Hall accomplished that after a handful of games in his first year, and he credits his experience with junior varsity football with giving him a solid foundation to compete at the next level.

In fact, he was already familiar with a lot of the offensive strategy when he got there.

“You get a couple of new plays, more advanced plays,” Hall said of the transition to varsity. “But it’s basically the same plays in both JV and varsity.”

While he said the varsity game is faster and has players who have found the best position for them on the field (making the competition stronger), Hall felt better prepared to face those challenges as a result of his success with the junior varsity team.

Even though he wasn’t with the team anymore, he still had friends there and attended their remaining games to show support. And when his former team completed their undefeated season, Hall felt a real sense of pride to have contributed to their success.

“I felt really good. I felt happy for them that they could pull off those last two wins, and it was good knowing that I could be part of that 8-0 season,” Hall said.

Pride on the line between Wiregrass Ranch, Wesley Chapel

November 6, 2013 By Michael Murillo

If you’re looking for a powerhouse matchup between two of the best high school football teams in the area, the Nov. 8 game between the Wiregrass Ranch Bulls and the Wesley Chapel Wildcats probably isn’t it.

Neither team will be going to the playoffs, both are winless in their respective districts, and they have a combined three victories between them (all of them from 3-6 Wiregrass Ranch, while Wesley Chapel sits at 0-9).

So why are both schools looking forward to the match up?

The answer is simple: It’s a rivalry game. And it’s a game among neighbors as well.

The two schools are only about 10 miles apart. In fact, Wiregrass Ranch was created in part due to Wesley Chapel’s overcrowding.

A decade ago, current Bulls students would likely have been Wildcats. They live near each other, interact with each other, and many players participated in youth sports together. So when they face off in a high school rivalry game, the athletes don’t consider it just another date on the schedule.

“These guys have seen each other for a number of years, so it’s always special,” Wesley Chapel head coach Tico Hernandez said. This is Hernandez’s first year running the school’s program, but he understands the pride that goes along with defeating a rival.

But for the Wildcats, there’s also history on the line. Wiregrass and Wesley Chapel have been playing against each other since the 2007 season, and each time Wesley Chapel has come out on top. But this year the Bulls own the better record and some confidence that they can not only beat the Wildcats, but beat them on their own field.

Hernandez said to avoid that outcome and keep his school’s streak going, the Wildcats will have to have one of their better defensive efforts and get more consistency from an offense that can create effective moments, but is also susceptible to what he calls “silly” plays. He believes that putting a complete game together and getting the season’s first win against a rival would be meaningful for the players.

But Wiregrass Ranch head coach Mike Lawrence doesn’t want to hear much about rivalries. He just wants to win.

“Focusing just because it’s Wesley Chapel and a rivalry, I don’t want to play too much into that. I just want to focus on winning the ballgame,” he said.

Lawrence knows his players could get excited about facing the Wildcats, but sees a better road to success by keeping the Bulls focused on their game plan and treating the contest like another game on the schedule. That means both offense and defense prepared for the game, and playing well when they’re on the field.

Like Hernandez, this is Lawrence’s first season as his school’s head coach. But instead of the rivalry aspect of the game, he’s more concerned about Wesley Chapel’s winless record, and their drive to get into the win column for the first time this year.

“They’re hungry and they’re looking for a win. They haven’t won a ballgame yet, and that’s an advantage that they have right now on us,” he said. “They don’t want to finish their season without a victory.”

While that’s true, Hernandez said there’s a little bit more behind their motivation when they see the Wildcats on the schedule. They want a win, but they also want neighborhood bragging rights as well.

“Our team goals at the beginning of the year were to control the classroom and behave on campus and have a certain GPA,” he said. “And one of our other goals was to continue to own Wesley Chapel.”