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Dave Puhalski

2020 had shining moments in sports, despite COVID-19

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New recreation facilities opened, prep teams competed for state titles and local athletes accomplished memorable achievements, despite challenges imposed by the coronavirus pandemic.

Here is a look at some of the top moments in sports, from across Pasco and Hillsborough counties, in The Laker/Lutz News coverage area. (This is part one of a two-part series.)

Upon winning the Gasparilla Classic 8K women’s race, 11-year-old Elli Black poses for a photo with long-distance Olympic medalists Deena Kastor and Meb Keflezighi. (File)

Land O’ Lakes youth sets race record
Land O’ Lakes Elli Black didn’t just win the Publix Gasparilla Distance Classic 8K women’s race on Feb. 21, she became the youngest winner in the event’s 40-plus year history, at just 11 years old.

Black clocked 30:57 in the 4.97-mile course to best more than 2,200 female participants in the popular annual race on Tampa’s Bayshore Boulevard. The second-place female finisher, St. Petersburg’s Mary Beth Layfield, 37, timed 32:23.

On becoming race champion and making history, Black said: “It’s a really big accomplishment and I’m really proud of myself, and I just know that I’ve been very blessed with a God-given talent, and I’m just really happy to be able to use it to the fullest.”

Previously, the event’s youngest winner was 13-year-old Ellie Pleune, who won the race in 2017, with a time of 31:13.

A home-schooled student, Black runs for Cambridge Christian School’s varsity girls cross-country and track teams.

The Sunlake High varsity girls weightlifting won its second consecutive state crown at the FHSAA (Florida High School Athletic Association) Class 2A State Weightlifting Championships in Panama City Beach.

Sunlake girls weightlifting repeat at states
For the second straight year, the Sunlake High School varsity girls weightlifting program cemented itself as the state’s top dog at the FHSAA (Florida High School Athletic Association) Class 2A State Weightlifting Championships in Panama City Beach.

Coached by Denise Garcia, the Seahawks tallied 28 points to edge second-place finisher Navarre High School (26) and third place Winter Springs High School (24) — to become back-to-back state champions on Feb. 15.

The Seahawks program experienced another milestone — as two weightlifters earned individual state titles in the same year: Seniors Gianna Levy (139 pounds) and Juliette Pacheco (169 pounds) took first place in their respective weight classes. Pacheco also set a state record 225-pound bench press in her weight class.

All told, five of Sunlake’s seven state lifters earned points with top-six finishes in the bench press and clean-and-jerk aggregate lifts.

  • Madison Guincho, junior — second place, 119-pound (180-160 — 340)
  • Gianna Levy, senior — first place, 139-pound (175-180 — 355)
  • Juliette Pacheco, senior — first place, 169-pound (225-185 — 410)
  • Brianna Caban, senior — third place, 183-pound (200-170—370)
  • Antoinette Farmer, senior—second place, 199-pound (210-190 — 400)
Land O’ Lakes High varsity boys basketball coach Dave Puhalski

Land O’ Lakes hoops coach retires after 31 years
Land O’ Lakes High School varsity boys basketball coach Dave Puhalski was finally ready for a timeout.

After 31 years roaming the Gators sidelines, barking orders, drawing up plays, and molding boys into young men, the longtime coach announced his retirement following the 2019-2020 season, which ended Feb. 25.

Puhalski’s swan song was a memorable one — sending off eight seniors to the tune of a 21-6 mark, a 5A-7 district title and an appearance in the 5A regional semifinals.

He exited as one of the longest-tenured and among the most-decorated coaches in Pasco County sports history.

Puhalski compiled a 479-349 career record since taking over the Gators program in 1988.
The coach frequently emphasized “rebounding the ball, taking care of the ball and defending the ball.”
He was particularly well-regarded for his defense-first mentality — a philosophy that centered heavily on the man-to-man variety, with little regard for zone defenses.

“We play man to man,” Puhalski once told The Laker/Lutz News. “In 31 years (at Land O’ Lakes), we’ve probably played a minute worth of zone.”

In total, Puhalski spent more than 35 years coaching hoops.

Before taking over at Land O’ Lakes, Puhalski was an assistant at state champion Ocala Vanguard for three seasons and an assistant at University of Tampa for a year.

He put the meaning of his retirement into perspective: “After 35 years, I’ve never had a Christmas vacation, (or) a Thanksgiving vacation; the month of June is all summer league, kids playing, so really, it’s just time.”

Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the Florida High School Athletic Association (FHSAA) on April 20 announced it would cancel all FHSAA-affiliated events, including the state series and championships events, for spring sports.

Spring sports axed amid COVID-19
There was a glimmer of hope the 2020 Florida high school spring sports season would resume following its mid-March postponement, even through coronavirus disease-2019 (COVID-19).

But, optimism vanished when the Florida High School Athletic Association (FHSAA) on April 20 announced it would cancel all affiliated events for the remainder of the school year.

The cancellations included the state series and championships events, for all spring sports.

Affected FHSAA-sanctioned spring sports included baseball, flag football, lacrosse, softball, tennis, track & field, boys volleyball, water polo and boys weightlifting.

The statewide sports organization also then announced no additional eligibility would be granted for spring sport athletes, including seniors, “under the guidance of the Florida Department of Education regarding grade level retention, and upon review of Florida Statutes and FHSAA Bylaws.”

Just like that, high school senior athletic careers abruptly came to a close.

Several local athletes weighed in on the decision with The Laker/Lutz News, like Land O’ Lakes senior tennis standout Courtney Piltaver, a two-time Sunshine Athletic Conference East Girls Tennis Player of the Year who was poised to shine in her final high school tennis season.

“I was pretty upset because it was my senior year, and it really sucks that I didn’t get to enjoy the full season with my team and my coaches, and kind of just close out,” said Piltaver, who had signed a college scholarship with NCAA Division II University of Montevallo in Alabama.

Back on March 31, the FHSAA issued a statement that left open the possibility of a spring sports season, saying they could run from as soon as May 3 through June 30.

The FHSAA also indicated if a spring sports season is canceled altogether, it was working on a solution to create additional athletics eligibility for students who were unable to participate.
However, as days and weeks pressed on, many saw the writing on the wall that spring sports would not return this year, due to the pandemic.

A trio of locals were taken in the 2020 Major League Baseball (MLB) Draft, broadcast nationally on June 10 and June 11.

Locals taken in 2020 MLB Draft
Childhood dreams of playing professional baseball became a reality for a couple athletes with ties to The Laker/Lutz News coverage area.

The Major League Baseball (MLB)’s 2020 first-year player draft was shortened to five rounds and 160 picks, from the usual 40 rounds in previous years, due to COVID-19.

The consolidated draft, however, didn’t stop some locals from hearing their name called — and seeing their bank accounts richen significantly  —  on Day 2 of the nationally televised draft on June 11.

  • The highest-drafted local was Steinbrenner High/Florida State product CJ Van Eyk, taken by the Toronto Blue Jays in the second round, at pick No. 42 overall. The 6-foot-1, 198-pound right-hander signed with the Blue Jays for $1.8 million.
  • Trinity native/Mitchell High catcher Jackson Miller was selected by the Cincinnati Reds in the third round (65th overall). The 6-foot, 195-pound lefty signed with the Reds for $1.29 million.
  • The Philadelphia Phillies selected Wesley Chapel native/Bishop McLaughlin Catholic High/University of South Florida product Carson Ragsdale in the fourth round (116th overall). The 6-foot-8, 225 pound right-handed pitcher signed with the Phillies for $225,000.

All three players are expected to begin their pro careers in the minor league ranks come 2021.

Swimming & diving was one of six fall high school sports allowed to return to action on Aug. 24, following an FHSAA board decision to resume athletics, even amid the COVID-19 pandemic.

Florida high school sports make fall return
After months of inactivity amid the COVID-19 pandemic, high school sports practices and games returned to action when Florida High School Athletic Association’s board members (FHSAA) voted 11-5 to allow member schools to begin fall sports on Aug. 24.

It signaled a long time coming, as prep sports had been in a sort of holding pattern since mid-March or so.

The FHSAA decision to all but immediately ramp up fall sports was far from easy — taking more than two hours of heated dialogue among board members during an Aug. 14 meeting at the Best Western Grand in Gainesville.

The contentious meeting was live-streamed for public viewing.

The organization’s decision contradicted a unanimous recommendation from the FHSAA’s 14-member Sports Medicine Advisory Committee (SMAC). That committee strongly advised sports not begin in any part of the state until the coronavirus is controlled, and declining in state and local regions. They also wanted to be able to study the impact of reopening schools on the COVID-19 infection rate, for at least a few weeks.

A majority of board members, however, voted in favor of bringing sports back for the fall, citing an overwhelming amount of support from student-athletes, parents, and even sport officials and school superintendents, from their respective district.

That point was emphasized when Jamie and Tami Kent spoke during the public comment portion of the meeting.

As parents of a Tampa Cambridge Christian High School football player, they created an online petition titled “Let Us Play” attracting over 40,000 signatures urging the FHSAA to begin the fall sports season this month.

Those voices were heard, by the end of the day.

FHSAA executive director George Tomyn perhaps best summed up the board’s decision, which came at his recommendation.

“I’ve always thought of what can we do for our member schools, not what we cannot or will not be able to do,” Tomyn said at the meeting.

“I’m a firm believer in flexibility, especially in this challenging, challenging time that we’re in. I’m a firm believer in parental choice, and I’m a firm believer in local decision-making.”

Published December 23, 2020

Hoops coach leaves a lasting mark

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The Pasco County’s boys basketball coaching landscape will undoubtedly take on a differently look this coming season, and beyond.

First, it was venerable Land O’ Lakes High head coach Dave Puhalski who announced his retirement after collecting 479 wins in 31 years at the school.

Now, it’s longtime Wesley Chapel High head coach Doug Greseth who’s hanging up the whistle and walking away from the sidelines for good.

Greseth, 63, quietly retired at the end of the 2019-2020 season, which saw the Wildcats post a 16-10 mark and earn a playoff berth.

Longtime Wesley Chapel High varsity boys basketball coach Doug Greseth recently announced his retirement. He exits with 300 wins at the school and 533 career wins overall, adding up his years at Okeechobee and Tampa Jefferson high schools. Combined, he spent more than 34 years coaching the high school ranks. (Courtesy of Taina Greseth)

Winning was commonplace wherever Greseth went.

He won 300 games in 17 years at Wesley Chapel. Over his 34-year prep coaching career, he registered 533 wins — collecting another 163 wins in 13 seasons at Okeechobee High School and 70 wins in four seasons at Jefferson (Tampa) High School, respectively.

The coach also racked up multiple state playoff appearances and coach of the year awards, all while developing countless All-Conference players and college-level athletes.

After so many years, Greseth is ready to step aside.

“I’ve been teaching for over 36 years, coaching for over 34 years, and I just thought this was a good time to end my career,” Greseth said, in a recent interview with The Laker/Lutz News. “You just get a gut feeling when it’s time to move on and do other things, so that’s basically it.”

A signal of how long Greseth’s been in the game — he recently coached the son of a former player from his early days at Okeechobee High in the mid 1980s.

The circumstance happened when Greseth coached Chaz Neal during the 2017 and 2018 seasons at Wesley Chapel. He also coached Neal’s father, Roger, more than 30 years before that at the southeast Florida-based school. “You know you’ve been doing it for a long time when the sons start coming through,” Greseth joked.

As he’s just settling into retirement, there’s plenty Greseth will miss about coaching high school hoops.

The competition. The preparation. All the players and fellow coaches.

“I’ve really been fortunate,” Greseth said. “I’ve had a lot of really good assistant coaches. I’ve had a lot of good support. It’s been one of those things, there’s a lot of hardship with coaching, but there’s a lot of satisfaction, as well.”

Some of his favorite teams were those that didn’t have a cast of superstars, but rather a group of team players forced to come together and work hard to discover success. It happened in his second season at Wesley Chapel in 2005, when the team spent the first half of the season under .500, but wound up winning a district title and finishing 17-10.

“It’s easy to coach an all-star team, it’s easy to coach when you’ve got a lot of great players, but when you’ve really got to work to build a team and to get a team to be successful when you maybe have less talent than you have other years, that’s probably the most satisfying thing for me,” he said.

Throughout the local hoops community, Greseth is regarded for an intense, passionate style centered around hard and unselfish play, with an emphasis on sturdy man-to-man defense.

The coach pointed out, “I’ve been called ‘old-school’ by more than one person.

“I wasn’t afraid to be demanding of players. Maybe that’s why we had the success that we had.”

Respected by peers, players
Greseth’s long-lasting career is much appreciated by Wiregrass Ranch High boys basketball coach Jeremy Calzone, whose teams have rivaled Wesley Chapel’s the past 14 years.

Calzone described Greseth as “by far one of the best ever to be on the sidelines, just what he teaches those kids over there and their defense.”

Doug Greseth came to Wesley Chapel in 2003, developing the varsity boys basketball program into one of the area’s best. (Courtesy of Wesley Chapel High School athletics department)

Calzone added: “He’s lasted this long because he gets kids to really buy into his defensive philosophy, and they play hard for him.

“It’s the hardest game of the year for us, not just because it’s a rivalry, but because I know they’re going to give it to us defensively, and get in our face and be physical.”

Off the court, Calzone considers Greseth a mentor and close friend.

The younger coach was just 26 years old when he landed the Wiregrass Ranch job, when the school opened 2006.

That first semester his team was forced to practice at Wesley Chapel’s gymnasium, as the new school’s gym wouldn’t be ready until January 2007.

Calzone will always remember how generous Greseth was in sharing his space and resources. There were times when Calzone’s hoops team was practicing on one end of the floor, while Greseth’s physical education class was on the other side.

Calzone recalled Greseth’s hospitality: “He welcomed me in with open arms even though he knew we were going to be rivals. He made sure that I got whatever I needed, like as far as basketballs if I needed them or extra gym space, he just was very accommodating from the very beginning, and he couldn’t have helped me any more than he did.

“He’d just give me advice, and he’d make sure if I needed anything, like there’s just so much that he did that he didn’t have to do. He could’ve been mad and said, ‘Oh, these guys are using our gym,’ and he did not do that, which I’ll never forget that.”

In game action, Greseth’s aggressive on-court demeanor may have been a turnoff for some watching from the stands.

Calzone acknowledged if someone were to catch a Wesley Chapel game, they might come away thinking Greseth “was a pretty bad guy.” But, that’s far from the case, Calzone insists.

“Even though he’s intense and he yells a lot, the love he has for the game and for people in the game and his players, I don’t think people really appreciate that, and I’m going to miss that, and I know the players that he leaves behind are certainly going to miss that, as well,” Calzone said.

Greseth’s consideration and having others’ best interests at heart isn’t lost on former players, including Greg Jenkins, who graduated from Wesley Chapel in 2008.

Jenkins is best known for his work on the gridiron, where he became was a star quarterback at Alabama State University, and spent three seasons in the NFL with the Oakland Raiders and Jacksonville Jaguars, respectively.

He also played varsity hoops for three years for Greseth, developing into an All-Conference player, leading scorer and hard-nosed defensive player.

“He’s definitely going to push you, not only as a basketball player, but as a young man,” Jenkins recalled of Greseth. “If you weren’t a team player, you wouldn’t really like his coaching style. “Like, he was a team-oriented style coach, and he loved to win,” Jenkins said.

The former pro athlete’s connection with Greseth transcends sports.

When Jenkins was a middle-schooler, Greseth would pick him up from his Dade City home and drive him to and from summer league basketball games in Wesley Chapel. The experience isn’t lost on Jenkins. He acknowledged he had a rough upbringing and was raised in a single-parent household and didn’t always have a ride to athletics events.

“He’s like a father-figure,” Jenkins said of Greseth. So much so, Jenkins makes a point to text Greseth a positive message every Father’s Day.

The coach was there for important moments in Jenkins’ life, too. Greseth attended his mother’s funeral in 2016 and his wedding in 2017.

“Anything I have going on, he’s definitely there,” said Jenkins, now an Atlanta-based fitness and athletic trainer. “We have a real friendship. It’s bigger than sports.”

Jenkins also underscored Greseth’s humble nature.

When Jenkins recently made a trip to his old stomping grounds to catch up with Greseth, he said his former coach never mentioned he had eclipsed the 500-career win mark.

Jenkins didn’t know about the achievement until he noticed a celebratory plaque hanging on the school’s gymnasium wall.

“He just loves the work, the work behind the scenes. He’s doesn’t like accolades, he just works,” Jenkins said.

Greseth coached Erik Thomas at Wesley Chapel, one of Pasco County’s most decorated players who’s now playing professionally in Mexico. Thomas said Greseth made a substantial impact on his successful basketball career. (File)

Erik Thomas is the most decorated hoops player Greseth coached at Wesley Chapel.

He is the program’s all-time scorer and rebounder who won the Florida Class 4A Player of the Year in 2013. He’s gone on to have a notable college career at NCAA Division I University of New Orleans and will be playing in the Mexican professional basketball league this year, after spending the past three seasons playing in Argentina.

Thomas detailed how Greseth improved his game throughout his four years of high school, helping him fine-tune fundamentals and better understand the sport’s nuances.

“He brings you back to what basketball is about, and knowing the game and becoming  a student of the game,” Thomas said. “He helped me get to where I wanted to go.”

Thomas said Greseth’s coaching style resembled a “Bob Knight type,” referring to the legendary Indiana University men’s basketball coach who won three national championships and was known for instilling a disciplined approach and for his fiery on-court presence.

“I had to work my butt off,” Thomas said of playing for Greseth. “He tried to enforce working hard and having a hard work ethic, and I think his character and his demeanor and energy rubbed off on all the players, allowing them to get better on the court.”

Like others have found, beyond Greseth’s sometimes gruff exterior is a coach who really cared.

One of Thomas’ favorite memories was when his prep coach showed up to his senior night game in New Orleans in 2017. Greseth made the nine-hour drive to New Orleans to support Thomas, then drove back home later that night.

“Him being there meant a lot, and it just shows we have a relationship after I had graduated and after I had went into college,” Thomas said. “He always was hoping that I would go out and do big things, and I was able to achieve them. I was just glad I was able to come to Wesley Chapel and play under him, and do what I did there in those four years I was there.”

Road to 533 career victories
• 163 wins in 13 seasons at Okeechobee High School (1983-1986)
• 70 wins in four seasons at Jefferson (Tampa) High School (1999-2002)
• 300 wins in 17 seasons at Wesley Chapel High School (2003-2020)

Wesley Chapel boys basketball under coach Doug Greseth
2003-2004: 22-6 (state playoffs; region semifinals)
2004-2005: 17-10 (district champions; state playoffs)
2005-2006: 23-6 (conference champions; district champions; state playoffs)
2006-2007: 15-12 (district runner-up; state playoffs)
2007-2008: 19-7
2008-2009: 12-14
2009-2010: 13-12 (conference runner-up)
2010-2011: 13-16 (district runner-up; state playoffs)
2011-2012: 24-5 (conference champions; state playoffs)
2012-2013: 24-5 (conference champions; district champions; state playoffs)
2013-2014: 21-6 (conference runner-up)
2014-2015: 17-10 (conference runner-up)
2015-2016: 21-8 (conference runner-up; district runner-up; state playoffs)
2016-2017: 9-17
2017-2018: 16-11
2018-2019: 18-9
2019-2020: 16-10 (state playoffs)

Published July 15, 2020

Senior guards leave a lasting impression

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The 2019-2020 season for the Land O’ Lakes High School varsity basketball program is sure to be remembered for some time.

Not only was it the final of 31 seasons for longtime head coach Dave Puhalski, but it also marked the senior campaigns of Mekhi Perry and Chase Farmer — two of the most decorated players in Land O’ Lakes and Pasco County history.

Perry exits as the Gators all-time leading scorer, with 1,616 career points.

Second on the list? Farmer, who finished his Gators career with 1,403 points.

Land O’ Lakes senior guard Mekhi Perry exits as the school’s all-time leading scorer. He’s signed with Eckerd College in St. Petersburg. (Courtesy of James Trapani)

Those figures surpassed former Land O’ Lakes star Jeff Baisley’s 1,394 career points — a record held strong since 2005.

The dynamic guard duo and team captains sparkle school record books in many other categories, too.

Perry, a four-year starter, exits as the program’s all-time leader in games played (101), made 3 pointers (178), second in assists (394) and 10th in rebounds (440), steals (138) and blocks (59).

Meantime, Farmer is the school’s all-time leader in dunks (90), seventh in assists (191) and 10th in blocks (72). He compiled those stats in just three seasons, transferring in from Leto High School following his freshman campaign.

Also, both players have been named Sunshine Athletic Conference Eastside Player of the Year during their career — Farmer his junior year; Perry as a sophomore and senior.

The combo, naturally, won their share of games when on the court side-by-side for three years — going a combined 63-17 and twice reaching the Class 7A regional semifinals.

Their skillsets played off each other well and kept opposing teams off balance.

Land O’ Lakes senior guard Chase Farmer is the school’s all-time dunks leader and second leading scorer. He’s signed with Cape Fear Community College, in Wilmington, North Carolina.

At point guard, the 6-foot-1 Perry played the role of ball handler and outside shooter.

Farmer, at 6-foot-3, offered more as a slasher and rim finisher from the off-guard spot.

Those complementing styles formed “a match made in heaven on the court,” Puhalski said.

“It was tough for teams to match up with us,” he said, “just because if you isolated on one, the other would kill ya.”

Of the hundreds of players coached at Land O’ Lakes, Puhalski considers Perry and Farmer “together, the best one-two guard combination that we’ve had.”

“We’ve had some really good point guards, good two-guards, but these two were the best together at each position,” said Puhalski, who won 479 career games at Land O’ Lakes.

“They were probably two of the better basketball players in Land O’ Lakes, maybe Pasco County. They’re really special kids.”

Their talents shine
While the two generally had separate friend and peer groups at school, Puhalski noted “once they hit the court they were on the same page.”

The pair was a coach’s and teacher’s dream off the hardwood.

“They were just really two good kids,” Puhalski said. “They were never in trouble. They never had a minute of problems at school, never were suspended, never been to ISS (in-school suspension), never any problems off the court, either. Just great kids. I never had any problems with either one of them.”

Puhalski knew he had something special when he first saw Farmer join offseason team workouts and practices in spring 2017. The Land O’ Lakes coach had only heard of the Leto transfer’s talent secondhand from his AAU coach, Mario Lovett.

Puhalski recalled, “You could tell he was already head and shoulders above the kids, him and Mekhi.”

Land O’ Lakes reached the Class 7A regional semifinals the past two seasons, winning more than 20 games in each.

Perry also salivated about the team’s possibilities in initial workouts with Farmer. “As soon as I saw him play and I saw his athletic ability,” Perry said, “I automatically thought we could be a good duo if we both kept developing.”

That, they did.

The pair made it a point to add strength in the weight room “and that just elevated their game,” Puhalski said.

Farmer went from benching 145 pounds as a sophomore to 260 by his senior year. Perry added some size on his own throughout high school, with the help of his father, a bodybuilding enthusiast.

“They had the skillset, and all they needed was some strength,” Puhalski said. “I think that was the key for these guys, to have that next level body when the college coaches came in and looked at them and said, ‘Well, geez, these guys have a next level body already on them, they’re not that skinny high school kid.’”

Both strived to make each other better every day, too.

“We always wanted to push each other, and wanted to push everybody,” Farmer said. “We knew that me and him could get to a different level, so we just wanted to make sure we helped each other every day in practice.”

The accomplished seniors soon will be going their separate ways — embarking on what they hope are illustrious college careers.

Perry is headed to Eckerd College in St. Petersburg. Farmer is off to Cape Fear Community College, in Wilmington, North Carolina.

Both look back fondly on their prep careers and made memories at Land O’ Lakes.

Farmer said he’ll mostly miss the school’s gameday atmosphere, road trips and being coached by Puhalski. (Land O’ Lakes fans will certainly miss his signature breakaway windmill dunks.)

“It’s a really good community. I like the people,” Farmer said. “Coach P just led me in with open arms; we just went on from there.”

Perry, too, appreciates what was a positive basketball experience overall.

“The different teams I got to mesh with, hanging out with all those guys, it was just fun,” Perry said. “Every year we got closer and closer, but the freshman year varsity team (in 2016-2017) being around all those seniors, that kind of like exposed me to what Land O’ Lakes was about and that was probably one of my favorite years.”

Now retired from coaching, Puhalski will make it a point to catch as many of the duo’s college games as possible. He’s already planning dates to St. Petersburg and North Carolina, as well as a tournament in Orlando that’ll feature Farmer’s new team.

Said Puhalski, “It’s really gratifying that these last few years, with these two guys on the team and the success they had, and we had, just makes me feel real good. Now, I can watch these guys play at the next level, and that’s really the best feeling right there.”

The coach added: “I don’t know how well they’ll be at the next level, but they’ll be great citizens, and that’s the important part.”

Published May 06, 2020

Land O’ Lakes hoops coach retires after 31 years

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Land O’ Lakes High School varsity boys basketball coach Dave Puhalski is ready for a timeout.

After 31 years roaming the Gators sidelines, barking orders, drawing up plays, and molding boys into young men, the longtime coach announced his retirement following the 2019-2020 season.

Puhalski’s swan song was a memorable one — sending off eight seniors to the tune of a 21-6 record, a 5A-7 district title and an appearance in the 5A regional semifinals.

Dozens of members of the Land O’ Lakes High School community celebrate Dave Puhalski’s retirement as head coach of the Gators varsity boys basketball team. (Courtesy of Land O’ Lakes High Athletics)

Puhalski, 57, exits as one of the longest-tenured and among the most-decorated coaches in Pasco County sports history. He compiled a 479-349 career mark since taking over the Gators program in 1988.

In total, he spent more than 35 years coaching hoops.

Before taking over at Land O’ Lakes, Puhalski was an assistant at state champion Ocala Vanguard for three seasons and an assistant at University of Tampa for a year.

Any basketball coach knows what all that entails: Countless hours tied up into practices and games. Long nights busing around the state. Sitting on steel bleachers for junior varsity games. Too many family gatherings and vacations missed.

He said the timing’s right to take a break from the hardwood.

He put it like this: “After 35 years, I’ve never had a Christmas vacation, (or) a Thanksgiving vacation; the month of June is all summer league, kids playing, so really, it’s just time.”

‘All about the kids’
So, what made all of these years coaching worth it?

“The kids,” Puhalski said without hesitation.

“They’re the ones that keep me young and keep me in the game for so long. You know, every year you almost get a different set. You get to see kids grow and develop,” he said.

Having an understanding wife, too, helped him to stay in the game for the better part of three decades.

“You’ve gotta have a coach’s wife, and that’s what I have,” Puhalski said of longtime wife Erika. “So, I give her a lot of credit, because she did a lot of the raising of the kids.”

Puhalski’s longevity allowed him to coach “kids of kids” and attend many a former players’ weddings. Seeing Gators hoops alums grow up, start families and lead successful lives is “one of my favorite things,” he said.

The care for hundreds of teenage hoopers has been seen firsthand by Land O’ Lakes boys basketball assistant/booster club president Steve Thomopalos.

His son, Justin, was coached by Puhalski from 2008 to 2012, and the coach helped the player develop into a two-time team MVP.

Thomopalos observed: “If a kid needs a pat on the back, he’ll give it, but also if he needs to be disciplined, he’ll give that, too.”

The assistant added the head coach’s go-to expression goes like this: “All about the kids.”

Puhalski’s tough love is something Gators players grew to revere and appreciate.

“You can tell he cares,” senior guard and team captain Mekhi Perry said. “Getting yelled at is frustrating — but him doing that, you know his heart’s in the right place.”

The 2019-2020 Gators went 21-6 and won a 5A-7 district championship in Puhalski’s final season as head coach. (File)

Senior guard and fellow captain Chase Farmer added Puhalski “was like a father figure to me.”

“As a player, he was there for me,” said Farmer, the school’s all-time dunks leader. “He did a lot of things that some coaches don’t do. He gave me a shoulder to lean on, I could cry in his arms — anything I needed, he was there.”

Revered for defense, old-school nature
Of course, Puhalski knows a thing or two about hoops.

The coach frequently emphasized “rebounding the ball, taking care of the ball and defending the ball.”

He’s particularly regarded for his defense-first mentality — a philosophy that centered heavily on the man-to-man variety, with little regard for zone defenses.

“We play man to man,” Puhalski said pointedly. “In 31 years, we’ve probably played a minute worth of zone.”

And, if players weren’t giving at least equal effort defensively as on offense, Puhalski wasn’t afraid to make an example. “You know, we’ve had really good players that have been pulled at night because they never play defense,” Puhalski said bluntly.

Farmer amicably described Puhalski’s coaching style as “old school, but sometimes he might flare it up.”

Farmer added: “He loves defense, (but) he loves steals, highlights and dunks, all that.”

Perry, the program’s all-time leading scorer with 1,616 points, added Puhalski “made a huge impact” on the more nuanced aspects of his game.

“I already came into school like knowing what I was doing, but just the tidbits and details expanded my game even more, and every year I learned more,” the Gators standout said.

It wasn’t just players who’ve learned from Puhalski.

Assistant coaches, too, picked up what it takes to run a quality, winning program.

“Everybody learns from coach,” Thomopalos said. “I’ve never seen, up close and personal, a game managed better…especially at the end, when it’s coming down to the wire and it’s close.”

The assistant added: “He is a real basketball man, through and through.”

Fellow assistant Connor Jordan has worked with Puhalski around a dozen seasons.

From Puhalski, Jordan learned Xs and Os are just a small part of leading a successful high school program.

“It’s really about discipline and making sure everything’s organized, expectations and keeping kids held accountable and things like that,” Jordan said. “All that stuff that coaches talk about, (Puhalski) actually follows through on.”

Whoever takes over the Gators program indeed has a tall task in replacing Puhalski.

That very well could be Jordan, who many in the program — including Puhalski —  hope lands the head post. “Gigantic shoes to fill,” Jordan of the possibility.

Meantime, Puhalski is considering teaching physical education for another year at Land O’ Lakes. He also said he wants to continue helping with the program and acclimate whoever next becomes head coach.

“I want to try to keep this going at the level we have it at now,” Puhalski said. “I’m not going to have a whole hand in it, but I’ll be there in whatever (the new coach) needs me to do.”

Published April 1, 2020