New Tampa Basketball Preview

Wharton Boys Shooting For 20 Once Again

The Wharton boys basketball program has churned out 20-win seasons for 15 straight seasons under coach Tommy Tonelli, and once again he has a roster strong enough to reach that total in 2020-21.

Just as long as Covid doesn’t get in the way.

Elijah Barnes (left) moves over to PG this season, while Trevor Dyson is the Wildcats’ top rebounder. (Photos: Charmaine George)

The fall sports seasons at Wharton and Freedom survived the pandemic’s effects due mostly to the fact that they were mostly outside events. The winter season, however, means indoor sports like basketball. Even before the season was a week old, the Wildcats had gotten into a preseason classic and a regular season tournament (going 1-1 to start the season) due to teams bowing out due to Covid.

With a total of only 23 games scheduled this season (not including an extra tournament game or two, as well as the Class 7A, District 7 tournament, there will be little margin for error when it comes to Wharton again reaching 20 wins.

Last year, the Wildcats finished 25-4 and a captured a third straight district title.

“It’s going to be interesting,” Tonelli says. “Literally, you can only take it day-to-day and can’t look too far ahead, or you’re potentially setting yourself up for disappointment. You can get shut down in the blink of an eye.”

If the season is unmarred by Covid, Tonelli thinks he has another strong team, led by returning starters Elijah Barnes and Trevor Dyson.

Barnes averaged seven points a game and was a top defender last year playing primarily off guard, but as a senior this season will take over the point guard duties. Dyson, a junior forward who averaged 11 points and led the team in rebounding, is coming off a standout season, his first as a starter.

“They will be two guys we rely on this year,” Tonelli says. “They are both very skilled, can do a lot of different things on the court and are team leaders.”

Sophomore guard Chandler Davis is hoping to carry over a strong 2019-20 campaign — where he emerged as a starter towards the end of the season — into a prominent role as a full-time starter. And, Tonelli is expecting big things from junior forward Carlos Nesbitt.

“I think he (Carlos) is really ready to have a breakout year,” Tonelli says. “He’s really starting to blossom and find his confidence. “

Junior guard Jordan Brown, who is coming off a knee injury, and Kay Julius, who is currently in the starting lineup, were both on varsity last season although neither received a lot of game experience. And, sophomore forward Reginald “RJ” Bell was a junior varsity standout. The three, along with a promising group of sophomores, help give the ‘Cats a deep rotation.

Freedom Boys Trying To Unlock The Hoop

Ken Angel took over Freedom High’s boys basketball program in 2018-19 and promptly went 25-4 in his first season with a senior-laden team. But, Angel quickly learned that whatever high school basketball giveth, it can taketh away, following graduation. Last season (2019-20), the Patriots dropped to 6-19.

“It was a tough season,” says Angel.

And, one he says the Patriots have no intention of repeating.

Angel has begun the rebuilding process at Freedom, and will do so around senior guard Jack Stone (pictured above) and junior guard Josh Germain.

Stone, the team’s leading returning scorer from last year at 10 points per contest, saw playing time on that 25-4 team, and knows what it takes it win. He is the team’s best shooter, and scored 26 and 20 points in a pair of preseason classics.

Germain is a slasher who Angel thinks will be one of the team’s top scorers. Senior forward Javil Hamlet will be Freedom’s top player in the post.

A focus on scoring points has been a point of emphasis for Angel during the offseason. Last year, the Patriots scored 50 or more points in their first three games, and managed to equal that number only four more times the rest of the season. 

The defense, however, was pretty stout. The problem was that the Pats actually lost games in which they allowed only 25 and 33 points.

“Defensively, we were good,” Angel says. “I wish I knew the answer to the question (on how to score more).”

Even so, Angel says he expects marked improvement this season. 

“We have quite a few seniors this year,” Angel says, “it’s just a matter of who is going to step up. Last year, we had seniors, but they just didn’t get a lot of playing time the previous season. But, we’ve been in the gym, played as many fall league games as we could, and have gotten better and stronger. It’s going to be a hard road for us, but passion and heart can go a long way and these guys are hungry and aggressive.”

Wharton Girls Ready To Break Out

With Freedom unable to field a girls basketball team this season, Wharton will be the only show in town for the 2020-21 season.

And for coach Terry Thompson, it should be his best team yet, as it assumes center stage. After back-to-back 8-win seasons, the Wildcats return every player but one from last year’s team.

“Our biggest goal is to play physical and play disciplined basketball,” Thompson says. “If we do those two things, we’ll be okay. And, we hope to be competing for a District championship. We think we have the depth to be more competitive (with last year’s champion Plant, which ended Wharton’s 2019-20 season with a 72-4 massacre).”

Marinique Redding

Marinique Redding, an All-County selection last year, is the top returner. The senior forward scored 16 points in a season-opening 51-25 win over Spoto. Junior forward Leah Jessup added eight rebounds, and senior point guard Candice Green had six steals. The play of these three veterans will determine how far the Wildcats can go this season.

Wharton also does have depth. Senior captain Jenna Onderko is “the glue” that keeps the team together, and Thompson is hoping for a breakout season from junior Nilaja Bythewood. Her sister Nielle, as well as Candice Green’s freshman sister Nina, also are expected to produce this season.

“Our defense is our strength,” Thompson says. “But offensively, for the first time, we have multiple people that can score the ball. This year, our offense is a whole lot better, and so is the team.”

Sweet! New Tenant Looking At Old Sweetbay

We’re happy to tell you that the one-time Sweetbay Supermarket in New Tampa, closed and abandoned for nearly eight years, is finally on the brink of a much-needed transformation.

Located right across Bruce B. Downs (BBD) Blvd. from the AMC movie theater and next to Home Depot, the property the building sits on is currently under contract and, if things proceed as planned, a new tenant will begin the process of moving in by early 2021.

Who that new tenant will be, and what kind of business might be headed for the long-empty building, however, was still a mystery at our press time.

“I can tell you it has been under contract, but I can’t tell you who,” says John Neukamm, the attorney for KNK Tampa, Ltd., the California-based owners of the building. “Hopefully, within the next few months, you will see some changes up there.”

Neukamm wouldn’t give any hints about what kind of business might be filling the vacant building, which has more than 30,000 square feet of space.

It won’t be a bowling alley, which he confirmed after we jokingly took a wild guess, and Neukamm says it is unlikely to be another grocery-type store, considering that Sprouts just opened a little north of the location and an Aldi has begun construction directly across the street. 

“I think the neighborhood will be happy,” he says. 

Neukamm also says he is confident the buyer will be putting some “major renovations” into the project.

It will definitely need it.

The Sweetbay building closed in 2013 and since then, has been unoccupied while its parking lot has gone through various stages of disrepair, overflowing at times with tractor-trailers and parked storage trucks while also serving as a dumping ground for people getting rid of old furniture and appliances.

Tampa District 7 City Council member Luis Viera and his predecessor Lisa Montelione sicked code enforcement on the property’s lease-holder multiple times over the years.

“It has been a long road for New Tampa with this property,” Viera says.  “Its inactive status has caused many challenges for New Tampa and I am happy that it is under contract and look forward to seeing what comes in here. The fact that this is under contract by itself is a good step for our New Tampa community, as this has been a problem site.”

The property currently is worth $1.5 million, according to Hillsborough County property records. KNK Tampa, Ltd. bought it in 2001 and leased it to Kash n’ Karry for a 20-year term beginning in November of that year.

Kash n’ Karry operated under the lease until June 14, 2006, when its Belgian parent company Delhaize America, Inc., converted it into a Sweetbay.  

But, despite its rebranding, Sweetbay could not compete with nearby Publix or Walmart. When Delhaize announced it would be closing 22 stores in the Tampa Bay area, its New Tampa location was part of that group.

In October of 2013, Jacksonville-based Bi-Lo Holdings, the parent company of Winn-Dixie, paid $265 million for 72 Sweetbay stores, plus the leases to 10 other underperforming Sweetbay supermarkets that had already been closed. One of those leases belonged to the New Tampa location, which had six years remaining on it, but Bi-Lo Holdings declined to do anything with the property other than pay the rent.

Finally, it’s time for something new.

“Probably, by early next year, it will all be coming out; it will be obvious what is going on,” Neukamm says. “It is going to be an asset for the neighborhood.”

We asked our readers on our Neighborhood News Facebook page what they would like to see in the space currently occupied by the old Sweetbay, and they responded.

Some responded jokingly (we assume), by suggesting New Tampa could really use a giant Starbucks (hardy har har, Brandon Maldonado) or a combination pizza, burger, and self-storage facility (also real funny, Richard W. King).

Others were emphatic, with ALL CAPS!!!! (We get it, Chris King, you want a Trader Joe’s and as you said) “NOTHING ELSE IS ACCEPTABLE!!”

King, however, spoke for the most of those who responded. In fact, our readers really, really, really want a Trader Joe’s, even with Publix, Sprouts and soon-to-be Aldi all within walking distance. And, how much do people love their trendy grocery stores? Lucky’s Market, Fresh Market and Whole Foods also all received some votes.

Those other markets didn’t receive as much love, however, as Total Wine & More, which wasn’t too far behind Trader Joe’s when it came to our readers.

You want food and drink, clearly — although a good many folks also want something to do — and we concur! A bowling alley, roller skating rink and indoor go-kart place all received votes, although we were disappointed to see no one suggest a Dave & Busters (JCC) or a live music venue (GN).

Kevin Waters: I would love a Wright’s Deli somewhere in New Tampa/WC. Driving to S. Tampa is too far.

Pam Smith: Go carts, Fresh Market, Armature Works-like venue, Indoor small business venue

Diane Kelly Payne: Quaker Steak & Lube, outdoor music stage, car shows, etc…a fun place to go

Tara Fritsch Schmidt: Luekens Liquors or Trader Joe’s.

Donna Billie: A regular skating rink…not ice.

Lucy Meyer: Trader Joe’s, Fresh Market or Total Wine!

Dannieal Cooper: Indoor go-carts and arcade. Well kept with food and beverages

Kim Channels: A bowling alley or Spaghetti Warehouse

Geraldine Gomez: Kohl’s, Total Wine, PF Chang’s or Trader Joe’s!!! No more storage units!

Armando Rivera: Is a Medieval Brothel a possibility…asking for a friend.

Christie Frederick: A really good seafood restaurant. (There are) none around New Tampa

Doug Smith: A micro brewery!

Nagesh Nayak: Raquetball Court.

Barry Doupnik: Anything!! It’s a dump and an eyesore.

Tim N Catia Notarpietro: Planet Fitness! We need one up here!

Gina Arkell Tim Stokes: Just not another gym.

Richard Spencer: Bowling & arcade. Or trampoline park.

Nicolette Marie: Lucky’s Market!

Ivant Liberty: Cabela’s

Here are some of the other suggestions we received: 

Bulls making a name for themselves

Avery Walker began last school year as the head coach for the Wiregrass Ranch High (WRH) boys soccer junior varsity team, and finished it as the coach of two teams when he stepped in and took over the girls varsity soccer team midway through the season.

But, when it came to choosing which squad to coach this season, it was an easy call for Walker.

“The girls won me over,” he says.

Walker split the girls duties last year with boys varsity coach Dave Smith after Edwin Acosta resigned for personal reasons following a 6-1-1 start. Walker remembers his first game against River Ridge, when he had former player Ysa Novak make out the lineup. Walker jokes that he just kind of watched as he became familiar with his new players. 

The Bulls won that game 4-3, and then won the next 13, including the Class 6A, District 5 championship and a first-round Regional playoff game before falling to St. Petersburg on penalty kicks.

Overall, not a bad debut. And the girls, who finished with a school-record 19-2-1 record last season, were happy to welcome him back.

“It was definitely a shock in the beginning (when Costa resigned),” says junior co-captain Kayla Ojeda. “But, I felt like we adjusted really well. Coach Walker came in and did a great job coaching us and helping us make it to Regionals. I was hoping he would sign up for the job and was really excited when he got it.”

Ojeda, a defender, is one of the keys if the Bulls are going to repeat the success of last season. While the team loses its top two scorers in Avery Damjanovic (34 goals, 11 assists) and Kylee Ehmann (12 goals, 20 assists), Ojeda heads up a defense that is stout. Walker, who played defense in college at Division III Bridgewater College in Virginia, loves what he sees.

Freshman Lola Vargas, sophomore Ashtyn Warner and seniors Taylor Pryor and Savannah Yoder comprise a group that Walker says is “extremely” good. If you happen to sneak by the Wiregrass wall, then co-captain and starting keeper Ella McGahey will be waiting.

“I think our backline is going to be really solid this year and, as a goalkeeper, it’s something you always want to have confidence in,” McGahey says. “Our goal is to concede fewer than 10 goals this season.”

That would appear to be a reasonable goal, since the Bulls allowed only 12 last year, as McGahey set a school record by allowing just 0.372 goals per game. The Bulls are 3-0-1 so far this season and haven’t allowed a goal.

Offensively, Walker feels he can fill the holes with junior midfielders Ellie Klem, who missed last season with an injury, and Natalia Kaminski, a newcomer.

The Bulls also return junior forwards Rylee Humphries, the leading returning scorer with 11 goals and nine assists, and Aiya Harrell (eight goals last season). Junior McKayla Battle scored six goals last year and picked up four in an 8-0 win over Anclote, and sophomore Emily Erker scored the only goals in 1-0 wins this season over Mitchell (which is now coached by Costa) is the season opener and their last game against Berkeley Prep.

Newcomer Bella Maldonado, who scored twice in the win over Anclote, also is expected to make an impact at midfield this season as well.

After back-to-back 19-win seasons, the sky may be the limit for the Bulls in 2020-21. Always in the shadow of a boys soccer program that is regarded as a state title contender every year, the girls look ready to step out this season.

“I definitely think we’re making a name for ourselves,” Ojeda says. “I think we’re going to keep it going this year.”

Cypress Creek High girls soccer coach Jessica Herzek is high on her freshmen and sophomores this season, and why not? Allison Souers, one of those freshmen Herzek is happy about, scored five goals in her first-ever high school game, an 11-0 season-opening win over South Sumter.

The still-young Coyotes, coming off a 9-7-1 season, have only one senior on their roster. 

Youngsters like junior Hailey Canady (two goals in the season-opening win), sophomore Hannah Fulpo (a goal and two assists) and sophomore keeper Alex Capocy (1.16 goals-against-average) will lead the way.

“I have numerous girls who, if they choose, could go on to play at the collegiate level,” Herzek says. “I feel this will be an amazing season, but the next few years will get better and better.”

The Coyotes are 1-0-1, with a 2-2 tie against rival Wesley Chapel.

Since taking over in 2017, Wesley Chapel High coach Mark Leonard has set a school record for wins every year, including last year’s 20-4 mark, and won three straight District 4A-6 titles.

Keeping that going will be the goal for this season, though the Wildcats were outscored 22-1 in their first three games before earning a draw with the Coyotes.

Leonard says returning seniors Sydney Bauer, Kaylei Koschman (11 goals last year) and keeper Madison Holcombe, as well as junior Maddy Golka (nine goals) comprise the team’s core, and he expects newcomer Tatum Moore and sophomores Kiera McFeron and Kacey Snead to have breakout seasons on offense.

Corley Says 2020 Vote Smoother Than Hoped


In an election season defined by partisan vitriol and hate, Danny Burgess tries a little kissing (of his wife Courtney, of course) to woo a voter or two. 

Despite worries nationwide about the voting process in 2020, due to taking place in the middle of a pandemic and concerns raised by President Trump about the validity of mail-in votes, Pasco’s Supervisor of Elections Brian Corley said the county’s efforts this past election were about as smooth as could be.

“Overall, it exceeded my wildest expectations,” Corley said. 

Roughly 304,000 votes were cast in Pasco County, including 302,621 votes for president. President Donald Trump received 179,621 votes, or 59.4 percent, while President-elect Joe Biden received 119,073, or 39.4 percent.

Nationally, however, Biden defeated Trump by more than six million votes and in the Electoral College 306-232.

The 304,000 votes cast in Pasco represented 78 percent of the eligible voters, far exceeding 2016’s totals of 244,950 ballots cast and a 73-percent turnout.

Despite the record-setting numbers, Corley said the ability to secure six gymnasiums countywide for early voting and the influx of mail-in votes prevented some of the 3-4 hour long waits in line he feared beforehand.

In fact, only 65,000 votes (21% of all ballots cast) were cast on Nov. 3. Twice that number, 113,000, were cast during early voting, and more than 121,000 were mail-in votes, compared to 68,178 in 2016.

“The mail-in votes were a great safety valve and allowed for the in-person voting to be less crowded,” Corley said.

Corley added that mail-in voting has been growing in popularity since Florida started it in 2002, “but this year it was on steroids because of the pandemic.”

Despite President Trump’s disinformation campaign against mail-in voting (except in Florida, where he said it was okay), Corley thinks the mail-in numbers will only grow in the future.

“It got politicized, and that is very unfortunate,” he said. 

Not surprisingly, Pasco County remained red, as Republican candidates went 9-0 in the vote, including Gus Bilirakis (U.S. Rep., Cong. Dist. 12), Danny Burgess (State Sen. Dist. 20), Randy Maggard (State Rep. Dist. 38), Superintendent of Schools Kurt Browning and County Commissioners Jack Mariano and Kathryn Starkey.

For complete Pasco County 2020 General Election results, visit PascoVotes.org. — JCC

Diverging Diamond Delay

The Diverging Diamond Interchange now under construction at the junction of S.R. 56 and I-75 is expected to alleviate the traffic issues at arguably Wesley Chapel’s most congested point. (Photo: Charmaine George)

Pasco County Board of County Commissioners (BCC) chairman Mike Moore has always taken great pride in his efforts to expedite the construction of the Diverging Diamond Interchange (DDI) at the busy junction of I-75 and S.R. 56.

With help from state legislators, what was originally scheduled for a 2024 completion was moved up and expected to be finished by the fall of 2021.

However, that date is now very much in question, which has riled Moore, who represents District 2, which includes most of Wesley Chapel.

“It’s very, very disappointing,” he says.

Armed with letters from constituents and his own daily experience driving through the congestion at the under-construction interchange, Moore is disappointed to hear that the project — originally expected to cost $18.5 million but now carrying a $33-million price tag — could now drag on until the spring of 2022 or even later.

Which is why, when Moore drives by the project now and sees workers, well, not working, it makes him seethe.

His frustration was on full display at a BCC meeting last month, when Moore delivered a blistering attack on the company, D.A.B. Constructors, Inc., in charge of the project.

Moore said he recently drove through the interchange and took pictures of the general malaise happening. He said he saw two workers standing next to a truck doing nothing, and a second group of construction workers standing on a hill.

“On a project of that magnitude, those are the only people I saw working on a Monday, a sunny Monday, at 1:30 in the afternoon,” Moore said. “I think that’s insane, that’s ridiculous, that’s embarrassing.”

More than 100,000 vehicles pass through the interchange on a daily basis. The eagerly-anticipated DDI is designed to create fewer conflict points at the interchange, and despite looking like a confusing, diamond-shaped jumble of roads in pictures, Florida’s first Diverging Diamond Interchange (at Exit 210 of I-75, in Sarasota) has been lauded for being safer and more efficient than your traditional junctions. 

Businesses Are Unhappy, Too

The Wesley Chapel DDI will be Florida’s second, and Moore isn’t the only one disappointed that it is so far behind schedule. 

In September, the Cypress Creek Town Center Property Owners Association (POA) — which includes the Tampa Premium Outlets, Costco and more than 20 other businesses located west of the interchange, sent a letter to Moore and District 3 Commissioner Kathryn Starkey expressing concern about the progress of the interchange.

The POA, which said it has spent $25 million over the last 15 years “reconstructing and widening miles 

of highway in the State Road 54/56 corridor” to offset the additional traffic the Town Center attracts, said it reached out to the Florida Department of Transportation when it was becoming clear that the project was falling behind schedule.

It asked FDOT to accelerate the DDI during Covid-19, due to the reduction of traffic, but were told material deliveries had hindered the project and that D.A.B. Constructors “did not feel any substantial gains could be made.”

The POA wrote to Moore and Starkey that they were told the project was at least 200 days behind schedule — pushing the completion date to late summer of 2022.

“It’s very unfortunate that this is happening,” said Comm. Starkey, “but at least FDOT is doing as much as they can to push it along.”

Pasco County has no control over state road projects like the DDI, but Moore and Starkey both reached out to David Gwynn, the FDOT secretary for District 7, after receiving the letter from that group of angry businesses.

FDOT has taken efforts to remedy the situation, and could impose more penalties. Gwynn wrote back to Moore telling him if D.A.B. Constructors can’t meet the contracted end date, “liquidated damages, of $9,837 a day, will be assessed for every day that the contractor is late in completing the project.”

That means that for every month they are behind schedule, D.A.B. Constructors would incur a $300,000 fine.

Pasco’s BCC chair Mike Moore says D.A.B. Constructors “can’t handle it” when it comes to finishing the diverging diamond project on time.

The DDI construction kicked off in early 2019, and had an original schedule of 800 days, resulting in a finish date of April 2021. That did account for delays due to rain and holidays (though not for something like Covid-19, which did cause delays for materials for many area projects).

Gwynn wrote that in roughly 20 months, D.A.B. Constructors had been granted 99 days for weather, 34 days of holiday time and 30 days for unforeseen conditions. All told, that added 163 days to the contract, changing the end date to August 26, 2021.

“Ninety-nine rain days? I don’t how that is, but okay, I guess?,” Moore said. “I guess if it sprinkles outside they don’t work?”

Moore also found 34 days off for holidays “extreme.”

Moore wants to see FDOT come down hard on D.A.B. Constructors, including fines and heavy pressure. He went as far as to suggest D.A.B. “sub out every little piece of the project going forward…cut their losses, and get out.”

He doesn’t want the company used on any more projects in Pasco County, where it is currently working on 10 other projects, including the widening of State Roads 54 and 52.

“They have so many projects going on right now they can’t handle it,” Moore says.

Starkey worried that any further delays could impact the traffic for yet another holiday season in 2021, further hurting businesses in the S.R. 56 corridor.