Wesley Chapel Center Of Pasco Sports Efforts

Pasco County tourism director Adam Thomas made the announcement that Pasco County will be rebranded as “Florida’s Sports Coast,” with Wesley Chapel’s sports facilities playing a major role.

Pasco County’s tourism department is rebranding the county & going hard after the sports market; Wesley Chapel will be a major player in that effort.

Pasco County is changing.

Once sleepy, it is now wide awake.

Once quiet and serene, it is now bustling.

Once regarded mostly for nature, it is now being rebranded.

“Let’s Play!”

That will be the new slogan that drives the county’s evolution from Nature Coast to Sports Coast, as Pasco looks to capitalize on a number of sports offerings it feels will, if marketed properly, bring in millions of dollars annually to local businesses and hotels, and much needed tax dollars for the county.

Pasco’s tourism agency, Visit Pasco, is expected to rebrand the county as “Florida’s Sports Coast” after January 1, 2019. It has a $326,000 contract with The Zimmerman Agency to help with the rebranding and marketing.

“This is a destination that is changing and changing,” says Adam Thomas, Pasco’s tourism director. “We are charging ahead to become that premier sports destination: Florida’s Sports Coast.”

Thomas emceed the East Pasco Economic Development Summit on Nov. 2, which brought together government officials like District 2 commissioner Mike Moore and county administrator Dan Biles, as well as heavy hitters in the sports tourism market like Jason Aughey of the Tampa Bay Sports Commission, Pat Ciaccio of Saddlebrook Resort, Richard Blalock of RADD Sports and Gordie Zimmermann of Florida Hospital Center Ice (FHCI).

The summit was held at the Pasco-Hernando State College Porter campus in Wiregrass Ranch, and the message, emphasized by keynote speaker Carolynn Smith, was simple: 

“You need to be ready,” Smith said.

Smith, a former college basketball standout at the University of North Florida in Jacksonville who now owns 7 Marketing & PR, stressed to local businesses the importance of preparation for an influx of new customers. She said to look at the schedules at the local sports facilities, be staffed properly when big events are in town, and ready to capitalize.

The panel drove home a similar message. The heart of the engine that will drive much of the transition from nature outpost to sports destination is right here in Wesley Chapel, with the soon-to-be-built $44-million Wiregrass Sports Complex, the booming FHCI facility and popular Saddlebrook Resort expected to attract hundreds of thousands of tourists annually.

Aughey, who has helped bring Super Bowls and NCAA Football National Championships and men’s and women’s NCAA Basketball Final Fours to Tampa, says that sports tourism had a $57.4-billion impact on the national economy last year.

But, it is youth and amateur sports, he says, “that are truly the bread and butter” of sports tourism.

One reason: they are recession proof, according to Aughey. No matter the economy, he says, parents are not likely to cut out their children’s sports because they provide physical and social benefits as well as college scholarship opportunities.

In fact, according to U.S. News & World Report, a 2009 study by the National Association of Sports Commissions and Ohio University showed that participation in youth sports travel still increased from 2008 to 2009 despite the Great Recession.

“Regardless of the economy, sports is going to continue to pull through,” Aughey said.

Ciaccio, the general manager at Saddlebrook Resort, said that is good for everyone in Wesley Chapel. “Everyone benefits from the ancillary benefits,” he said, citing everything from walk-in clinics to local mom-and-pop shops, sign makers, restaurants and retail and grocery stores.

“There’s a little niche for everybody,” Ciaccio says. “You have to see how you can benefit, and find your place.”

FHCI has already made its mark with more than 1 million visitors since opening in 2017. Most recently, the complex hosted a 68-team event, which can translate to 1,300 players and just as many parents needing hotel rooms, places to eat and things to do in their downtime, like shop.

Zimmermann said that events like that at FHCI are commonplace almost every weekend, and often are much larger.

Aughey added that back in May, Tampa hosted a cheerleading competition that filled 22,000 rooms over two days. A volleyball tournament this year brought 900 teams, resulting in 10-20,000 visitors.

The Wiregrass Sports Complex being developed by RADD Sports is expected to handle large indoor events like that, hosting hundreds, even thousands of athletes and their parents every weekend, all looking for ways to spend their money.

It’s no wonder there has been a rush to build new hotels in Wesley Chapel.

The popularity of youth and amateur sports is only going to grow bigger. According to the National Association of Sports Commissions State of the Industry report in 2017, visitor spending associated with sports events was $10.47 billion in 2016, a 10 percent increase from the year before.

But, Pasco County’s rebranding goes beyond just the sports tourism market in Wesley Chapel. It also includes things like the sand volleyball courts at Sunwest Park in Hudson, zip lining at Treehoppers in Dade City, and fishing and boating on the Gulf coast.

“Show me any place (else) around where, on the same weekend, you can have a beach volleyball event going on at the same time as an ice hockey tournament is happening,” said Biles. “You can go scalloping, you can jump out of a plane (in Zephyrhills), you can go biking on trails….how many destinations offer that kind of variety?”

And, there’s still more to come. While the RADD Sports facility broke ground earlier this year, it won’t be ready to host events until late 2019. There is talk of a large aquatics facility being negotiated in Land O’Lakes and a new tennis complex is scheduled to be built in Zephyrhills.

“We have a lot of assets, and more will come because they will follow,” said Moore, comparing it to Orlando, where DisneyWorld was the first amusement park, but not the last to build in that area.

Commissioner Moore even had his own suggestion for anyone interested — equestrian facilities for those who like to ride horses.

“We aren’t going to build it, but you can,” he said, to laughter. “You gotta figure out a way to get in the game!”

 

Turner/Bartels Capture First Sports Title

When Reggie Branch started coaching the boys basketball team at Turner/Bartels K-8 School in Live Oak Preserve, he knew he was building something special.

The team went 3-2 his first season in 2016. Last year, they made the county’s middle school semifinals.
And this year?

Turner/Bartels is the Hillsborough County Middle School Champion!

Behind big games from Karmello Branch, Chandler Davis and Sean Scott, the Tigers capped off an undefeated season with a 68-53 win over Shields Middle School from Ruskin in the county championship game, while also winning the first sports title of any kind for Turner/Bartels.

“It was a big moment for the kids, you could see it meant a lot to them,” said Coach Branch. “They gave me 100 percent all season right through the final game.”

Branch’s son, Karmello, led the way in the final with 27 points, while Davis scored 19 and Scott added 10. All three players are eighth-graders.

Karmello averaged more than 20 points in the three playoff games for the Tigers, who finished the season 8-0.

Despite losing four starters from last year’s semifinalists, Branch said his team was the best around without question.

“We were pretty dominant through the whole season, and the playoffs,” he said. “Every win we had was by at least 15 points.”

Karmello and Davis, both guards, led the team in scoring, while Scott played the point and hit some big 3-pointers. Branch said forward Alex Mejia was a defensive stopper for the team, while center Reggie “RJ” Bell was a top rebounder and shot-blocker.

Branch said his keys to the team’s success were simple — work hard on the court and harder in the classroom.

“Academics come first,” the coach said. “If you are a class clown…or a headache….or give your teachers a hard time, you can’t play for us.”

On the court, Branch preached a fast, high-pressure approach. The Tigers ran the ball on offense, played full-court pressure on defense and weren’t shy about putting up their shots.

“Up the court in four (seconds), score in five,” Branch says. “You had to be in pretty good shape to be able to run with us.”

The Tigers roster also included Charles Bent, Kaine Branch, George Danso, Chandler Davis, Tavoy Feagin, Connor Hodges, Elijah Horsey, Anthony Jones, Logan Lambert, Nicholas Mejia, Brodie Morris, Tre Pompilus and Caleb Thomas.

Wharton Volleyball Team Already Finding Its Groove At Midseason

This season’s Wharton volleyball team may not have the one standout player who can take over and dominate a match like it has had in the past — most recently embodied by 2017 graduate and current Yale University standout Kathryn Attar — but that isn’t stopping the Wildcats from enjoying early success so far this season.

A theme of “we, not me” was implemented by head coach Eric Barber in the preseason and with that principle, Wharton has flourished through the first month of the 2018 season.

The Wildcats have posted a 14-2 record through their first 16 matches, including capturing the title at the Academy of the Holy Names (AHN) Tournament Sept. 21-22.

“We do a lot of out-of-the-gym-type practices where we talk about what we want to be, not just in volleyball, but as human beings, because it is important for us our whole lives to understand how relying on the people around you is the best way to achieve success,” Barber says. “Discussions like that easily integrate back to athletics, especially in a game like volleyball, where it is vital that everyone is a part of it, that everyone is dialed in.”

Jeanette Henderson

But a “we” mentality doesn’t mean the Wildcats are without players who can dominate. It would just be more appropriate to say that the breadth of the team’s depth has spurred on the early success.

“We love each other like a family, so we play together,” says junior outside hitter Jamie Koopman. “We do it in a way where we try to make sure everyone else has the best match they can. If I’m off, it’s as simple as, ‘You know, maybe you don’t set me here, set the middle instead.’”

It’s been a perfect formula.

Wharton attacked the AHN tournament impressively. The Wildcats won all five of their best-of-three set matches without dropping a single set — including avenging a regular season loss to Wiregrass Ranch High in Wesley Chapel by beating them twice by 25-21, 25-12, and 25-19, 25-20 scores.

The Wildcats kept it going the week following the tournament, winning their next two matches 3-0 over Durant and Gaither.

That stretched the squad’s winning streak to nine games, including a 16-0 edge in sets won over the last seven matches.

Juniors Jeanette Henderson and Koopman lead the attack with 120 and 117 kills, respectively, but not far behind is the trio of senior Amara Eziakonwa (91 kills), junior Lexi Morse (76) and senior Devyn Kettner (74).

Setting up the attack is senior setter and co-captain Gracie Viloria (who shares that role with Henderson and Kettner). Viloria leads the Wildcats with 192 assists, with junior Jackye Kelley adding 188 of her own.

Jamie Koopman

Defensively for the ‘Cats, senior Alanis Ortega (186 digs) and Henderson (116 digs) have led the way.
“In the past, we’ve had that one really strong player, like Kathryn Attar, and she was really good and just in the right spot most of the time,” Viloria says. “But sometimes, we really were forcing plays in her direction. But this group really seems to know each other … everyone on this team has a team mentality, and as a setter I’m always comfortable with putting the ball where the play is leading, because I feel like it can really go to anybody right now.”

And that is the goal.

“Whenever you can get a team that achieves true balance, meaning whatever rotation you’re in it can go up to three hitters and you are confident in them,” Barber said, “that is an incredible advantage to have.”

After dropping Class 8A, District 8 matches to Plant and Wiregrass Ranch, the Wildcats have settled into second place in the district. Wharton is 5-2 in 8A-8 as it heads into the upcoming district tournament hosted by Freedom the week of Oct. 15.

Plant, which started the season 15-0 and is one of the top-ranked teams in the state, has been a big obstacle for Wharton for a number of years.

Head coach Eric Barber

Plant has ended the Wildcats’ season four of the last five postseasons, including two Regional semifinal defeats in the last three years.

The two are likely to meet in the District 8A-8 finals and Regional playoffs again.

The Wildcats hope to change that trend this season; however, the “we, not me” philosophy means much more to these players and their volleyball “family.”

“When I came on the team as a freshman, the team was primarily seniors, and a lot of them were committed to a college already,” Viloria said. “But that never kept them from relating to me and bringing me in, showing me what I can bring to the future of this program.”

Koopman, a junior, agreed that the success this current Wildcats team is enjoying owes itself in part to the players from the past.

“This team has always been so welcoming, I was lucky as a freshman that the team needed my position so I had a chance to play (on varsity),” Koopman said. “At first, I was so scared, but the (upperclassmen) were so immediately welcoming, helping you get better … now, as a junior, that has continued and now it’s the turn of the older players to make the new players feel that, feel welcomed like that and I really love that part of this team.”

Twisted Sisters Softball Wins World Series

The 10U Twisted Sisters All-Stars from North Tampa made friends with other teams at the world series, including the Chinese team (pictured) that ended up cheering for them as the Twisted Sisters won the World Series championship game.

The Twisted Sisters 10U All-Star softball team, made up of primarily of players from New Tampa, Zephyrhills and Wesley Chapel, weren’t so sure about their new Florida uniforms given to them by the organizers of the World Series Diamond Championship.

They didn’t fit right. Didn’t feel right. Didn’t look right.

So, after a slow start at the World Series in Lake City, FL, where the team went 3-3 in pool play and suffered consecutive losses for the first time all season, coach Otis Bass asked if his team could go back to their North Tampa All-Star uniforms.

Granted permission to do so, the Twisted Sisters didn’t lose again.

On Aug. 3, the team won three games, and on Saturday, Aug. 4, they rolled over Treasure Coast 7-0 to capture the Babe Ruth World Series 10U Diamond Championship.

“What a way to end it,” said Bass.

What a way indeed. On the morning she found out her great grandmother had passed away, pitcher Jordan Ankers pitched a no-hitter, outfielder Willa Soorus broke open a pitcher’s duel with a bases-clearing triple in the fourth inning, and catcher Allison McDuffie hit a home run the next inning to cap off a dramatic run to the title.

“It was a really cool moment,” said Bass, whose daughter Bella played second base and hit .458 with a team-best 10 RBI at the World Series and is one of four Hunter’s Green Elementary students on the team, along with Soorus, Eliza Connell and Skylah Stephens.

Bass said his roster was littered with standout players.

Ankers was dominant in the pitching circle and batted .385 on the way to being named to the All-10U World Series team.

Chelsea Anderson, a first baseman who also filled in at catcher when needed, played both positions so well at the World Series she was awarded a Gold Glove.

Soorus — “Our unsung hero throughout the World Series,” Bass said — led the team with a .538 batting average, while outfielder Lola Coole, who goes to Tampa Palms Elementary, was second with a .526 average. Third baseman Haley Horne batted .391 and was second on the team with 9 RBI.

Bass said every member of the Twisted Sisters contributed to the 7-3 record at the World Series, including outfielder Eliana Rivera (.357), shortstop Eliza Connell, Skylah Stephens and Turner/Bartels’ Grace Mercado.

Bass also credited his coaching staff — Jamie Ankers, Justin Horne and Devon and Mike Connell — with helping lead the team to an undefeated season in Xtreme Softball, a State championship and World Series title.

“We knew we had great pitching and could hit well, and were fast and smart on the basepaths,” Bass said. “We had them battle-tested, and knew we had a pretty good team here.”

10-U All Stars Headed To World Series!

The Twisted Sisters, North Tampa Athletic Association 10-under softball All-Stars are headed to the Babe Ruth World Series after winning the State title July 2 in Lake City, FL.

The Twisted Sisters overcame a disappointing loss in Districts to make it all the way to the top.

After playing the District tournament at Madeira Beach and finishing second behind Bloomingdale, the New Tampa-based team came face-to-face with the Bloomingdale again in the State semifinals.

The rematch, however, went the Twisted Sisters’ way, as they knocked off Bloomingdale 4-1. In the championship game, the New/North Tampa team endured a rain and lightning delay — during which an impromptu dance-off between the teams took place — before beating West Volusia 6-1, to advance to the World Series.

In five games at the State tourney, the Sisters outscored their opposition 32-7 (all five were victories) in advancing to the World Series July 28-Aug. 4 in Jensen Beach, FL.

The team is coached by Otis Bass, with Jamie Ankers, Michael Connell, Devon Connell and Justin Horne as assistant coaches.

The Twisted Sisters are Chelsea Anderson, Jordan Ankers, Isabellarose Bass, Eliza Connell, Lola Coole, Hailey Horne, Allison McDuffie, Grace Mercado, Eliana Rivera, Willa Soorus and Skylah Stephens.

The team has set up a GoFundMe page to help pay for their World Series trip. If you would like to help, go to GoFundMe.com and search for “North Tampa Twisted Sisters.” — JCC