Category: Sports

Wiregrass Ranch Sports Campus To Host RADD Summer Camps!

If you have kids as young as age 6 and as old as high school-age, and you’re not sure what to do with them this summer, RADDSports at the Wiregrass Ranch Sports Campus of Pasco County has a variety of great camps during the 2022 RADD Summer Heatwave.

RADD is offering everything from All-Sports camps to individualized training camps in its core sports of basketball, volleyball, soccer and cheerleading, some of which are broken down by age and/or skill level and others for kids of all ages and abilities.

All-Sport Camps!

To give your kids (boys and girls) ages 6-16 exposure to and training in volleyball, basketball, soccer and cheerleading, as well as Yo Murphy Performance Training, RADD’s All-Sport Camp is a great choice. There are three separate one-week sessions — May 31-June 3, June 20-24 and July 18-22 — and the camps group kids by age (6-8, 9-11, 12-14 & 15+), are all held indoors from Monday-Friday, 9 a.m.-4 p.m., in air-conditioned comfort and include lunch each day, plus a camp T-shirt.

“Campers will get an introduction to each sport and learn basic skills, rules and components of each sport,” says RADD Sports CEO Richard Blalock. “This summer’s camps will focus on sport-specific skills for everyone from novice to elite athletes.”

Basketball Camps!

There will be three week-long RADD Basketball Camps for boys and girls ages 8-16, which are designed to focus on individual skills development, the importance of basketball fundamentals and developing a healthy team attitude and will be held indoors only, 8:30 a.m.-4:30 p.m. The basketball camp dates are June 6-10, June 27-July 1 and August 1-5, and also will be broken down by age and skill level.

Cheerleading Camps!

There are three levels of cheer camps this summer, including three one-week sessions for Youth Cheer Camps (June 6-10, June 27-July 1 & August 1-5, all 9 a.m.-4 p.m.; with late pickup and drop-off available for an additional charge) for ages 5-12. No previous cheer experience is necessary and athletes will learn foundational skills for stunts, tumbling, cheers and dance in a fun environment. The cheer camps also will include daily fitness education by Yo Murphy Performance.

The next level up is the RADD Team Cheer Camp for ages 6-14, which will be held June 13-17 only, 9 a.m.-4 p.m. each day, for athletes who have been through or would like to join RADD’s competitive cheer teams. The focus will be on new skills for stunts, tumbling and dance before fall team placements, with daily fitness education provided by Yo Murphy Performance.

High school cheer teams also have their own three-day (July 27-29) School Team Cheer Camp, 9 a.m.-5 p.m. each day. The School Team Cheer Camp is appropriate for both sideline and competitive cheer teams. Teams also will receive two follow-up sessions to be scheduled throughout the year.

Soccer Camps!

There will be three one-week RADDSports Soccer Camps for ages 8-17 — June 13-17, July 11-15 & July 25-29.

The soccer camps, which will be held both outdoors (weather permitting) and indoors, will focus on improving fundamental skills and game technique.

“I really don’t think there’s anything like our camps in this area,” says RADDSports director of soccer (and former English Premier League player and Tampa Bay Rowdies player and coach) Stuart Campbell.

Volleyball Camps!

RADDSports also is offering seven different sessions of Volleyball Camp.

The Attacking Camp (June 13-15, 9 a.m.-12:30 p.m.) will focus on individual techniques for attacking, with proper footwork, proper arm swing mechanics and the transition part of the attacking position.

For the Defense Camp (also June 13-15, 9 a.m.-12:30 p.m.) campers should come ready to work hard and focus on the technical aspects of playing the libero position, including ball control and overall defense.

The two-day Setting Camp (June 16-17, 9 a.m.-4:30 p.m.) will focus on offensive strategies, proper hand and body positioning and mental and emotional aspects of the game.

Younger players (ages 5-9) can attend the Eaglets Volleyball Camp (July 11-13, 9 a.m.-4:30 p.m.), where they will be taught the fundamentals of volleyball utilizing lighter balls and a lower net, all while having a great time building a passion for the sport.

There’s also a Co-Ed All Skills Camp (July 11-14, 9 a.m.-4:30 p.m.) for boys and girls ages 10-18, designed to teach the fundamentals of volleyball to those ranging from elite to beginner levels.

The Team Camp (July 11-14, 9 a.m.-4:30 p.m.) is a four-day camp designed for Varsity and JV teams who want to get a jump start on their high school seasons! Coaches and players are encouraged to attend together with focus on skills development, competition against other high school teams, team building and goal-setting.

There are two different Elite Camps (July 25-28, 9 a.m.-4:30 p.m. and July 27-28). The first Elite Camp includes 21 hours of training for Elite Varsity-Level Setters (grades 9-12), Developmental Setters (non-varsity, grades 7-10) and First Contact (serve, serve receive & defense for grades 7-10). The second Elite Camp is eight hours of training for grades 5-7 and beginning 8th graders.

For more information about all of the RADD Summer Sports Camps at the Wiregrass Ranch Sports Campus of Pasco County (3021 Sports Coast Way, Wesley Chapel) or visit wiregrass-sports.com/camps.

RADDSPORTS summer camps

A Former (Mediocre) Male Swimmer’s Take On The Transgendered Swimmer

Gary Nager Editorial

When I saw on the news and the uproar on Facebook that transgendered swimmer Lia Thomas had won the NCAA Women’s 500-yard championship, beating out Sarasota native Emma Weyant by 1.75 seconds, I couldn’t help but think about my own mediocre career as a distance freestyle and butterfly swimmer.

I didn’t want to be a swimmer as a kid, but all of my closest friends joined the Hewlett (Long Island) High swim team in 9th grade. At that age, I wasn’t big/tall or good enough to play high school football or basketball, so I accepted that swimming was it for me.

All of my friends were better than I was as a swimmer, especially in sprint events. But, I did enjoy being part of a really good team (we always had guys advance to the State Championship meets and some of them even won their events at the County level and at least made it to the finals in their respective events at States). Two of my closest friends were even good enough to swim for the Ivy League University of Pennsylvania.

Meanwhile, I worked to the best of my ability for four years, doing well enough to earn a varsity letter my junior and senior years, based on my results in dual meets during those seasons. I even made it to the County meet my senior year in the 100-yard fly and 500 free, but did not crack the top-20 in either event, despite swimming PRs (personal records) in both. I believe my 500-free time at the County meet was 5:18, but that was nowhere near my goal of breaking 5 minutes.

Even so, I was in the best shape of my life, so I continued swimming to stay in shape in my two years at SUNY Albany, and I even decided to join Albany State’s team my sophomore year. I was relegated to the events none of the other swimmers wanted to compete in — the 200 fly, 500-, 1,000- and 1,650-yard freestyle — but I only qualified for the Division III State Championship meet in the 1,650. I had put on at least 10-15 lbs. of muscle since high school and swam my P.R. in the 1,650 at State — somewhere over 18 minutes — and also recorded my fastest-ever times in the 200, 500 (5:07) and 1,000 en route to finishing 18th at that meet.

Three months or so later, I transferred to the University of Florida, a long-time swimming powerhouse, and decided to see if I could walk on the men’s team. After the first 200 yards of warmups, I realized I was completely outclassed and got out of the water cursing at myself. The famous then-Gators coach, Randy Reese, put his arm around me and said he could tell I was a competitive swimmer, and that I could stay with the team as the equipment manager and possibly even a meet-day fill-in if I could handle the thousands and thousands of yards per day and still get the kickboards and hand paddles put away at the end of each session.

Not only did I decline, I joked that I clearly wasn’t even good enough to make the school’s women’s team — and he agreed.

Little did I know, 40+ years later, that anyone would actually attempt such a switch. The former William “Will” Thomas, who says she began feeling transgendered while still in high school, joined the University of Pennsylvania’s men’s team as a freshman in 2017 and finished in the top-seven in the same events I swam (500-, 1,000- and 1,650-yard free) at the 2018 Ivy League Championships (for the same Penn team my friends swam for), although Will Thomas did not make the finals in any of those events at the NCAA Championships that year or in 2019, the Texas native’s last year competing as a man.

At the end of 2019, Will Thomas told his coaches that he was transgendered and began undergoing hormone replacement therapy to transition to female that year.

Between Covid and transitioning to female, Lia Thomas (right in picture) didn’t swim as a woman at the 2020 or 2021 NCAA Championships, but resurfaced as one of the favorites in multiple events at this year’s NCAA Women’s meet. Lia not only won the 500-yard final (in a time 13+ second slower than Will Thomas’ PR of 4:20.5), she also finished 5th in the 200 free and 8th in the 100 free.

Now, after previously having met and written stories for the former Bruce (now Caitlyn) Jenner and his Better Health & Living magazine in the 1980s, I do believe it’s possible for adults to realize that the gender they were born into was somehow a mistake, and I wish Lia Thomas the best of luck in life.

What I don’t believe is that someone who was born a man should be allowed to compete as a woman at any level of competitive sports. I’m no doctor or geneticist, but I don’t believe suppressing a male’s natural hormones is enough to not give that genetic man an unfair strength and endurance advantage when competing against genetic women.

Like Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, I believe that Weyant should have won the 500-free title, although I blame the NCAA for allowing Thomas — or anyone born a man — to compete as a woman at all.

swimming

New Tampa Baseball/Softball Previews

Wharton High Baseball Primed For Another Big Season

Michael Burgess was content to be an assistant coach on the Carrollwood Day School staff for the 2022 high school baseball season. But, when the Wharton High head coaching job unexpectedly opened up, Burgess figured it was too good to pass up.

“I really just wanted to be a hitting coach,” Burgess said. “But then, this job just fell into my lap so I thought, why not? It’s a great opportunity to get some coaching experience and help prepare guys for the next level.’’

Burgess, 33, takes over for Scott Hoffman, who spent 18 years as the Wildcats’ coach, winning 267 games, including last year’s District championship. Burgess inherits a team that went 21-5 and returns several key players. Not that he’s had much time to get to know his players — Burgess was hired only about a month ago and has had to hit the ground running, as the Wildcats are off to a 4-1 start.

Burgess is no stranger to Hillsborough County baseball, however. He was a star outfielder at Hillsborough High and helped the Terriers reach the State championship in 2006. In 2007, after a stellar senior season, he was selected in the supplemental first round of the 2007 Major League Baseball draft by the Washington Nationals as the 49th overall player selected.

While Burgess never played in a major league game, he did manage to have a 12-year professional career. He played a total of 1,256 minor league games for four different Major League Baseball organizations (Nationals, Chicago Cubs, Houston Astros, and Baltimore Orioles), in the Mexican League as well as the Independent League, hitting a total of 185 home runs before retiring in 2018.

He returned to Tampa, but hadn’t gotten baseball out of his system.

“It’s going to be a fun and great experience,’’ Burgess says of coaching the ‘Cats. “I’ve been down this road once before in high school. I’m familiar with all the competition. I can’t hit for the guys though. They’re always asking me, ‘Hey coach, you think you can beat such and such in a home run derby?’ I just tell them, ‘Y’all have no idea what I can do.’’’

Burgess will have several top-notch players returning from last year’s playoff team as his nucleus.

It starts with the one-two combination of senior pitchers Ryan Fry and Evan Chrest. Both are right-handers who combined to win 14 games last season. Fry, who is committed to University of Miami, was 6-1 with a 1.88 ERA last season, and struck out 12 in six innings to get a 2-1 win in the 2022 season opener. Chrest, a Jacksonville University commit, was 8-2 with a 1.93 ERA last season.

So far this season, the Wildcat duo has combined for. awhopping 42 strikeous in 22 innings, and only allowed five earned runs.

Burgess expects left-handed seniors Vijay Wadhwani and 6-foot-7 Jaythan Wilson to provide relief for his two starters.

“We’ve got two horses coming back,’’ Burgess says. “They have a dog mentality on the mound and throw a lot of strikes. We’re going to ride those guys all season. We have some guys who are going to come in on the back end and close out some games.’’

Offensively, senior Elijah Dukes is primed for a breakout season, and opened the 2022 season with a homer after leading the team last year with four (to go along with 24 RBI). Through five games, Dukes is hitting .429 with two homers.

The son and namesake of the former Tampa Bay Devil Rays and Hillsborough High standout, Dukes is a 5-foot-11, 240-pound prospect who can play the infield or outfield.

Burgess has known Dukes since he was born and has watched him grow up.

“I keep an eye on him and help him with his swing,’’ Burgess says. “His swing is very similar to mine. I’d say almost identical. I can really help him stay under control.

“He’s got some high expectations. He has pop to all fields. He can run. He’s not as fast as his dad, but he can run. He has good hands. We’re going to try to get some great things out of him this year.’’

Dukes won’t be the only bat to deal with for Wharton. Fellow seniors Billy Eich, a 6-6 first baseman and the Wildcats’ leading returning hitter after batting .360 last year, Quentin Meadows (14 RBI last year. andalready batting .538 this year) and David Limbach (who is on pace to better last year’s .315 BA and 20 RBI) are all expected to provide offense. With 11 seniors on the roster, expect the Wildcats to make a lot of noise in Class 6A for the next three months.

“We’re just looking for a couple of guys to step up,’’ Burgess said. “Once those couple of guys step up it’s going to be a great season.’’

FREEDOM BASEBALL
PREVIEW

COACH: Tripp Merrell (fourth season)

LAST SEASON: 12-13 (5-4, third place in Class 5A, District 6)

KEY RETURNERS: Raul Olivera, Sr., Util; Gio Mendoza, Jr., C; Lucas Richardson, Sr., INF

PROMISING NEWCOMERS: Evan Mobley, Sr., P/INF; Logan Lambert, Jr., 3B.

BREAKOUT STAR: In his first game as a member of the Patriots, Evan Mobley threw a shutout in a 6-0 season-opening win over Alonso, and hasn’t allowed an earned run in two appearances. The Tampa Bay Tech transfer certainly got off to a good start and will be counted on to eat up innings this season. He also will play the infield when not on the mound. Mobley hit a team-best .340 for the Titans in 2021.

OUTLOOK: This is the fourth season for Merrell, which means this will be the first class he has coached from freshmen to seniors. The Patriots are already off to one of their best starts ever at 4-1.

There are eight seniors on the roster and plenty of depth in the lineup, and his top five returning offensive players are top hitter Raul Olivera (.430, 34 hits, 13 RBI, six doubles — all team bests in 2021). Through the first five games, freshman Bryce Nanns, junior Gio Mendoza, senior Lucas Richardson, Olivera and Mobley all have four RBI each.

In addition to Mobley, senior Michael Morrison, junior Joey Wey and senior Marshall Chastain (who has 12 strikeouts in 10.2 innings this season) should provide pitching depth.

One of the difficulties for the Patriots almost every season is the competition. District 5A-6 includes perennial Tampa powers Jesuit, Jefferson and Hillsborough. But, with a veteran roster, Freedom has as its best chance in recent memory to compete with those top-tier teams.

COACH SAYS: “There is a lot of optimism going through this program right now. We’ve got seven of our nine offensive starters returning, we’ve got a deep pitching staff. If we can improve on what we’ve been working on during the offseason then we should be in pretty good shape. Our district is very tough, but that’s Hillsborough County baseball. It’s a challenge every year.” — Freedom baseball coach Tripp Merrell

WHARTON SOFTBALL PREVIEW

COACH: Amber Lamb

LAST SEASON: 8-11 (2-5 in Class 7A, District 11).

KEY RETURNERS: Riley Collins, Sr. P; Lexi Cowles, Jr. 1B/C (photo); Isabella Rittle, Sr., INF; Haleigh Self, Sr., 3B.

PROMISING NEWCOMERS: Hannah Lopez, Fr.; Samantha Leyva, Fr.; Brooke Loomis, So., P/INF (Brooks-DeBartolo transfer).

BREAKOUT STAR: As the only returning pitcher with any experience, senior Riley Collins will be heavily relied upon. She threw 104 innings as a junior and had a 3.62 ERA. She struck out 40, so she will have to increase that total this season. Collins, who also hit .244, will be asked to throw strikes and should have a better defense behind her this season. She was 6-11 as a junior, but she could easily completely flip that record this season.

OUTLOOK: Lamb, who missed the Covid-shortened 2020 season due to maternity leave, had a hard time fielding a team in 2021. But, at least she fielded one — this year, Freedom High will not have a softball team, due to a lack of players.

Although Lamb’s best player, Tieley Vaughn, is now at USF after rewriting much of the school record book, the roster is fuller and Lamb says she has depth and has improved at just about every position. Junior Lexi Cowles may have been overshadowed, but she was outstanding last year, leading the team in doubles (7) and RBI (28); she also was second in hits (27), runs (20), triples (3) and home runs (3). She is off to a hot start this season, hitting .562 with two doubles and home run in the early going.

Senior infielder Isabella Rittle is hitting .417 and already has two homers, the first of her varsity career.

Lamb says she also is very impressed with freshmen Lopez and Leyva, and Loomis could pick up some innings to give Collins a breather.

COACH’S QUOTE: “There is definitely optimism this season. We had so many more girls try out this season than last season. We were so scarce on numbers. But now, it’s very encouraging. We are trying to win the District (6A-6). That is definitely a goal.’’ —Wharton softball coach Amber Lamb

Freedom

Wharton Falls Short At State

Carlos Nesbitt converts an alley-oop pass from Trent Lincoln in the second quarter of the Class 6A state semifinals in Lakeland Thursday night. Wharton fell 52-47 to Martin County. (Photos: Charmaine George)

For three quarters of Thursday’s Class 6A State semifinal clash with Martin County, Wharton High looked like the better basketball team. The Wildcats’ defense was just a little bit better, the offense was more accurate shooting the ball and Wharton always seemed on the verge of a putting the Tigers in a hole so deep they wouldn’t be able to climb out of it.

Then, in less than a minute, everything changed, and Wharton saw its hopes of advancing to the first State championship game in school history evaporate.

Led by a trio of seniors and a stifling press, Martin County (26-4) turned the game in their favor to start the fourth quarter and the Wildcats never recovered, falling 52-47 at the RP Lending Center in Lakeland.

Martin County’s Jayden Pressey, who was 0-for-6 from three-point range, buried a wide-open triple from the corner to start the fourth quarter, and the Tigers began pressing, and a slew of Wildcat turnovers and mistakes followed. The Tigers made free throws and another bucket inside, and in 57 seconds had spun off an 8-2 run to give Martin County a 39-36 advantage with 7:03 remaining in the game.

Wharton’s Trent Lincoln drives to the hoop in the first half.

The Wildcats, who finished 28-3, never led again.

“We weren’t in our press attack alignment,” Wharton coach Tommy Tonelli said. “and we had some guys out of position in the process. That’s it. It’s that simple. We had a plan, we knew what we wanted to do, we knew what they were running, we just didn’t get guys in the right spot. It just made it that much more difficult to execute what we needed to do.”

The press overwhelmed Wharton, which already had 13 turnovers heading into the last quarter but committed seven more with the heat turned up.

“When we were able to get the ball out of (Wharton point guard Trent Lincoln’s) hands, they got a little helter-skelter,” said Martin County coach John Leon. “We had to take a chance with the press. If we hadn’t, I’d be kicking myself.”

Pressey had all nine of his points in the fourth quarter, including a bullish drive to the basket to give Martin County a 45-39 lead with four minutes left. Another Pressey basket off a turnover stretched the Tigers’ lead to 49-41.

Ryan Davis, a thorn in the Wildcats’ side all night, led Martin County with 18 points and seven assists.

After shooting just 24 percent in the first half, the Tigers shot 67 percent in the second half, and were scorching hot in the fourth quarter, making 8 of 10 shots.

Wharton guard Lucean Milligan is fouled in the second quarter, and made both his free throws to give the Wildcats a 16-13 lead.

For three quarters, however, it looked like it might be Wharton’s night. They held the Tigers to one basket in the first quarter and led 8-3, and behind strong play from seniors Trevor Dyson and Carlos Nesbitt, forged a 16-15 lead at the half.

The third quarter was back and forth, and midway through, Chandler Davis canned a three-pointer and gave Wharton its biggest lead, 29-22, of the night.

However, despite eight points in the quarter from Dyson, Martin County was able to rally and keep it close heading to the fateful fourth.

Dyson, who was 4 of 6 from three-point range, and Davis, a junior, each scored 16 points to lead Wharton.

Dyson added 11 rebounds, while Nesbitt chipped in seven points and eight rebounds. Both seniors played all 32 minutes.

“I told the guys afterwards they exceeded my wildest expectations,” Tonelli said. “Not that I didn’t think they were capable. We were Conference champs, District champs and Region champs. The only goal we fell short of was being State champs. But there’s a lot of guys that play basketball and can’t say they are any of those things.”

basketball tommy tonelli wharton high

Women’s Professional Hockey Champion To Be Crowned At Center Ice

You probably have already heard that last July, the Tampa Bay Lightning defeated Montreal in Tampa, earning the Bolts a second straight Lord Arthur Frederick Stanley Cup.

But, did you know that Lord Stanley had a daughter named Isobel, and a trophy bearing her name is handed out to the best professional women’s hockey team?

It’s true, and next month in Wesley Chapel, the winner of the 2022 Isobel Cup will be decided at AdventHealth Center Ice.

The six teams in the Premier Hockey Federation (PHF) will square off March 25-28, with preliminary round games tipping things off on Friday, the semifinals on Sunday and the final to be contested live on Monday at 9 p.m., on ESPN2.

The PHF championship game will mark ESPN’s first linear broadcast of professional women’s hockey. And, although NBCSports.com reports that no current members of the powerhouse U.S. and Canadian women’s national teams have played in the PHF since 2019, a recent influx of new capital — a reported $25 million — will more than double each PHF team’s salary cap (from $300,000 to $750,000) and provide health care and maternity leave benefits for all PHF players.

“We’re pumped about it. This is a pretty big deal,” said AdventHealth Center Ice CEO Gordie Zimmermann. “The women are trying to develop and move into the pro ranks and the gain the respectability that they have always been looking for. So I think this is a great platform. The hockey development here is like no other in the nation and they recognize it as great place to present their format. Girls hockey is growing in Florida as well, so this is a great thing for all the developmental programs in the area to come and watch.”

Zimmermann says all the girls hockey programs will be invited to watch the playoffs. The general public also is invited to the event. AdventHealth Center Ice seats roughly 1,000 spectators.

It’s surreal and somewhat ironic that both the Stanley and Isobel cups, awarded to best teams playing the national sport of Canada, would be decided in….Florida. But, the opening of Center Ice in 2017 opened up a lot of previously unimaginable possibilities.

The PHF playoffs is another coup for Zimmermann. Other than the many men’s hockey events Center Ice has hosted, some of its most noteworthy events have involved women’s hockey. It was the training site for the 2018 Olympic gold medal-winning U.S. Women’s Hockey team and hosted Team USA, Canada, Finland and Sweden for the 2017 Four Nations Cup. In 2019, a virtual women’s hockey museum opened inside Center Ice.

Each spring, the rink complex also plays host to USA Hockey’s Women’s Nationals.

“We have been a catalyst for the growing interest in hockey in Florida since our opening, and in women’s hockey in particular,” Zimmermann says.

Seven of the 25 players in Center Ice’s elite Global Prospects Academy are girls, and the facility also is home to the Crunch travel program, which has 14-under and 16-under teams.

The PHF was established in 2015 as the National Women’s Hockey League before re-branding itself. The league is made up of the defending champion Boston Pride, Buffalo Beauts, Connecticut Whale, Metropolitan (New Jersey) Riveters, Minnesota Whitecaps and the Toronto Six.

The pairings aren’t set yet because the regular season is still ongoing, although Connecticut and Toronto are currently in first and second place, respectively.

For more information, visit PremierHockeyFederation.com or AHCenterIce.com.

AdventHealth Center Ice Premier Hockey Federation