Wildcats Eyeing Postseason Success

(l.-r.) Mia Nicholson, Ariana Rivera-Heppenstall, Kayla Grant and Emari Lewis have led the Wildcats to a 15-2 record this season. (Photo: John C. Cotey)

Stopping the Wesley Chapel High (WCH) girls basketball team is no small feat.

Oh sure, maybe you can slow down senior forward Kayla Grant, the reigning Sunshine Athletic Conference Player of the Year. But, what about sharpshooting sophomore guard Emari Lewis?

And maybe, just maybe, Lewis is having a bad night with her jumper. But then, what about all-around ace Ariana Rivera-Heppenstall?

And, say you manage to throw Rivera-Heppenstall off her game, what are you going to do about slasher Mia Nicholson?

If you can’t stop them all, and you probably can’t, then you’ll have to pick your poison, because the Wildcats have combined an uncanny amount of balance with a high-octane attack and stifling man-to-man defense to form what is currently Pasco County’s best girls basketball team.

“We all contribute,” says Nicholson, a junior forward. “When River Ridge double-teamed Kayla, I stepped up. When other teams try to target one person, someone always steps in. You can’t really do that with our team. Most teams don’t have enough good players to guard all of us.”

So far this season, Wesley Chapel is 19-3, with their only losses coming to a team from Missouri, Eustis High and Brooks DeBartolo in Hillsborough County. In Pasco County, the Wildcats are unbeaten. 

Grant, Rivera-Heppenstall, Nicholson and Lewis are all averaging double figures in points and at least 2.5 assists per game. Grant is averaging nearly 12 rebounds per game, while the other three average more than 4 rpg each.

No one is surprised. The Wildcats are coming off a 22-3 season in 2018-19, and added Nicholson in the offseason. 

A former Weightman Middle School player, Nicholson attended Land O’Lakes High her first two years, and averaged 11.3 points and 4.8 rebounds last year before transferring to WCH.

“I expected this,” Grant says, without flinching. “We didn’t lose anyone from last year’s team and we also got Mia. We needed one more piece, and she filled it.”

It was a big piece for head coach Peter Livingston, who took over a struggling program in 2014-15 when he was the only person to apply for the job. The former Wiregrass Ranch High (WRH) junior varsity coach lost his first game to his former team 77-17, and one couldn’t have blamed him for changing his mind about taking the job at halftime, when the ‘Cats trailed 52-3.

“I wanted to be a head coach, and I came here to build the program, and I was determined to do that,” says Livingston, adding that he never did get discouraged.

He went 7-17 each of his first two seasons, then had a short-lived breakthrough with a 15-9 season in 2016-17, as Grant and Rivera-Heppenstall showed up as freshmen.

But, Grant left the following season for Brooks Debartolo, and Rivera-Heppenstall missed the season with a knee injury, as the Wildcats plunged to a 6-17 record.

For 2018-19, however, Livingston proved to be not only be a good coach, but a fortunate one as well. Grant and Rivera-Heppenstall returned to his program, Lewis enrolled as a freshman, and the Wildcats were back in business with a 22-3 season, including a Class 6A-District 8 championship.

The Wildcats lost 59-58 to Crystal River in the first round of the State playoffs.

With Nicholson added to the mix this season, the sky may be the limit. They will likely head into the district tournament in a little more than a week as the top seed.

“We want to go to States,” says Lewis. “We have a lot of talent on this team, and we’ve got more heart this year. When we’re playing as a team and playing together, we are tough to stop.” 

Tonelli’s Wildcats Off & Running Again

Stop us if you’ve heard this one before.

More than one month into the new high school basketball season, Wharton High is undefeated, playing great defense, and establishing itself as the team to beat in Class 7A-7.

If that sounds familiar, it should. After all, the Wildcats have won seven district titles in the past 10 seasons, and jumped out of the gate with starts like:

  • 9-0 (last year)
  • 9-1 (in 2017-18)
  • 8-1 (2016-17)
  • 11-1 (2015-16)
  • 13-0 (2014-15) and on and on.

The difference between those teams and this year’s squad? Youth. Head coach Tommy Tonelli has led his youngest team to a quick 10-0 start heading into the meat of the regular season. 

“This is by far my youngest varsity team ever,” says Tonelli of a roster that includes four freshmen and four sophomores among the 12 players. “We lost six seniors, three starters, and the county’s Player of Year in Darin Green (now at UCF). That’s a big readjustment to make.”

They seem to be adapting just fine. The Wildcats’ closest game this season was a 61-49 win over Lennard High — the 450th win of Tonelli’s career — and six of their wins have been by more than 22 points.

Their season-opening run included a tournament championship — 49-33 over Berkeley Prep — at Nature Coast Tech’s holiday tournament.

Helping with that readjustment are the team’s only two senior starters — captains Carr Thiam and Gio Reyes, who have both emerged from Green’s wide shadow to lead the Wharton kids.

“They want to continue to sustain the traditions we have and the excellence we’ve shown in past years,” Tonelli says. “They have a lot of pride. Hopefully, they get to put another district championship banner up there.”

Carr Thiam fires in three of his career-high 34 points in a win over Steinbrenner. (Photo courtesy of Jess Self)

Thiam, a versatile forward who can score from long range or create his own shots off the dribble, is averaging a team-high 23.7 points per game, along with 6.3 rebounds, 3.8 assists and 2.2 steals. Reyes, the point guard, is averaging 17.9 points and 5.3 assists a game.

Both players have embraced their roles as leaders and the team’s go-to players.

“We know we have a lot of new guys and we have to get them going, be more vocal, so they pick up things faster. We get on them every day,” Thiam says. “We talk about (leading) a lot.”

“It’s all we talk about,” Reyes adds, smiling.

Tonelli says the seniors aren’t just leading verbally, but by backing up their words on the court.

“They set the right example,” he says. “I always tell the guys, if you want to see how it’s done, and you want to see what playing hard is, just watch those two. If you ever have any doubts, watch those two.”

The Wildcats are coming off a 26-5 season, and the team advanced to the Class 8A Regional final last year. Thiam and Reyes don’t want to be part of any team that ends the Wharton string of 11 straight seasons of 20-plus wins, and if this season looked like a ripe time to finally catch Wharton on the downside, well, Thiam says “not this year.”

So far, the Wildcats are 3-for-3 in their all-important District 7A-7 match-ups, handily beating Alonso, Steinbrenner and Plant and letting the county know it is best not to be fooled by Tonelli’s youthful roster. 

Against Steinbrenner, Thiam scored a career-high 34 points.

“I hit my first shot from deep, and I thought, ‘Oh, this is going to be a good game,’” Thiam says. “I was surprised it was 34 though. I thought I had like 25 or something.”

Wharton’s youthful roster is far from a hindrance, says Thiam, but rather a benefit. He runs off a list of teammates he think will be stars down the road, and Reyes does the same.

The team does indeed have a wealth of young talent. Three of the freshman on the roster — guards Chandler Davis and Karmello Branch and forward Reginald “RJ” Bell — all started for the Turner-Bartels middle school team that went 8-0 and won the Hillsborough County championship last season.

Davis has recently moved into the starting lineup.

The Wildcats are getting contributions up and down the roster, from sophomore forward Trevor Dyson (8.3 ppg, 7.7 rpg) and guard Jordan Brown to junior guard Elijah Barnes and the only other senior, forward Josh Barnett, who is the tallest Wildcat at just 6’-5”.

“We’ve got pretty good depth, albeit inexperienced in a lot of ways,” Tonelli says. “But, I have a lot of confidence in what those guys can do. We may be lacking for physical size, but we have a lot of skill, a lot of guys that can put the ball in the basket…I definitely like what I see in the early going.”

Football Preview 2019: Wesley Chapel Wildcats

Jelani Vassell

Jelani Vassell led the Wesley Chapel High (WCH) football team last season in rushing yards, receiving yards, kick return yards, interception return yards and scoring. He even found time to throw 19 passes.

To say Vassell had a target on his back when lining up against the opposition is a sizable understatement.

So, what is this year’s goal, according to Wildcats’ coach Tony Egan?

“We need to take the target off his back,” he says.

He thinks he has enough players to do just that, which in turn will make the Wildcats a better team and one that should contend for a playoff berth. Here’s how they stack up:

QUARTERBACK: Junior Owen Libby is the new starter, and recent Wiregrass Ranch High (WRH) transfer Matt Helms, a sophomore, is right behind him. Egan said he’s never had depth at quarterback, so having two interchangeable signal callers is definitely a bonus. Neither has yet thrown a varsity pass, but Egan says they have both looked good this summer in 7-on-7 play and have a plethora of talented targets this season. 

RUNNING BACK: Senior Isaiah Cole was the starter last year (332 yards, two TDs), but he suffered a knee strain in camp and may be out for a while. Senior Quay Jones, a physical, downhill type runner, will step in and start the season in the backfield.

WIDE RECEIVER: Vassell, a senior, might be the best player in Pasco County, if not the most versatile. He averaged 30 yards a catch last season on 20 receptions, with six touchdowns. He also ran for 541 yards and eight scores, and returned two interceptions for 70-yard TDs. 

“He’s a tremendous player,” Egan says. “When we need something to go our way, he makes that play for us.”

Vassell will have lots of help this season, as junior Jon’tavius Anderson (more than 120 yards receiving in the spring game) and sophomore Nehemiah Morgan will line up alongside him. Another WRH transfer, junior Tyler Stinson, who is the younger brother of former WCH and current Florida State University player Isaiah Bolden, is expected to make an impact as well. 

“We’re pretty loaded at the skill positions,” says Egan.

OFFENSIVE LINE: Wharton junior transfer Tyre’ Brooks (6-0, 300) and junior Tyree Thomas (6-0, 285) give the Wildcats some serious beef at the guard positions, along with junior Logan Jeffrey, while Xzavier Owens starts at center and Kaleb Rivera mans the right tackle spot. The left tackle position is still open, although Egan says there are some solid candidates. 

Egan was formerly an offensive line coach at River Ridge, which set county records for rushing when he was there, and others with offensive line experience, like Matt Smith (Sunlake), Tom McHugh (Pasco) and Brian Colding (Pasco), have joined the staff from schools that historically have had strong lines. So, hopes are high that the offensive lines will be coached up in 2019.

DEFENSIVE LINE: Smith is the new defensive coordinator, and the switch to a defense that employs only three lineman will help keep the Wildcats from having to play so many of their offensive players both ways. Sophomore defensive tackles Gavin Paul and Jayshaun Bell are moving up from junior varsity and have shown promise.

LINEBACKERS: Senior Brenden Maddox, who Egan says “is a beast,” led the Wildcats with 95 tackles, 17 for a loss, last season, and returns as a starter on the outside. Sophomore Jordan McCaslin, the son of former Florida Gator Eugene McCaslin, will start at inside linebacker, along with Ramsey, and senior Steven Mira and Stinson will share time at outside linebacker.

DEFENSIVE BACKS: This might be the best group in Pasco County — Vassell and Anderson will start at the corners and Jones is the safety, and a host of others will rotate in. 

“Our two corners are hands down the best in the county,” Egan says. “There is no doubt in my mind.”

KICKER: Four-year starter Fletcher Martin handles both the kicking and punting duties.

THE FINAL WORD: Wesley Chapel has an exceptional amount of playmakers on both sides of the ball, and will put up some points this season. The last three seasons, however, they have been in the playoff hunt heading into their last two games, but have gone 0-6 down the stretch while getting outscored 252-61. If the ‘Cats can finish stronger, playoff football could be the reward.

Freedom, Wharton Boys Basketball Teams Set Respective Milestones As Seasons Wrap

Freedom High’s Miguel Rojas puts up a jumper late in the Patriots’ narrow win over Strawberry Crest High on Feb. 18 in the Class 7A Regional Semi Finals.
Freedom High’s Miguel Rojas puts up a jumper late in the Patriots’ narrow win over Strawberry Crest High on Feb. 18 in the Class 7A Regional Semi Finals.

By Matt Wiley

It’s been quite a year for both the Wharton High Wildcats and Freedom High Patriots boys basketball teams in their respective runs at a state title, each setting impressive milestones for their schools that will live on as some of these players graduate and move on to college.Continue reading