Mackenzie Pierce and Kailyn Scully – LRHS News
(LAKEWOOD RANCH, FL) – LRHS Mustangs showed off their “horse” power during the winter sports season. All of the athletes in the soccer, basketball, wrestling and girls weightlifting teams fought hard to make the school proud.
Soccer
The LRHS girls and boys soccer teams both excelled this season and earned spots in the state final four.
Boys varsity coach Vito Bavaro said, “We had a great run. Our goal this year was to make it to states and for the first time in school history we made it to the final four. We have a young team with a promising future. Next year our goal will be to not only make it to states but to win as well.”
Basketball
Girls varsity coach Tina Hadley said, “We had a very successful season. We performed well and finished strong.”
The girls team fought their way to the regional semi-finals and unfortunately fell short in overtime. The boys had a great run as well.
Boys Varsity Coach Jeremy Schiller said, “This season everyone made a lot of progress and worked hard, especially the seniors. Next year I want to maximize the potential of my players and have more than twenty wins.”
Both coaches agreed that their goal for next year is to make it to the state championship tournaments.
Wrestling
The LRHS wrestling team set numerous records this season. For the first time in school history a total of five Mustangs qualified for the state competition and four of them were underclassmen. Additionally, the team went from placing 46th in previous years to 8th in this year’s state competition.
LRHS Head Wrestling Coach Pat Ancil said, “I am proud of the five state qualifiers who helped us achieve the highest ranking at the state level in school history.”
Freshman Hunter Reed wrestled his way to the final round of his weight division and came home with second place. He was the first wrestler from LRHS to ever make it to the final round of a state competition.
Other LRHS state qualifiers include sophomores Tim Dwyer and Dylan Cameron, junior Jared Dipsiner, and senior Ty McLeod.
Weightlifting
This year Lakewood Ranch’s girls weightlifting team represented the school with dedication and determination. A total of six girls qualified for districts.
Sophomore Riley Bohan qualified for the state tournament.
Coach Michael Koczersut said, “I would love to see more girls qualify for states next season.”