HIGH 5 Lion on road to recovery

1Windermere High School became Metro West champions

Wednesday, March 8, at the Metro West Championship meet that took place at West Orange High School. The Wolverines competed against Apopka, Dr. Phillips, Edgewater, Evans, Horizon, Lake Buena Vista, Olympia, Wekiva and West Orange.

2

The Horizon High School girls beach volleyball team currently owns a 3-0 overall season record. With three games into their 2022-23 season, the Lady Hawks have swept all three teams they have played — Windermere Prep, Freedom High and Edgewater — with a 5-0 score. Horizon was set to travel to Boone High School at 4 p.m.

Wednesday, March 22, after press time. 3

The First Academy varsity baseball team defeated Harmony High School 5-2 during a non-district game Tuesday, March 14. The Royals currently have an overall season record of 10-1 and are set to play University at 6 p.m.

Thursday, March 23.

4

Two Central Florida Christian Academy alumni — Imanuel Zorgvol and De’Lazarus Keys — played with their respective universities at the NCAA Men’s Basketball Tournament. Zorgvol graduated from CFCA in 2021 and currently is a freshman at Northern Kentucky, while Keys graduated from CFCA in 2017 and currently is a senior at Texas A&M Corpus Christi.

5

The Lake Buena Vista boys basketball team currently owns a 6-3 overall season record. The Vipers were scheduled to host Edgewater at 3 p.m. Wednesday, March 22, after press time, and are set to travel to Boone High School at 3 p.m. Tuesday, March 28.

Friedman already has been attending physical therapy for two months.

ANDREA MUJICA STAFF WRITER

For Foundation Academy freshman and softball team outfielder Elena Friedman, half of her life has been spent on a field since she was 6 or 7 years old, as softball runs in her family.

“It originally started because I was at my brother’s T-ball practice and I wanted to swing a bat,” she said. “I was in sandals and like a maxi dress or something and I thought ‘You’re kind of good at this.’ So then, I went and I tried out. Both my grandpas coached softball. My aunt played all the way through high school, and she won a state championship at West Orange and my dad, he coached. So, it’s kind of like I’ve always been around softball.” Last year, at only 14 years of age and still in middle school, Friedman led the Lady Lions’ varsity team with a .570 on base percentage and four triples, and was third on the leader board for runs with a total of 31 and a .684 slugging percentage. She was second on the leader board when it comes to doubles, with a total of six doubles for the 2021-22 prep softball season.

However, Friedman has continuously been struggling with knee pain and issues. It spurred from a genetic issue she was born with called Shallow Trochlear Groove that became prevalent within the last four years.

“I originally noticed it (one time) when I slid into third base and (the doctors) said I just sprained my ACL,” she said. “But, they also wrote in there that I had a shallow patellar groove — my kneecap was too shallow but they never did anything about it so I kept re-injuring it. And, every time I would get better I would do something (to hurt it again) and it was kind of just like a constant cycle of my knee never getting better and it would always swell.”

Friedman dislocated her knee two years ago and since then, it would never stay in place.

“I could just be walking and I would fall and it would never stay in place,” she said. “I’ve had to wear a brace for a really long time and the braces never did anything and I never understood why. … So it was just really frustrating because I would always get better and I would get back to softball and … then something would happen with my knee again.”

SEE KNEE PAGE 2B