SPORTS Hope springs eternal

ANDREA MUJICA STAFF WRITER

Finally, after months of anticipation, West Orange and Southwest Orange football teams are lacing their cleats to get ready for what promises to be an amazing season.

Oh yeah, it is spring football season. Coaches for CFCA, Dr. Phillips and Legacy did not respond to requests to participate in this story.

PRIVATE SCHOOLS

THE FIRST ACADEMY

The First Academy will play its spring football game Thursday, May 18, against Zephyrhills Christian Academy.

“We had a jamboree set up, but the third team backed out,” head football coach Leroy Kinard said. “So now, the head coach (at Zephyrhills) and I have to discuss the game format.”

The Royals are entering spring training — and the football season come August — with a very young football team after graduating 11 seniors who were impactful players for the team last season.

“We’ll have a very young team next year — but a lot of good players,” Kinard said. “The trick is to let them grow and not get frustrated during the process.”

The key this spring is to have the opportunity to play all newcomers and see how they fare on the field.

“This spring, I really want to evalu-

SEE PAGE 3B

Windermere Wolverines dominate on the diamond

Windermere High’s baseball and softball teams both claimed district titles — and are looking for more.

Andrea Mujica

STAFF WRITER

Both the Windermere High baseball and softball teams have worked toward their respective goals the entire season and are seeing the hard work pay off, as the boys are currently ranked No. 5 in the Florida 7A region and the girls are ranked No. 3 in the Florida 7A region.

WOLVERINE BASEBALL

The Windermere High School varsity baseball team has enjoyed a successful season.

“I’m just really proud of the guys because, obviously, we lost some big pieces (last year) by losing Simon Sobellia on the mound, Gustavo Mendez behind the plate and, obviously, Blake Cyr at the shortstop,” head baseball coach Eric Lassiter said. “The question mark was how we would fill those holes both in the offense and on the mound. But our guys have really responded and have had a really good year, and they’ve kind of come together as a team. We are excited to get another chance, especially those returners, because they were here last year and got to

SEE DOUBLE 2B

The Foundation Academy softball team defeated Mount Dora Chrsitian Academy 5-3 during the regional quarterfinal game, advancing to the regional semifinals. The Lady Lions currently own a 12-9 overall season record and were set to play Cornerstone Charter Academy (20-8-1) in the regional semifinal game to define what team will advance to the regional championship game at 7 p.m. Tuesday, May 16, after press time.

File photos

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The First Academy recently recognized eight student-athletes for their high academic performance during the 2022-23 school year. To be eligible to receive the Scholar Athlete Award, the student-athletes need to have the highest GPA in their class for their gender and participate in more than one sport. The 2022-23 Scholar Athlete Award recipients are: Marina Schmid and Jackson Jones, ninth grade; Haven Schrimsher and Jack Millar, 10th grade; Anniston Risinger and Liam Sweeney, 11th grade; and Sarah Jackson and Enzo Sioson, 12th grade.

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The Dr. Phillips High varsity boys volleyball team advanced to the regional semifinals after defeating Sports Leadership and Management 3-0 during the regional quarterfinals Tuesday, May 9. The Panthers (17-6) defeated the Spartans in three sets: 25-20, 25-15 and 25-20.

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Lake Buena Vista High School recently named its athletes of the year for the 2022-23 academic year. Andres Romero plays football and soccer for the Vipers, and Natalie Kaufman participates in cross country and track and field. Both student-athletes have a GPA higher than 4.0.

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Windermere High School varsity baseball players Holden Brauner, Jack Waddingham, Guillermo Yepes, Cannon Feazell and Randy Ruiz Jr. recently were named 2023 Metro West baseball Metro Champions and All Metro Players.