1. TURKEY CREEK TROJANS VARSITY FOOTBALL
Youth football numbers are dwindling everywhere, and it’s a trend that doesn’t appear to be going away right now. It messed up the Antioch Redskins’ program this year, and nearly did the same for Turkey Creek’s Varsity squad.
But, with just 12 kids to play 11-on-11 football, this team likely went above and beyond the expectations of many people.
With every athlete playing both ways, the Trojans made it through the Tri-County Youth Football and Cheerleading Conference regular season with just two losses. They weren’t the top-seeded squad in the playoffs, as the then-undefeated Brandon Lions were on top, but Turkey Creek still made it to the postseason.
After a 32-0 win over the Dover Patriots and a 19-16 win over the East Bay Bucs, the Trojans found themselves in a Superbowl matchup with the Lions. Turkey Creek trailed for much of the game, but in the kind of ending fit for a movie, the “Trojan 12” rallied on a last-minute drive and pulled ahead for good, 14-13, with just four seconds left in the game.
There’s no sport riskier to play than football when short-staffed, and the fact that the Trojans won a championship with just one guy on the sideline is impressive.
2. PLANT CITY HIGH GIRLS GOLF
One of the most telling signs of a great team isn’t as obvious as how well it can perform on a regular basis. Sometimes, to understand what kind of team you’re looking at, you have to watch how the athletes handle themselves after getting knocked down.
Plant City High School’s girls golf team has been very good for several years now, and that didn’t change in 2013. But, the 2014 squad was tasked not only with dealing with the loss of star player Kellyanne Hurst and her fellow seniors, but also with rebounding from a controversial ruling in the 2013 regional tournament.
These girls couldn’t have handled the situation much better.
This year, the Lady Raiders were as determined to make it to states as ever. They won the district tournament by a comfortable, 22-stroke lead and placed second overall in the regional tournament with a 353 team score. Junior Kendall Johnson led all individuals with a 74.
Although the girls ended up placing 13th in the state tournament, no one was particularly upset. After all, the Lady Raiders had accomplished exactly what they set out to do and put last year’s controversy firmly in the rearview mirror.
3. DURANT HIGH FOOTBALL
Who doesn’t love a good worst-to-first story?
This year, the most notable example of this was the Durant High School football team. Coming off of a vastly underwhelming 2013 season, in which the team found itself near the bottom of the district standings, the Cougars were determined to get back to their winning ways for 2014.
Although it lost a competitive season opener with Armwood, Durant went on to stun playoff teams Sickles and Tampa Bay Tech in back-to-back games, outscoring the opposition 64-40. They followed that up with a rain-soaked 9-7 win over Plant City in the Battle for the Redman Cup and ended up in the playoff conversations of many Tampa Bay-area publications.
The team went 1-4 over its next five games, but three of those losses came by a total of 11 points. With its playoff hopes on the line, the team delivered. A 28-7 home win over East Bay pushed this team to the district title and a first-round playoff appearance.
Although some key players will be lost to graduation, the Cougars’ youngsters displayed talent across the board and showed that this team does have a chance to stay competitive.
4. STRAWBERRY CREST GIRLS BASKETBALL
The most fearsome basketball program in the Plant City area improved upon its successful 2013 run in a big way, putting together a solid regular-season campaign and showing off one of the best ballers in Hillsborough County.
The Lady Chargers finished the 2013-14 season with a 25-5 record, 10-0 in district play, and made it all the way to the regional tournament semifinals before dropping a tough one to Steinbrenner High.
Forward Aliyah Gregory had an excellent senior year, averaging 20.7 points, 6.6 steals, 4.7 rebounds and 4.5 assists per game. Her consistency and durability (Gregory played in all 30 contests) helped push this team to its best season ever and also landed her a spot on the University of Central Florida women’s basketball team this year.
No team in the area even came close to the Lady Chargers’ 62.6 points per game average, or their 22.4 steals per game. Although plenty of that had to do with Gregory’s play, it’s telling that the team is currently putting up very similar averages in its first two months of play in the 2014-15 season.
Make no mistake: These girls can play great basketball.
5. PLANT CITY HIGH GIRLS SOCCER
The 2013-14 season was Caleb Roberts’ second as Plant City High School’s head coach, and it was also the second year in a row that the team came together to win the district title.
Led by a strong senior core, these Lady Raiders finished the season with an 18-3 record (8-0 in district play) and in the regional quarterfinal, fell to Seminole by just one goal, a 3-2 heartbreaker.
The team’s top three scorers were seniors Ericka Lott, Diana Corzine and Stephanie Galloway. They combined for 58 goals, Lott being responsible for 25 of them. Galloway led the team in assists, with 18. The senior-anchored defense helped junior goaltender Taylor Michael post 13 shutouts and helped keep other teams to a .654 goals against average.
There was also the emergence of freshman Drew Knotts, who scored 10 goals in 15 games to crack the team’s top five and contributors like sophomore Kylee Burroughs and freshman Ariel Navarrete that are putting up big numbers for the team.
With the next district championship looking like Plant City’s to lose, it’s now clear that Roberts has built a perennial contender at 1 Raider Place.