Leesburg, Fla. – It was certainly a year to remember for the Lake-Sumter State College sports programs this year. At the end of every school year, the LSSC Athletics Dept. hosts an awards banquet for their athletes. Among the awards given out were Male and Female Athlete of the Year, the Tyler Reichwein Service support and significant contributions Award and the Professor of the Year Award.
Professor of the Year
Gary Rogers – Assistant Professor of Theatre & Arts
Each year the student-athletes at Lake-Sumter vote on a Professor of the Year. The professor receives their recognition at the end of the year awards ceremony. This year, Gary Rogers became a back-to-back recipient of the honor Mr. Rogers is an Assistant Professor of Theatre & Arts at the Leesburg Campus. Several student-athletes made comments about Professor Rogers' commitment to their success not only as a student, but as an individual. "He cares about us as people," said one student-athlete. "I love the passion he has for his class and what he is teaching," said another student-athlete.
Male Student-Athlete of the Year
Jarrett Backus – Sophomore, Baseball
Backus drove in 37 RBI's and scored 42 runs in 45 games this season. The Apopka native also owns the painfully earned mark of most hit by pitches in a season (20) and a career (36). Backus played in over 90 games during his two years as a Lakehawk
Female Student-Athlete of the Year
Emma Gray – Sophomore, Volleyball
Gray was announced as an Honorable Mention All-America selection back in December. She completed her playing career at Lake-Sumter on Nov. 14 after helping her team to an 11th place finish at the NJCAA National Tournament in Charleston, WV.
The local product from First Academy Leesburg wrapped up a decorated two years as a Lakehawk. Gray finished top five all-time in kills (529) and total attacks (1729). After elevating her game to the next level, Gray received national recognition in the wake of the Regional Tournament being named National Player of the Week by the NJCAA.
Tyler Reichwein Service Award
Jovon Valentin – Student Assistant-Athletics
The Tyler Reichwein service, support and significant contributions award is given to a student that has gone above and beyond for Lake-Sumter State College. This year's recipient was an incredible asset to the athletics department, even though they never took the field. Jovon work alongside John Meier on our sports complex. It seemed there was not a day that went by when you didn't pass Jovon's smiling face as he worked tirelessly at whatever task was at hand. His work ethic is second to none and he was the unanimous selection for this year's award.
Volleyball
This year will go down as one of the most successful seasons in Lake-Sumter State College athletics history.
After not receiving a single vote in the NJCAA national poll the entire season, the Lakehawks finished 11th at the Division II National Championships in Charleston, WV. "This has been an incredible experience," said Head Coach, Amanda Phelps. "I could not be more proud of this team's hard work, discipline and dedication. I hope they see now that they deserved to be here and this should become the new normal for our program."
This team became the first program at Lake-Sumter to make a trip to the national tournament. Phelps went on to say, "I also want to thank our administration for all their support and a big thank you to our Athletic Director, Mike Matulia, for helping to make this experience happen."
This season brought about many memorable moments for the Lakehawks. It was the first winning season since 2003, they defeated four nationally ranked programs, first regional championship, first trip to Nationals, resulting in the first win at a National Tournament for any Lake-Sumter athletics program. A banner now hangs in the Everett A. Kelly Convocation Center as a result of what this group accomplished this season. It is an exclamation point on 2018 and a representation of the words, "we belong."
Softball
The Lakehawks finished with a 26-30 overall record, 9-15 in conference play. The team's 26 wins is the fourth best season in program history. The pitching combination of Geier and Primavera became the first duo to reach 10+ wins in the same season and were both named All-Conference. Geier also posted the best ERA in a single season in the history of the program (2.15). Primavera leaves Lake-Sumter having collected the second most wins in a career (18).
Turner leaves her mark in the record book breaking not only the single season walk total (37), but also the career total (65). Underwood finishes a stellar career third on the all-time hit list (105), third in doubles (25), third in runs scored (66) and first in at-bats (340). Jennifer Bryant completed a great rookie campaign finishing with the second most hits by a freshman (54) while carrying a .334 batting average and leading the conference in stolen bases (23).
"This class came here with the belief they were going to change this program and they absolutely did that," said Head Coach, Jay Miller. "The best thing you can ever do in your life is go somewhere and leave that place better than when you found it. That is not only what these girls did with this program, but that is what they did with this coach and I cannot thank them enough for that."
Baseball
The Lakehawks finished 2019 with a 22-25-1 overall record and 9-15 in Mid-Florida Conference play. The team's 22 wins are the most since 2013 and the third most under Billings. Lake-Sumter finished fifth in the final MFC standings.
Robbie Scott turned in one of the program's best performances in a single season. The sophomore finished the year with the second most hits (80), fourth most total bases (112) and stolen bases (24), while taking over the top spot with 62 runs scored in a single season. His career numbers matched those of some of the all-time greats to come through Lake-Sumter. Scott finished top five in batting average (.362), games started (92), doubles (23) and RBI's (80). He finished second in all-time hits with 137.
Sophomore Jarrett Backus was named the 2018-19 Lake-Sumter State College Male Athlete of the Year as announced Thursday. Backus drove in 37 RBI's and scored 42 runs in 45 games this season. The Apopka native also owns the painfully earned mark of most hit by pitches in a season (20) and a career (36). Collin Teegarden also played his final game for the Lakehawks this spring. His 82 runs scored is fifth all-time in a career while he now owns the programs single season and career marks for walks with 45 and 84 respectfully.
The players were not the only ones to reach milestones. Head Coach, Rich Billings won career game number 178 in the final weekend of the season. He is now tied with former baseball coach and current LSSC Athletic Director, Mike Matulia. His next win will put Coach Billings at the top as the all-time winningest baseball coach at Lake-Sumter. Coach Matulia reached his 178 win plateau in 422 games while Coach Billings got there one game sooner in 421 contests. Billings is a former player and assistant coach for Matulia and the two will look to share another special moment together in 2020.
Academics
A total of 41 student-athletes made a 3.0 GPA or higher. Four student-athletes earned President's List honors with a 3.8 or higher GPA.
2019 Academic Honors
NJCAA Academic Award (3.60+):
Hailey Franklin - Volleyball
Kitana Lim - Volleyball
Amber Schwartz – Volleyball
Matthew Coles - Baseball
Collin Teegarden - Baseball
Johziel Serrano – Baseball
Taylor Turner - Softball
Emily "Ernie" Murphy - Softball
Jennifer Bryant - Softball
FCSAA All-State Academic Team (3.30 - 3.59):
Hailey Franklin - Volleyball
Kitana Lim - Volleyball
Amber Schwartz - Volleyball
Talyn Allard - Volleyball
Amanda Berecz - Volleyball
Gabriela Hernandez – Volleyball
Seth Martin - Baseball
Bryant Heston - Baseball
Cameron Recny - Baseball
Matthew Coles - Baseball
Collin Teegarden - Baseball
Johziel Serrano – Baseball
Allie Geier - Softball
Jenna Curtis - Softball
Cissy Doolittle - Softball
Taylor Turner - Softball
Emily "Ernie" Murphy – Softball
Jennifer Bryant - Softball
Mid-Florida Conference Academic Team (3.00 - 3.29):
Hailey Franklin - Volleyball
Kitana Lim - Volleyball
Amber Schwartz - Volleyball
Talyn Allard - Volleyball
Amanda Berecz - Volleyball
Gabriela Hernandez - Volleyball
Katherine Carpenter - Volleyball
Emma Gray - Volleyball
Jasmine Kimpel - Volleyball
Rebecca Lakin – Volleyball
Alan Alonso - Baseball
Mark Antony Perez - Baseball
Jarrett Backus - Baseball
Conner Andrews - Baseball
Matthew Cobb - Baseball
Gabriel Dorsey - Baseball
Andrew Miele - Baseball
Brody Rubenstein - Baseball
Trey Weathers - Baseball
Seth Martin - Baseball
Bryant Heston - Baseball
Cameron Recny - Baseball
Matthew Coles - Baseball
Collin Teegarden - Baseball
Johziel Serrano – Baseball
Taylor Dotson - Softball
Abbey Primavera - Softball
Alysha Bolling - Softball
Casey Allen - Softball
Lucia Esposito - Softball
Karsyn Connell - Softball
Brandi Davis - Softball
Raelin Treves - Softball
Amanda Quinby - Softball
Ashlyn Allen - Softball
Allie Geier - Softball
Jenna Curtis - Softball
Cissy Doolittle - Softball
Taylor Turner – Softball
Emily "Ernie" Murphy - Softball
Jennifer Bryant - Softball