By Matt Mauney | Associate Editor
There was no shortage of great moments this past year in Plant City sports.
Durant High School especially had a memorable year, with its softball team winning the program’s first state championship followed by a historic 11-1 campaign by the Cougars football team.
The Plant City Observer was born this July, but we take a look back even further to recap the year that was in local sports, highlighting the great teams that took the fields in the past 12 months.
See inside for our top five teams in 2012.
1. DURANT SOFTBALL
It truly was a remarkable year for the Durant High softball team.
The Lady Cougars brought home the school’s first state championship in the sport, beating Miami Palmetto 8-2 in the Class 8A title game. Durant entered the state playoffs as a dark horse, but the team pulled out several come-from-behind victories to finish a remarkable playoff run.
It was the opening game of the district tournament that set the pace for the remainder of the postseason, when the Lady Cougars battled back from an 11-0 deficit to Alonso to come back and win 15-14.
Durant was given extra motivation in an emotional way when, on May 4, just a week before the Lady Cougars began the state playoffs, Antoinette Cuellar, “Momma C,” lost her battle with breast cancer. Cuellar’s daughter, Olivia, was a senior shortstop for Durant.
Durant lost four seniors but returns a solid nucleus that has played together for a while and now has the experience of playing for and winning a state championship. Paige Davis, a pitcher and catcher, will be one of the key returning players as Durant seeks to defend its state title.
2. DURANT FOOTBALL
The Durant football team came into the season with key spots to fill on defense and on the offensive line, as well as finding a replacement for quarterback Nick Fabrizio, who signed with the U.S. Naval Academy.
The Cougars answered those questions by putting together the best season in program history, finishing 10-0 in the regular season for the first time since the school opened in 1995. Durant won its first playoff game over Tampa Bay Tech 34-7 in the region quarterfinals before its season came to an end with its first loss to district rival Newsome 21-14, in the region semifinals.
The Cougars averaged 209 rushing yards per game and 34 points per game this season, while their defense allowed fewer than 10 points per contest.
Despite the early exit from the playoffs, the Cougars established themselves as a dominant program this year and certainly one to watch in the coming years. Durant will lose standout fullback Jamarlon Hamilton, who rushed for 1,340 yards as a senior, but will return quarterback Trey VanDeGrift, rising junior running back Crispian Atkins and a future star in defensive end Dontriel Perry.
3. 10-11 LITTLE LEAGUE ALL-STARS
Perhaps the team that will enter the new year with the most pressure for a repeat performance will be a group of 10- and 11-year-olds.
The Plant City 10-11 All-Stars repeated as state and region champs this year, going through the entire season with just one loss.
That loss came to Tennessee in pool play of the Southeast Regional, otherwise known as the Tournament of Champions, held in Greenville, N.C. Representing Florida as state champs, the Plant City All-Stars avenged their lone loss, beating Tennessee 4-1 in the championship game. The Southeast Regional is as far as the 10-11 age group could go, as with the 9-10 region championship team last year, but the team will have an opportunity to advance further next year, as the 11-12 All-Stars, with a chance to move past regionals to the coveted Little League World Series in Williamsport, Pa.
This year’s 11-12 team fell short of that goal but had a great season nonetheless, winning a state championship before being eliminated in their regional in Warner Robins, Ga.
4. LOCAL YOUTH FOOTBALL TEAMS
It wouldn’t be fair to highlight just one team in what was a great season for youth football in the area.
A handful of local teams went undefeated in the regular season of the Florida Youth Football and Cheerleading Association this year. Two local teams met in the Super Bowl in the junior varsity and varsity divisions. The JV Turkey Creek Trojans defeated the Plant City Dolphins and advanced Dec. 15, to Raymond James Stadium, where they played the Nuccio Jaguars. In the varsity division, the Dover Patriots took home the Super Bowl championship with a win over Turkey Creek.
In Plant City’s second year hosting the United Youth Football League’s National Championships, several local teams had the chance to compete against some of the nation’s best.
The 10-unlimited Plant City Raiders team earned the title of national champions after going 3-0 in the tournament against teams from Newark, N.J., Jacksonville and Chicago.
5. PLANT CITY GIRLS SOCCER
The Plant City girls soccer team is a program on the rise.
Just two years ago, the Lady Raiders managed just their second winning season in school history and advanced to the regionals with a 2-0 win over East Bay in districts. This past season, Plant City once again advanced to regionals and, this time, won a game, defeating Tarpon Springs 3-1 in the quarterfinals before losing a close match to Seminole.
This season, the Lady Raiders welcomed a new head coach in Caleb Roberts, who played for the boys team at Plant City before playing collegiately at Palm Beach Atlantic University. Plant City is off to another good start this season and returns most of the key players from last year’s team.