Braden River, Lakewood seniors ink college choices

BRADEN RIVER — Braden River High midfielder Ivo Lima has spent nearly a decade preparing for the opportunity to play at the next level.

And now, he will.

On April 19, alongside his parents Joao and Caelina, coach and friends, Lima signed a national letter-of-intent to play soccer for Jacksonville University.

“It means success because you play soccer to move on and keep going,” Lima said. “That’s the next level.”
A native of Brazil, Lima has been kicking a soccer ball for as long as he can remember. But it wasn’t until about three years, after he moved to Florida, that Lima began playing competitively.

“I’m from Brazil, and that’s what you do,” Lima said. “I just enjoy pretty much everything about it.”

Since then, Lima has played on a variety of travel teams while helping lead the Pirates to a district runner-up finish this season.

Lima, who plans to major in business management, chose Jacksonville University over Florida Atlantic University because of its size and up-and-coming program.

“It’s a small school,” Lima said. “It’s Division I, but it’s not the 20,000 kids. It’s mostly new. They’re pretty much starting from scratch. They’re bringing in 12 new kids and only have three starters (returning), so positions are up for grabs. I just have to do my best, and hopefully I’ll get to start.”

LAKEWOOD RANCH
Over the past year, Lakewood Ranch High senior Hunter Sagar has been crowned a men’s amateur champion, a high school classic champion and, most recently, a state champion.

Now, the Mustangs golfer can now add Division I athlete to his impressive résumé.

On April 16, Sagar signed a national letter-of-intent to play golf for Canisius College in Buffalo, N.Y.

“It’s always been my dream to see how far golf can take me, and I’m happy to be able to play on the college level,” Sagar said. “It’s exciting for me.”

Sagar, who plans to major in engineering and possibly minor in business, chose Canisius over Iowa, DePaul, Florida Atlantic, West Florida and Dartmouth, because of the location and the opportunity to start playing right away.

“I’ll probably start my freshman year, and I won’t have to sit out,” Sagar said. “I want to play. I didn’t want to go somewhere where I wasn’t going to play.”

Sagar began playing golf when he was about 8 years old, but he didn’t begin playing competitively until four years later.

Since then, Sagar has excelled on the course. Sagar won the bronze medal at the International Junior Masters tournament before winning the city of Bradenton’s Men’s Amateur Championship and the Honda Classic high school championship earlier this school year. Most recently, Sagar helped lead the Mustangs to a 103-0 record and a Class 2A state title.

Sagar will spend the summer continuing to train at the Missing Link Golf Academy, with the hopes of qualifying for and competing in the Florida Amateur, the U.S. Open Qualifier, the Porter Cup Qualifier and the Junior Masters, among others, before heading to Buffalo.

“I’m just looking forward to the experience, my teammates and playing at a higher level — a Division I level,” Sagar said.

Contact Jen Blanco at [email protected].