Don't forget about the non-football sports

It's the time of year when football dominates our high school sports landscape.

I love football, and covering football, as much as anyone. That doesn’t mean the other fall sports — golf, cross country, volleyball and swimming — don’t deserve some love. Through the first three weeks of the new semester, there’s already been some big matches and impressive performances by local athletes. So here’s a guide to what is happening off the football beat.

Golf

Lakewood Ranch High is the area leader in both boys and girls golf.

On the boys side, senior Drew Angelo might be the area's best individual player. He tied for 37th overall at last year’s individual state tournament at Howey-in-the-Hills’s Mission Inn Resort (+15 over two rounds), and hopes to do better this year. He’s joined by junior Dylan Gabbert and sophomore Mark Bruton, who also qualified for the state tournament last year.

On the girls side, the Mustangs return four golfers who qualified for the state tournament: senior Natalie Robson, sophomore Ashleigh Angelo (Drew’s sister), junior Ashlyn Einwachter and senior Ashley Ringo. Robson led the pack with a 34th place finish in 2017.

No returning boys or girls players from The Out-of-Door Academy or Braden River High reached the state tournament in 2017.

Cross country

Cross country isn’t the area’s strong suit, but the area does have some talented individuals. On the boys side, Braden River senior Billy Stager finished 25th out of 147 runners (19:06) at the Lemon Bay Invitational on Aug. 25, which saw 17 teams participate, including ODA. Junior Dustin McCoy (39th, 19:40), freshman Dylan Howard (42nd, 19:46) and freshman Brendan Swann (47th, 19:55) are the Pirates’ other top runners.

The Out-of-Door Academy’s top runner is sophomore Charlie Floriglio (67th, 20:53).

On the girls side, ODA senior Maeve Studdiford led the pack at the Lemon Bay meet (17th out of 136, 21:29). The Pirates are led by freshman Grace Marston (20th out of 136, 21:38), sophomore Kenzie Johnson (65th, 24:27) and sophomore Isabella Busi (67th, 24:35).

Volleyball

Braden River’s 2017 squad was talented but inexperienced, finishing 11-12, but has every right to improve this season. Emma DeCastro, Jordan Radick and Andrea Garcia, key contributors as freshmen last year, along with senior libero Arianna Osika, could lead the team to the postseason in 2018.

Lakewood Ranch went just 13-15 last season, but returns key pieces like senior setter Jordan Schmucker and senior outside hitter Anna Shelly Dees. Junior libero Yami Zamarippa adds experience. In the team’s 3-0 win against Palmetto High on Aug. 28, Zamarippa had six aces and 10 digs.

ODA, 12-17 in 2017, already has two wins in 2018 as of Aug. 30, both by 3-0 margins. Led by senior Adelaide Mahler and junior BreAnn Brown, the Thunder seem to have taken some major strides forward. In the 3-0 win over Port Charlotte Community Christian on Aug. 23, Mahler had six kills and five aces, while Brown had five kills and an ace.

Swimming

Lakewood Ranch senior Sebastian Aguirre is the top returning boys swimmer on the Mustangs. He finished 5th in the 100 butterfly (50.73) at last year’s state meet. ODA’s Sarsen Whatmore is also a title threat, finishing sixth in the state in the 500 freestyle (4:33.76) and ninth in the 200 freestyle (1:42.77) in 2017.

Braden River girls junior Kate Walker finished fifth in the 100 breaststroke (1:05.92) and sixth in the 50 freestyle (24.19) at the state meet in 2017, despite battling injuries for most of the season. She’s a medal contender if she stays healthy.

For the Mustangs girls, junior Emily Massengale looks to improve on an eighth-place finish in the 100 backstroke (58.12) at the state meet. Seniors Keely Radloff and Emily Loefgren also qualified for the state meet last year.