We’ve been looking at baseball, softball and men’s weightlifting players to watch this spring, including the top four or five players, including George Jenkins’ Chelsi Williams and Winter Haven’s Jayden Lippett. Two of the players are not included.
All told, there are 12 FHSAA sanctioned sports in the spring, with the addition of men’s volleyball, beach volleyball and flag football last year.
One name missing from this list is Auburndale two-sport standout McKenna Battila, who was named Women’s Tennis Player of the Year as a freshman last season. She was injured in the soccer playoffs and was scheduled to undergo surgery on her knee on Tuesday.
more: Jayden Lippett focused on track and field, earning national rankings and Athlete of the Year awards.
State Tournament: Williams wins two more gold medals and leads George Jenkins to state runner-up
While women’s tennis lost one of its top players, men’s tennis gained one as top junior player Ben Saltman did not play as a freshman but will play at Winter Haven. He will have to battle this year’s returning player, Nicholas Cumria of George Jenkins, for top honors in the county.
Here are the remaining top 10 players in spring sports, as well as 39 more players to watch.
Top 10 spring athletes
1 Chelsi Williams, George Jenkins (women’s track and field)
Still a junior, Williams competes in both the triple jump and long jump hurdle events and is a six-time state champion.
2 Jayden Lippett, Winter Haven (men’s track and field)
The Florida State signee is a two-time state champion in the triple jump.
3 Nicholas Kumria, George Jenkins (men’s tennis)
Kumria played high school tennis for the first time last season and was named the county’s player of the year.
4 Ben Saltman, Winter Haven (Men’s Tennis)
Ben, the son of Winter Haven City Courts tennis pro David Saltman and a talented junior player, plays tennis for the first time in high school.
5 Azaria Whitehurst, Fort Meade (Women’s Track and Field)
The 2022 1A state 100-meter champion suffered the injury just before the county meet.
6 Riley Tanner, Winter Haven (beach volleyball)
Tanner was named The Ledger’s Player of the Year in his first year of beach volleyball.
7 Erin Miller, Lakeland (beach volleyball)
Like Tanner, Miller also excels at beach volleyball and indoor volleyball, but signed with Florida Gulf Coast to play beach volleyball in college.
8 Jayliani Lucas, Auburndale (flag football)
Lucas, a junior quarterback, made great strides in his first year, becoming a playmaker as both a passer and rusher.
9 Jada Hutt, McKeel (Women’s Tennis)
She was county runner-up at No. 1 singles.
10 Tarjana South, Lakeland (Women’s Track and Field)
She was county, district and regional champion in the triple jump and district champion in the long jump.
40 more spring athletes to watch
boys lacrosse
Gavin Atkins, Winter Haven: Atkins is a third-year starting goaltender.
Aidan Barfield, All Saints: Barfield is the Saints’ offensive leader.
Logan Leal, Bartow: The midfielder is the Yellow Jackets’ leading scorer.
Larnell Misch, Bartow: He returned his senior year as Polk County’s top faceoff midfielder.
Omari Mixon, Lakeland: A standout player in the world of soccer, he is listed as one of the top 25 players to watch this season by Tampa LAX magazine.
Luke Maurer, Lakeland: The attacker from Florida Tech had 47 goals and 30 assists.
Jeremiah Owusu, All Saints: Owusu, a senior defenseman, is the quarterback of the All Saints defense.
Zach Smith, Winter Haven: Smith is a third-year starter as a long-stick midfielder.
Grady Turner, Lake Wales: Turner is one of the county’s top goalkeepers.
Jed Watts, Lake Wales: Watts is a top long stick midfielder.
women’s lacrosse
Avery Brown, Lake Wales: A senior captain who has scored 96 goals, she shows great leadership on and off the field.
Allie Donley, Lake Wales: As a first-team all-county attacker, she scored 27 goals.
Sophia Hart, All Saints: Hart, an attacker who also plays soccer, is a highly offensive player who scored 49 goals last year.
Addison Lenderman, All Saints: A midfielder, she is a multi-sport athlete.
Skyla Ramirez, Lake Wales: A senior goalie, she communicates well with her teammates.
Madilyn Regan, All Saints: Regan, a junior goalie, played a lot of club lacrosse in the offseason.
boys track and field stadium
Caden Baker, George Jenkins: Baker was The Ledger’s cross country runner of the year last fall and will complete the 1,600 and 3,200 meters.
Citleveon Dyer, Lakeland: He was the district champion in the 400 meters.
Darrell Garba, Bartow: He was county champion in the 100 meters and placed third in the district where he ran from Lake Gibson.
Caden Marsh, frost resistance: Marsh finished second.
Michael Walker, Lakeland: Walker was a county and district champion in the javelin throw, placing fourth at the regional meet and sixth at the state meet.
Daniel Welling, Santa Fe Catholic: Welling missed the end of the cross country season, but returns as one of track’s top distance runners.
women’s track and field stadium
Dashanik Henry, Winter Haven: She was the top 200 and 400 female sprinter in the county last year.
Jade McBridge, George Jenkins: She was the county and district champion in the 1,600 meters.
Jarlyn McBride, George Jenkins: She was county and district champion in 800.
Avery Smith, Lakeland: Smith missed cross country with an injury but returned and was first team all-county in the 1,600.
Emma Wilkinson, Lakeland Christian: Wilkinson was the women’s runner of the year in cross country last fall and was the winning runner in the 3,200 meters.
Arianna Bonds, Lake Wales: Bonds was district champion in the 200 and 400 meters last year and finished seventh at state in the 400 meters.
Lauren Bays, Lakeland Christian: She placed third in the 1,600 district last year.
Violet Smith, George Jenkins: She was a district champion in the discus and state qualifier.
boy tennis
Wiley Simpson, Geneva Classic: Simpson was one of the top men’s tennis players in the county and was No. 2 in singles, but rose to No. 1 with the graduation of his brother Tanner.
women’s tennis
Abigail Windham, cold tolerance: Windham was a first-team all-county selection as a freshman last year.
beach volleyball
Emily Dryer, Winter Haven: Driver, a sophomore, was a first-team all-county blocker.
El Freud, Winter Haven: As a senior, Floyd was a first-team all-county defender.
Grace Gibbs, Bartow: The senior was first team all-county last year.
Kate Marshall, Lacernado: Marshall is a key part of Lakeland’s No. 1 pairing, partnering with Miller. She is an exceptional server and has a keen awareness of the courtroom.
boy volleyball
Felipe Kusmanic, Mulberry: Kasmanic, a senior middle hitter, had 106 kills and was named first team all-county.
Jean Paul Gutierrez, Ridge Community: Gutierrez is a setter with 251 assists.
Angel Maldonado Cruz, Ridge Community: Maldonado is co-captain of this year’s team and finished last season with 97 kills.
Giovani Solis, Mulberry: Solis is transitioning from being a strong outside hitter last season with 74 kills and 44 aces to being the starting setter and leading the offense. as a setter.
