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Land O' Lakes Girls Had Busy, Successful Holiday

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By CRISTINA LEDRA, The Tampa Tribune

Published: January 9, 2008

The Land O' Lakes Gators came away from the holidays with a lot more than gifts.

They earned a holiday tournament championship at the Kiwanis Club of Gainesville Invitational at the end of December, then came back and beat Sunlake and Sebring to improve their record to a county-best 17-1.

The Gators went 3-0 in Gainesville, beating Orlando University 53-39, Fort Myers Bishop Verot 55-34 and Cocoa 51-45 in the championship game.

Senior Kayli Keough was named MVP of the tournament, and freshman Meghan Keough was named to the all-tournament team.
Kayli Keough had 22 points, nine rebounds and 10 steals against Orlando University, 20 points and six blocks against Bishop Verot and 17 points and 15 rebounds in the championship game against Cocoa.

Meghan Keough had 19 points against Orlando University, 14 points against Bishop Verot and 23 against Cocoa.

Land O' Lakes coach Laurie Pacholke said Danielle Priest and Emily Seda both stepped up for the Gators during the tournament and were big reasons for the team's success.

The Gators also benefited from spending a few nights in Gainesville together.

"We're getting there as a team," Pacholke said. "I saw glimpses of how good we can be, and we're getting better. Our rebounding is better; we're a lot better on the boards. Our team chemistry is there. It was good for us to stay in a hotel for three nights and play goofy games together. Some of the girls, it was their first time in a hotel."

The Gators had a chance to see former Land O' Lakes basketball player Katrina Morris practice with her Santa Fe Community College team, but couldn't see her play because SFCC played at the same time as Land O' Lakes.

The girls had a chance to practice in the University of Florida's practice facility.

Land O' Lakes has a busy week this week, with Central on Tuesday night, Wesley Chapel on Thursday and Gulf on Friday - so all that they learned during the holidays will be put to use immediately.

WILDCATS NET TITLE: Wesley Chapel (16-3) earned a holiday championship of its own at the Ocala Forest Holiday Classic but came back to suffer two tough losses.

The Wildcats had solid contributions from Desiree Vizcaino, Ashley Carey, Jeani Ducos and Caitlin DeBoer with each having strong performances in different games.
Wesley Chapel was happy to have them all play well now that the team is down to eight players for various reasons.

"They played great," Wesley Chapel coach Warren Jones said. "That's the best they've played all year."

There were two brackets in the Ocala Forest tournament, and Jones believed the Wildcats were in the lesser of the two.
Wesley Chapel beat Greensboro West Gadsden 47-27, Orlando Dr. Phillips 49-38 and Palatka 60-47.

When the Wildcats returned home they beat Pasco 44-15 then lost to Academy of the Holy Names 47-39. AHN isn't the team it was last season, when it had the Messina twins, who have moved on to college ball.

But Wesley Chapel struggled to score, and that led to the loss.

Monday night, the Wildcats lost in a lopsided game to Jacksonville Potter's House Christian, a team that Jones said is probably the best team in the state.

The Wildcats also are looking forward to their game against Land O' Lakes on Thursday, although they are aware the Gators will have revenge on their mind after Wesley Chapel beat them 63-46 in early December.

This game will determine which team will get the first-round bye in the district tournament.

BUSY HOLIDAY: Ridgewood (11-7) had the most stacked holiday schedule of any girls teams in the county, with three tournaments.

The Rams went 4-4 overall during the holidays and got a lot out of seeing different and tough competition.

Each of the teams Ridgewood lost to during the holidays was ranked in the state poll.

The first tournament was the Rams' own, the Ashley Morrison Memorial Shootout. Ridgewood lost its opening game to Orlando Boone, ranked No. 4 in the Class 6A poll, 53-51 when the Rams missed a tip-in on a missed free throw in the final seconds of the game.

They easily beat Newberry 71-33 in the consolation game.

Then it was off to Ocala for the same Forest tournament Wesley Chapel was in, except the Rams were placed in the other bracket, which Ridgewood coach Greg Bollinger said was much tougher.

The Rams went into the tournament with four losses, and that's how many losses their three opponents had combined.

Ridgewood dropped its first two games to Jacksonville Lee 63-35 and Riviera Beach Suncoast 45-28, and won the seventh place game against Haines City, 52-41.

The Rams wrapped up the holidays with the Indian Rocks Christian Tournament and beat Hollywood Christian 42-35, toppled host IRC 48-28 and lost to St. Petersburg Catholic 53-33.

"I think now we're not as shell-shocked when we see an athletic team," Bollinger said. "We've seen that, and we know what to expect so that's not as intimidating."

Ridgewood has a huge week next week, with both Wesley Chapel and Land O' Lakes on the schedule.

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