By FRANCIS FEDOR
Sumner Stingray basketball ended a promising season with an 80-44 loss to Winter Haven in the opening round of state playoffs. The Blue Devils were ranked #4 in all of Florida and, although the Stingrays won their district, they were ranked #232 for Florida and #42 for Tampa. The team played with heart every night and had a season to remember but had a tough draw for states, and it was going to be a huge upset for Sumner. Winter Haven got off to a hot start, opening the first quarter with a 19-12 advantage. The Blue Devils stifled the dynamic Sumner offense, only allowing the Stingrays 47 shot attempts to their 75. The Blue Devils dominated the night, winning each quarter and moved on to face Durant HS. The Stingrays will see a largely 2023-24 junior heavy roster as seniors for the 2024-25 season and will look to make a deeper playoff run with this season under their belts. Next season’s games will be fun to watch.
Sumner junior Luke Parson in a cordial moment with the umpire
Safe or Out? Stingray runner, senior Zach Hutchinson, obscured by the dirt, was called out on the play.
Sumner head-coach Kennedy Duran has a discussion over one of the numerous close calls in the preseason game vs. Riverview.
Stingray hurler Cayden Doven (SR) gets in an inning of work during preseason game on Thursday, Feb. 15, against South Shore rival Riverview.
Francis Fedor Photos
Stingray battery, catcher Daniel Dugarte and pitcher Ethan Dejesus, during the National Anthem
The Sumner girls basketball suffered the same fate, losing a heart-breaker at home, 55-53, against the Riverview Sarasota Rams. The girls also were district champions, finished their season with 21 wins against only six losses and only had a slightly better draw than the boys as the seventh seed. The girls had an outstanding season and will look to make a deeper playoff run next season.
And while there is snow on the ground up North, the boys (and girls) of summer opened their preseason. The Stingray boys played two games, both at home, defeating Armwood 4-2 on Tuesday, Feb. 13, and defeating South Shore rival Riverview 6-2 on Thursday, Feb. 15. A number of schools, including Sumner, hosted doubleheaders with the host playing one of the two games and two other teams playing in the other match-up. The Stingrays used a three-run fourth inning, on a chilly Tuesday night, to take the 4-2 lead, and the Sumner pitchers locked down the game in the final two innings to earn the win.
Stingray hurler Cayden Doven (SR) gets in an inning of work during preseason game on Thursday, Feb. 15, against South Shore rival Riverview.
Sumner hosted the Riverview Sharks on Thursday night. The Stingrays opened the bottom of the first with a five-run burst to put the Sharks in the rearview mirror. There were a number of calls that went against the ‘Rays, making for a frustrating evening for head-coach Kennedy Duran. He had numerous discussions about the calls with the umpiring crew to no avail, but as a result of that strong first inning, it didn’t matter at the end of the day. The team’s called it a night after four and a half innings. Ethan Dejesus got the call to start the game and threw three strong innings, only surrendering one hit and a single run. Isaiah Welch tossed two innings of scoreless relief to close out the game. Welch also had an unassisted double-play from his third base position early in the game to shut down a Shark threat. The Stingray offense combined for eight hits to score those six runs. Sumner opens regular season action on Tuesday (before this edition hits the streets) vs. Jefferson and hosts the Durant Cougars on Friday, Feb. 23, at 7 p.m.
Stingray softball played a preseason game as part of the Preseason Starky Ranch Tournament, losing 10-4 to Tampa Catholic on Saturday, Feb. 17. Sumner softball will open regular season action on Tuesday (before this edition hits the streets) vs. Steinbrenner and host the Durant Cougars on Friday, Feb. 23, at 7 p.m.