By FRANCIS FEDOR
The Stingrays opened their home schedule on Aug. 30 with a 44-7 loss to Armwood in a game that featured a number of former Stingray transfers on the Hawks’ roster. George Selvie took over the reins for the Stingrays, and the team is still coming together after seeing big changes in its roster over the off-season. The ’Rays and their coach will use these experiences as the players grow together as a unit. The Hawks were coming off a big 42-19 win over Gaither, spoiling the Cowboys’ home opener, and added another with the win over Sumner as the Hawks eye their home opener.
Sumner senior and current USF commit Jeremiah Jones between plays in action vs. the Armwood Hawks
Sumner junior RB Ronald Wilson Jr. carries the ball upfield in the Stingrays’ home opener vs. Armwood.
Sumner opened in front of a large frenzied crowd in the Tank. The large crowd necessitated the Hillsborough County Sheriff’s clearing of the entry patio to maintain crowd control. As for the game, it featured a new rivalry between the squads as a number of standout Sumner players moved from the Stingrays to the Hawks during the off season. Most notably, Tyler Williams and Cameron White are now senior starters for Armwood.
Armwood opened the scoring, taking advantage of great field position after a Sumner turnover on downs to take the early 7-0 lead. On the very next Stingray possession, the game saw a 40-minute delay as a Hawk player went down and needed medical attention. The Hillsborough County Fire and Rescue were called and attended to the player with an undisclosed injury. The Hawks found the end-zone again on their next possession and extended their lead. The ’Rays found the scoreboard to open the second quarter with a connection between sophomore QB Antoino Balaguer and senior USF commit WR Jeremiah Jones. It was the only score for Sumner. Balaguer is taking the snaps while senior QB Layton Kennison is recovering from an injury sustained in the preseason game vs. Jesuit. Kennison is expected to take the field next week if cleared by the training staff.
Sumner new head coach George Selvie during pregame workouts.
There were some sloppy moments in the game. The Armwood QB saw a snap hit his facemask and on the very next snap, saw it hop by him on the ground on premature snaps. Another sequence of possession exchanges started with Hawks WR Williams fumbling the ball and was followed by Sumner QB Balaguer being intercepted. Armwood opened the second half, going 80 yards to push its lead to 35-7. Another former ’Ray turned Hawk, Rhyan Yetman (a two-sport player who saw time as a Sumner pitcher last season), scored the touchdown. It was not the way the Stingrays had hoped to open in front of their home crowd. And it was a tough loss, having to play their home opener with the emotion of many transfers playing on the opposite side of the ball.
Francis Fedor Photos
Stingray players take the field with some acrobatics prior to their game against Armwood HS.
Sumner will be looking to regroup with Kennison returning to the field and having two very tough games to open their season behind them. The team will travel to Wharton to take on the Wildcats on Friday, Sept. 6. Wharton was routed by Tampa Bay Tech this past week, and this game could be a great opportunity for the Stingrays to notch their first win before returning to the Tank to face Newsome for their first district match-up.
