By FRANCIS FEDOR
Sumner ended its football season with a 41-22 loss to the top seed Venice Indians on a cool night in South Sarasota on Friday, Nov. 29. What started on a rain delayed night in late August, with Coach Selvie working to ensure his team would get some game experience in their only warm up for the regular season against a highly touted Jesuit Tiger squad, ended on the doorstep of a trip to Miami for the Fla. State Championship. Looking back, the seniors will have great memories of a season that took the Stingray program further than it had ever been.
Head coach George Selvie encourages his players during the regional final loss to Venice on Friday, Nov. 28.
Sumner arrives in Venice for their regional final matchup vs. the Indians on Friday, Nov. 28.
. The Stingray defense gets pressure on the Venice QB in the regional final loss to Venice on Friday, Nov. 28.
The team arrived in style on a charter bus, traveling just over an hour down I-75 to Venice, a historic Florida beach community, in a well deserved perk for the team facing off in a chance to be one of the final four teams competing for the state championship. The game itself had fans bundled up for the low 50s feel in the closing days of November. The coin toss was won by the Indians, who deferred, and put the Sumner offense on the field first. The Stingrays had an early opportunity for a big play, but a JJ Conyers pass looking for Tyler Lynch fell to the turf just outside of the reach of the receiver. Lynch had a big part in last week’s victory over Riverview Sarasota, killing two potentially TD producing drives with clutch interceptions. The Indians forced a Stingray punt and Venice struck first with RB Dorian Jones slipping through the defense for a 56-yard TD run. After another stalled drive, the Indians QB Darryon Jones found a WR Tyree Mannings (fifth in Fla. in yardage) getting past the secondary for another quick strike score. Sumner settled in and did a nice job of keeping the explosive Venice offense in check and generating its own score, Conyers to Robinson for a 6-yard TD, to put themselves in the game only down a touchdown at halftime.
Sumner WR Taesean Robinson hauls in a pass just before time expires for halftime in the regional final loss to Venice on Friday, Nov. 28.
Venice, the 2024 Fla. State Champion and with a number of highly recruited seniors, found the end zone coming out of the half. The Stingrays just couldn’t find the momentum needed to stay with the Indians and a number of errors gave Venice short scoring opportunities that they converted. A punt snap sailed over Taesean Robinson’s outstretched arms and created a turnover near the goal line for an easy Indian TD. Conyers, trying to create offense, was stripped of the ball on a run. It was the second week in a row that Venice had a big second half to secure the victory. The Rays never stopped playing and did put together a drive resulting in a TD on a 1-yard Santanacruz Griffin run. Cruz split time with Conyers at QB after Conyers left for a few plays with a stinger. Sumner scored again, this time with Conyers finding Lynch, to end the game on a positive note.
Conyers did a good job stepping into a role that he hadn’t been playing to lead the Rays in the absence of injured starting QB Antonio Balaguer, while remaining a force on the defense and special teams. Many Sumner starters played multiple roles and had impacts on the successful season.
Francis Fedor Photos
Stingray senior Zion Colbert celebrates one of the three Stingray TDs in the regional final loss to Venice on Friday, Nov. 28.
Hillsborough County now has South Shore programs that are making noise (Lennard started 7-0, finishing 8-3), and the Stingrays represented the county as one of the last teams standing, with only Armwood moving on after a 42-0 win over South Lake. Jesuit lost on Friday to Port Charlotte in a 22-21 heart breaker. Sumner played a tough 2025 slate and finishes at 10-3 and 4-0 in the district, with one of those losses coming to undefeated Armwood. Coach Selvie and his staff have elevated the program to new heights and set the bar for the future. The team should be proud of its accomplishments, and these players have lifetime memories of a magical season that ends just shy of Miami.
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