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Lecanto finds winning formula
By KEITH NIEBUHR © St. Petersburg Times, published January 10, 2001 LECANTO -- Don't underestimate the power of chemistry. Despite having six seniors on its roster last season, the Lecanto boys soccer team went 7-11-2 and made an early exit in the district tournament. This year, the Panthers have three more seniors and, despite having seven regular-season games remaining, two more wins. "The kids have really come together," second-year coach Bruce Sheffield said. "They've been more about the team. "Last year, they were trying to get used to me and me to them. Now, they've gotten used to each other and they've all come together," he said. Lecanto's offensive statistics seem to back Sheffield's claim. Eleven players for Lecanto (9-3-1, 6-2 in Class 2A, District 7) have scored, and four Panthers rank among the county's top 10 in goals. Junior midfielder/forward Greg Schell leads the team with 11 goals. Andy Adolfsson is next with seven, followed by Jeremy Cox, Jacob Robinson and Matt Thomashunis, who each have five. Cox and Thomashunis are freshmen. As a team, Lecanto has scored 42 goals. "We've got more people that can score," Adolfsson said. "We've got five players with five or more goals, and last year at this time, we had two. Everybody has pretty much stepped it up." Another key to the success: defense. The Panthers have allowed 18 goals, or 1.3 a game. Their defenders have shined as has junior keeper Nick Rowthorn, who has 130 saves and 17 goals allowed. "If you want to win close games, your defense is the biggest key," Adolfsson said. "We've got an experienced defense." A stronger offense and better defense are a result of having more chemistry, the players say. With a roster that has nine seniors, four juniors, two sophomores and four freshmen, Lecanto has geled well. "We're working better as a team," Schell said. "Last year, we tried to make more individual things happen and we tried to rely on a couple of people. This year, we have better senior leadership. It's a lot more fun." Although the Panthers have improved greatly, one thing they have not done is beat a top-tier team. Two of their losses were to undefeated Crystal River, and a third came against state-ranked Springstead. The Panthers get another shot at Springstead on Jan. 22 and could meet Crystal River again in the 2A-7 tournament. "The only thing we need to do is beat Crystal River," Schell said. "We haven't been very lucky against them." In its most recent game against the Pirates, a 3-0 loss in December, Lecanto had one second-half shot attempt skirt inches outside the post and another bound off the post and out of bounds. "Crystal River is good this year, but last year we didn't even play with them," Adolfsson said. "This season, we lost to them 3-0 but it could have been a lot closer. "(Crystal River) respects us," he said, "but they think they're going to beat us every time. All of us want another shot at them."
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