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Wildcats learn to overcome
By STEVE LEE © St. Petersburg Times, published January 25, 2001
The Wesley Chapel coach was doused with a cooler of ice water Dec. 8 after his second-year team recorded its historic first win. "It was freezing, but it was worth it," said Hymiller, who felt the Wildcats would win at least once last season. "I was going nuts. We'd only ever scored one goal in a game." That first victory -- 3-2 against Class A, District 7 rival Lakeland Santa Fe Catholic on Trent Cooper's game-winner -- snapped a 27-game winless streak. Wesley Chapel started the season 0-6-2 after going 0-18-1 last year. The Wildcats' season has had more than its share of sadness. Earlier this month, a teammate committed suicide. In their first game back, they lost 11-1 to River Ridge. "They weren't ready," Hymiller said. In the two games since that defeat (5-4 and 3-1 losses to Ridgewood and Tampa Catholic), Hymiller said the team has played better. "Some guys took longer to adjust to the idea of what happened," Hymiller said. "As a team, we were pretty tight-knit to begin with, so they supported each other a lot." Of the Wildcats' two other victories, one came virtue of a forfeit when Eustis failed to show up for a game in the Ridgewood tournament during the winter break. Lakeland Santa Fe Catholic was victimized a second time by Wesley Chapel with Mike Camunas and David Gillis each scoring twice in a 4-2 win. With three ties to boot, Hymiller feels Wesley Chapel (3-16-3) has a shot at another win or two. Hymiller attributes the Wildcats' improvement to experience on both sides of the ball. That and a determination by the players not to go through another winless season. "They're a tenacious bunch, fighting and scrapping for every ball," the coach said. "And their skills are a lot higher." The Wesley Chapel defense has tightened up, Hymiller added, and the offense has gone from two goals scored all of last season to 22 so far this year. "The fact that we're scoring is something unto itself," Hymiller said. Camunas leads the team in scoring with eight goals and 18 points. Gillis is next with five goals and 13 points. Sweeper Brett Eisenbrown, who also has contributed offensively with two goals and four assists, and Joey Zummo have sparked the defense. "Last year, we pretty much played 80 minutes in our own end clearing the ball," the coach said. "This year, we control the ball." With the district tourney fast approaching -- Wesley Chapel plays Santa Fe Catholic in the opening round Jan. 31 -- the Wildcats are in position for another first, a district playoff win. But the Wildcats head into that series short-handed. Cooper was issued his second red card of the season in the loss to River Ridge and is suspended for the season. Not to worry, said Hymiller: "We're still competitive."
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