It was another great year of sports on the island and for islanders.
I want to thank contributors: Rusty Wood, Chris Culhane, Tyler Brewer and Tuna McCracken for help with sports stories from the Center of Anna Maria Island; Tom Nelson from Key Royale Club and Jay Disbrow from the AMI Horseshoe Pitchers.
A look back at the year in sports:
No. 1: Mickey Hooke, 62, a former islander and longtime employee of Galati Marine, ran away with the sports story of the year. Hooke competed in three events that found their way into the paper.
We reported in the May 10 issue that Hooke finished third in the eighth annual Judd Jog 5K April 30 at the Polk County Sheriff’s headquarters in Winter Haven. Hooke finished with a time of 20:51, his fastest time in over two years. He shattered the previous Senior Grandmasters (60 and over) record by one minute and 49 seconds.
Hooke’s time was good enough for him to win the Grandmasters division (50 and over).
Hooke was back in The Islander’s Sept. 27 issue for a strong performance in the Chad Chronister Ultimate Run Sept. 17 in Temple Terrace.
He ran the 10K and finished with a time of 46:56, giving him third-place overall and first-place in the Male Masters division. His time also set a Senior Grandmasters record (60+), which was Hooke’s 314th record since 2000.
Hooke finished the year strong when he competed in the 29th Annual Ride and Run with the Stars hosted by the Pinellas County Sheriff’s Office Dec. 3 at Fort Desoto.
Hooke finished first overall with a time of 20:04, setting four course records. He owns the course record, Masters, Grandmasters and Senior Grandmasters records.
Congratulations!
No 2.: Former Islander Izzi Gomez tackled big goals. The Jan. 11 issue featured former islander Izzy Gomez’s transition from stand-up paddleboard surfing to big wave surfing. Gomez was a five-time SUP champion so the move was dramatic.
Gomez, the granddaughter of West Coast Surf Shop owners Roni and Jim Brady and daughter of Brandi Brady and Raul Gomez, explained the decision: “I felt like there was a lack of competition and the sport had started to plateau so that played a big part in my decision to strive for something bigger and more challenging.”
Gomez said traditional surfing was in her heart. However, she wasn’t just getting into traditional surfing. Gomez was pursuing a career in big wave surfing, where the surfer gets pulled into the wave by someone driving a Jet-ski and then they’re at the mercy of the wave.
Gomez said, “When you’re in the water at a big wave spot, there’s just so much energy moving around so you just have to surrender to that.
No. 3. Holmes Beach’s surf camp produced lots of rides and fun. The Aug. 2 issue featured the West Coast Surf Shop’s summer youth surf camps, held over three weeks near the shop and south of the Manatee County Public Beach.
Some familiar faces ran the camp, starting with Brandi Brady, daughter of shop owners, along with instructor Charlene Belsito.
A host of young instructors also contributed their expertise, some gleaned as participants in the camps in past years.
About 25-30 kids took part in each camp and everyone from the instructors to the kids had a blast!
No 4. Youth champs were crowned in soccer. Youth soccer at the center had successful spring and fall seasons.
The spring league ended in May with semifinal and championship games in the 8-10 and 11-14 divisions.
The 8-10 championship game was a back-and-forth affair that saw The Gitt Team prevail 3-2 thanks to a hat trick from Callin Westfall and five saves from Kason Davis.
The 11-14 championship saw Moss Builders live up to their No. 1 seed with a 4-2 victory over Shady Lady behind four goals from Jack Mattick and five saves from Charlie Serra.
Champs crowned in the 10 and under and 14 and under age divisions in fall youth soccer appeared in the Nov. 22 issue.
Top-seeded LaPensee Plumbing edged No. 4 seed Solid Rock Construction 3-2 to win the 10U championship. LaPensee received a goal apiece from TJ Hagey, Preston LaPensee and Luca Rosenkrans while Owen Mahoney made three saves.
The 14U division championship game saw No. 2 seed Progressive Cabinetry defeat No. 1 seed HSH Designs 2-1. Mary Tess Bolognone and Mason Moss scored a goal apiece to lead Progressive Cabinetry, which also received two saves from goalie Charlie Serra.
No 5.: Adult champs were crowned in flag football. The March 22 issue featured St. Patrick’s championship night at the center with semifinal and championship games in the adult flag football.
We The Best Lenders cruised to a 32-12 victory over Moss Builders in the championship game. Dominick Otteni threw for four touchdowns and added a touchdown reception while Brandon Kull finished with five catches including two for touchdowns. Jaret Rojas finished with a touchdown pass, a touchdown catch and an extra point for We The Best Lenders, which also received five catches and an extra point from Tyler Brewer in the victory.
No. 6: Two champs were crowned in youth football. The March 15 issue featured championship night in youth flag football at the center.
Though the championship game lacked the drama of two semifinal games, it was a competitive game that saw Moss Builders outscore Solid Rock Construction 27-15.
Moss Builders was led by the Mason Moss to Austin Guess connection, which produced three touchdowns on the day. Moss also hit Turner Worth for a touchdown and an extra point while Miles Moss finished with two extra points in the victory.
The 11-13 division championship game saw Moss Builders hold on for a 27-25 victory thanks in part to the Mason Moss to Greg Jordan connection, which produced three touchdowns from Jordan who also added a two-point conversion and an extra point. Mason Moss completed the scoring with a touchdown run in the victory.
No. 7: Champions were crowned in adult soccer. The adult coed soccer league at the center had a fun season in the spring and fall.
The spring season saw Moss Builders capture the adult title May 25 by defeating Salty Printing. The championship match was a clash of goalies and defense as Moss Builders and Salty Printing battled to a 0-0 tie through regulation and five minutes of extra time.
The fall adult soccer season ended Dec. 8 when No. 5 seed Gulfview Windows & Doors continued their run of upset victories, scoring a 4-3 victory over No. 2 seed Sato Real Estate.
No. 8.: Competition continued at the pits.
It was a good year of friendly competition at the Anna Maria City Hall horseshoe pits where the AMI Pitchers played twice-weekly games.
Some of the more notable events were highlighted in the March 1 issue, as the pitchers hosted a crew from Trailer Estates in Bradenton to renew their friendly rivalry.
AMI cruised to a 21 games to 7 games victory.
In looking back at the year that was at the pits, the pitchers do compete.
With weekly blind draws, you never know who will be partnered but, if you drew Tom Farrington or Tim Sofran, you had a pretty good chance of winning.
Farrington was the big winner on the year, being a part of 23 victories for the year, just ahead of Sofran, who garnered 19 victories. Bob Heiger had 14 victories and Steve Doyle and Rod Bussey with 11 victories apiece.
No. 9. Play continued at Holmes Beach’s Key Royale Club.
It was another good year at golf club, with several special events in addition to weekly outings.
The Feb. 15 issue highlighted the annual men’s club championship tournament in a 36-hole, scratch format.
Eric Lawson defended his 2021 championship, carding a 1-over-par 129 to earn his second club championship. Second place went to Steve Pfeil at 13-over-par 141.
The March 1 issue featured a four-ball, match play tournament with 24 two-man teams divided into four flights that concluded with the finals
The team of Herb Clauhs and Steve Pfeil earned a dramatic, come-from-behind victory over Mike Gillie and Al Waal to win the championship. Down two holes with three holes left in the match, Clauhs and Pfeil rallied for a one-up victory.
The women were in the March 15 issue for their three-week, single-elimination match-play tournament to determine the 2022 Ladies Club Champion.
The final came down to the defending champion, Debbie Wohlers playing Jenny Huibers. Huibers rode an eagle on the sixth hole to help her earn a 2-and-1 victory.
The senior club men’s championship was highlighted in the March 29 issue as 23 (75+) male members of Key Royale Club played 18 holes of golf to determine the 2022 club champ. Bill MacMillan fired a 2-under-par 62 to edge second-place finisher Blake Ress by a stroke.
The women were back in the April 19 issue for their annual Doe Day event — “Queens of the Greens.”
Fifty “Queens” participated in the event, where participants played a two-team low-net score. The team of Roxanne Koche and Kathy McCloskey combined on a 7-under-par 25 to edge Helen Pollock and Meredith Slavin by a stroke for clubhouse bragging rights.
Dressed in their best Halloween costumes, 54 golfers enjoyed beautiful weather at Key Royale Club for the annual SpooKEY Scramble Oct. 28.
The team of Karen and Cliff Lanning and Brenda and Bob O’Brien combined on a 71 to take first place.
No. 10. Champs were crowned in indoor soccer. Championship games in the center’s summer indoor soccer league highlighted the July 26 issue.
Solid Rock Construction captured the U9 division championship while Progressive Cabinetry won the U13 division championship.
The U9 championship game saw Solid Rock Construction edge Ugly Grouper by a 4-2 score thanks to a hat trick from Aidan Guess and a goal from Matthew Darak. Turner Worth added an assist in the victory for Solid Rock.
The U13 championship game was a nail-biter that saw Progressive Cabinetry complete an undefeated season with a 4-3 victory over Moss Builders. Barrett Raina led Progressive Cabinetry with three goals while Jackson Wyatt finished with one goal.