Clay County Sports Report 7-9-26

Listen as Tim Mooney of Clay Radio and Randy Lefko, Clay Today Sports editor interview the Director of the upcoming Summer Classic at Cecil Field Cross Country event Richard Fannin; USL Soccer Player Lauryn Mateo and Orange Park High School Basketball Coach Derek Kurnitsky.

Transcript

SPEAKER_01 0:07

Time now for the Clay County Sports Report on Clay Radio, your home team station. Each week we break down the big plays, celebrate standout athletes, and bring you the stories behind the scores. Now here are your hosts, Clay Today Sports Editor, Randy Lefko, and Clay Radio's Tim Mooney.

SPEAKER_04 0:25

All right, Clay County Sports fans. Randy Lefko here, Clay Today Sports Editor with Tim Mooney, ClayRadio.com. On the soundboard, Timbo, we got uh well, we're out of the World Cup. Uh nice, uh, nice, nice uh games and stuff for the I know I took my mom to the Mr. Chubys twice. Saw your post on that. She had some fun with that. We actually met a uh Orange Park goalie that was sitting behind us that actually got on the front page of our paper for uh going to the turkey game in s Los Angeles.

SPEAKER_02 0:53

Okay.

SPEAKER_04 0:53

And uh he sent me a photo that we got him on the front page. So uh, you know, I always like to watch now, you know, because uh Ronaldo's out. Oh, everybody's getting out. And then uh what's his name? The only guy left is Messi. Yep. And he came by. The the Egyptian coach is not too happy about it.

SPEAKER_02 1:08

And I'm waiting for him to retire. Whenever they lose next, he's gonna be the next one to retire. All the big names are retiring right after they lose.

SPEAKER_04 1:15

So, yeah, so we're gonna So for today's show, we got uh I went to the Kingfish tournament. I had a little special friend with me going with you now, and it was it was a uh battle of titans, to say the least. We're gonna have uh Laura Mateo's gonna step back in with us. Our Radio of Champions is coming to fruit again.

SPEAKER_02 1:32

It's happening.

SPEAKER_04 1:33

And then we got a quick phone call from one of the best uh running uh gurus in the state, if not the Southeast, uh, when we get going. So come back to us.

SPEAKER_02 1:42

All right, we'll be back after this.

SPEAKER_04 1:43

One All right, Clay County Sports fans, right or left go here, Clay Today Sports Editor with Tim Mooney on ClayRadio.com. He's our sound guy. We also got uh Orange Park basketball coach, Derek Kanisky, in the house. We uh him and I went on a little uh adventure this afternoon, but also on the phone, one of the premier cross-country guys in the state, if not the south, is Richard Fannon, uh, is on his way to a movie, but he was kind enough to call us in because his uh Cecil Field Summer Classic is now locked in. Uh Coach, how are you out there?

SPEAKER_00 2:14

I'm doing great. How are you?

SPEAKER_04 2:15

Good, good, good. Uh tell me uh tell me about the field. You always have the uh first meet of the season at uh is a Power Pack, guys from all over the Southeast, record setters, uh guys like Monty Conn. Did you ever do you have Charlie Hicks at yours at some point where you where you have to?

SPEAKER_00 2:33

We did. So the I'll tell you briefly what we're really excited about this year. This year is the tenth running of the Cecil Field Summer Classic. We ran the first one in 2017 and started just as a and I think you were at the first one that we started. Yeah, we started as a preseason meet. We only had about 12 teams and started small, and after a couple, three years we got big enough to make it a full-fledged regular season meet, and it's just grown and grown and grown. So we I just literally today had to close the meet because we hit 100 high schools, which is our absolute maximum capacity.

SPEAKER_04 3:05

From where it about from where it about. I know you had some Georgia guys.

SPEAKER_00 3:08

Where yeah, are we going around the southeast or or we we are, and uh it we have the first few years it was all Florida, but word got out and we started bringing in schools from Georgia, some pretty good schools, but but this year uh was crazy. We have the number one team from the state of Georgia last year, West Forsyth is coming down from Atlanta. Wow. And I had no idea they were coming, and I just saw them signed up on our list. And then Apex High School from Charlotte, North Carolina.

SPEAKER_04 3:36

Yeah, I've heard it.

SPEAKER_00 3:36

I believe they were the number two team in North Carolina last year. They're also coming down. So it's um, I think we've got we've about got the number one school in Florida, Georgia, and South Carolina, excuse me, and North Carolina running this year. So that's pretty exciting.

SPEAKER_02 3:49

We got an uh everybody that's showing up here or showing up for the meet is used to this heat and humidity.

SPEAKER_00 3:54

They've heard you know, for the kids from South Florida, it's actually kind of nice. It's usually about 10 degrees cooler at Jacksonville than it is in Miami, but we intentionally we run the elite races right at dusk. I mean, we barely get it. We get it off as late as we possibly can to give the sun a chance to go down. So, I mean, actually, we there was a little rain last year before the race, and I think it got might have gotten down to 70, 72 degrees by the start.

SPEAKER_04 4:18

Let me ask you, Richard. I've been there for most of them, and I've seen the firepower you bring. Why do you think? Why do you think in the mid-August, no, what's the date on it this year? What can let us have that?

SPEAKER_00 4:27

It is Friday night, August 21st.

SPEAKER_04 4:30

And why do let me just I always ask why why do these meets get the firepower at this early in the season? Is it everybody's been running all summer with their with their teammates and maybe going to a road 5K or 10K, and this is the first time to kind of flex the muscles? What do you think the the drama is?

SPEAKER_00 4:49

I think you're dead on right there. I remember when I was in high school, we train all summer and I was just chomping at the bit and couldn't wait for that first race. And it used to always be what's now the Katie Capels, a Bishop Kenny Invite was the first meet of the year, and and now, yeah, I think we've kind of taken the mantle on that. But um but I'll give credit to that course. You've been out there randomly. I think the Cecil Field Golf Course is is maybe the most beautiful course in Florida, and the big oak trees and pine trees. And kids also love a fast course, and that course is just flat as a pancake and very few turns.

SPEAKER_04 5:21

Yeah, we had we had the Strattons here uh last week, two weeks ago. Two weeks ago, and both of them, Rebecca and uh Matthew, of course, you know Matthew, you know, actually you know both you know the whole Stratton thing, they were both saying that was their favorite course. Uh and I you know, a lot of times too, as as a runner myself in college, cross-country and all that. When you have a pristine venue with good parking, uh, you know, good uh support and uh and the field is well marked and whatnot, that's a big part of why people come to uh major major meets and stuff like that. I think you do an excellent job of everything is in order time-wise, and take off time and finish time, and it uh everything is just uh pristine as far as getting it done. Who's been the who's got the records now? I know you you always have a record board out there. Who's got the records?

SPEAKER_00 6:08

So Marceau Matzecon last year broke the course record on both courses. He was the first boy ever to break 15 in the summer race.

SPEAKER_04 6:16

He ran a 1449 and then in October Tampa Jes uh Baleen Jesuit.

SPEAKER_00 6:21

Yeah.

SPEAKER_04 6:21

He's going to go isn't he going to Virginia? Virginia?

SPEAKER_00 6:25

Uh UNC. He signed with UNC. But Randy, last fall in our October race, he ran 1433, which is not only a course record, it's the fastest time ever in the history of the state of Florida high school cross-country.

SPEAKER_04 6:37

And we've had you've had Reinhardt uh Harrison from uh Nice. You've had um uh who's the kid from you had Charlie Hicks, you had the kid from Creeks like Jimmy Clark, and that is coming from over.

SPEAKER_00 6:50

Jimmy was a little before our time, but Reinhardt ran 1445.

SPEAKER_04 6:53

He ran at Oregon. He ran at Oregon. That's a fire power you've got there. And uh you know, Fleming guys have been there. Matty Stratton, how is and Matthew Stratton is you know, state champion with his how many state champs? Do you ever figure out how many state champs you've had there?

SPEAKER_00 7:08

Too many to count, but I'll tell you on our records board, we've now have seven guys that have broken 15 on that course, and I think 12 girls that have broken 18. I think every boy and girl left on that board is it went on to run D1. Um big time, yeah. We had to reach we had to reshuffle it last year. So um last year, um, oh my gosh, Ray now, I'm so sorry, I'm having a brain split, but uh um she won both the Cecil and the fall race. And um seven I remember the time seven 1714, actually two years ago, I'm sorry. Um I I I I have the name right on the tip of my tongue, but we girl wrote in 1714 two years ago.

SPEAKER_05 7:50

Yeah.

SPEAKER_00 7:51

Um but we um yeah, we change the records board every year, and it's it's uh I think it's a badge of honor for those kids to be on test of the city.

SPEAKER_04 7:59

Now tell our until our readers, our readers, our listeners out there, it said the New World Golf Village. Isn't that what it's called?

SPEAKER_00 8:04

The the the course the Well the the history is it's it's the old Cecil Field Golf Course from when it was a naval base, but but when they reopened the golf course uh privately a few years ago, the the owner of it, Robbie Newcomer, named it the New World Sports Complex.

SPEAKER_04 8:19

Oh, okay.

SPEAKER_00 8:20

Um they no longer run the golf course there now, it's disc golf. But we so we had the original race, Cecil, in August, and then in year two we designed a second course over on the New World. So we have one course on the front nine and another course on the back nine, and we we alternate the courses. We're gonna have an we're using the back nine for New World and Regions this year, and we're using the Cecil course for the summer class again. We're also hosting district meets.

SPEAKER_04 8:44

Yeah, see, and that's that's part of what I said before about you run a pristine operation because now you're the king of district. I mean, you what you what'd you have like eight region races last uh last fall?

SPEAKER_00 8:56

We we did we did all four last fall. It was quite a challenge.

SPEAKER_04 8:59

Two girls girls and a boy, that's eight of them all in one shot, and and it went like clockwork. You know, you were in and out and uh done with it.

SPEAKER_00 9:07

It's fun. I love it. And uh uh Michelle Gully is my partner. We do all the races together, but yeah, we're hosting seven races this fall, including two college meets. We did the UNF invite and the A Sun Conference Championship.

SPEAKER_04 9:19

Well, tell us a little bit about you. Where did where did you run or are you coaching? I saw you uh without a shirt at the uh Celebration 5K. I don't know if I think I sent you the photo, or did I I probably uh they probably almost bumped into you at the finish. I know. You were like, Whoa! And then I say, Richard, and you looked at me like looked like you got punched in the stomach. I'm like, okay, here we go. Uh but tell us a little bit, are you coaching somewhere still?

SPEAKER_00 9:42

I don't coach anymore, but I was born and raised in Jackson. Well, I ran high school at Bowls, I ran one year at UF and then um found the fraternity life. But the uh I don't coach anymore. I coached at Bishop Snyder for four for four years when my kids went there, and um it just got to be too much coaching and putting on races, and I also have a full-time job at at Wells Fargo, so I something had to give. I miss coaching, but I love putting on the meat so much, and it's it's enough to keep my hands full.

SPEAKER_04 10:11

Now, when you had Snyder, you had the Conte girl, Gianni, wasn't that one of your girls?

SPEAKER_00 10:17

Yeah, Gianna Forte was our number one runner.

SPEAKER_04 10:19

Yeah, she she went big uh in D in D1. Didn't you go to Florida or something?

SPEAKER_00 10:23

She ran for yeah, she ran for Florida, and um but yeah, I was proud. We we didn't have much of a team when I got there, but we won our first district title for the school um in my third year, and um, but yeah, had to move on from that. I I'll may get back to coaching one day um in a few years, but need to uh um right now just got a lot of things.

SPEAKER_04 10:43

I'm gonna push you on the spot. Who from uh Clay County is a formidable one coming uh this summer? Have you have you do you do you look around and watch guys in road races and stuff like that?

SPEAKER_00 10:53

Yeah, as you know, Fleming Island is always tough um as far as Clay County. I mean, Fleming Island has hands down been the top school there. St. John's Country Day School has definitely had some for 1A some some stars and done really well. But um, you know, Fleming, uh as you know, Dave Allen is so good with those kids. And you know, training.

SPEAKER_04 11:12

He had about 30 of them out uh yesterday morning. I was out on the bike and they were humping down Fleming Island, and there must have been about 30 kids running.

SPEAKER_00 11:20

No, they're Fleming is great. And in in Jacksonville this year, I think Nice maybe might be the second best team in the state this year behind Bell and Jesuit.

SPEAKER_04 11:28

Isn't that uh Ted Devore? Is that his name? Yeah, Ted DeVos, yeah.

SPEAKER_00 11:32

And um and and one last plug for Marcella Montecon from Bell and Jesuit. He was number two in the United States in the two mile this spring as a junior, ran an 835 two mile. Um and uh he just won the national.

SPEAKER_04 11:47

Didn't he win a national by holding off a guy at the end?

SPEAKER_00 11:50

He did. He won the national in California. I think he ran an 844, a really hot race. Wow. He's he's an animal. He's um but the their whole team is just amazing. They're a class act. Frankie Luiz, they're coaches.

SPEAKER_03 12:02

K-Man's got a question for you. Coach, I got a question. You you said your first meet is on Friday night, the 21st of August. It is. You're competing, you're competing against Friday night football? Are you guys crazy?

SPEAKER_04 12:14

Hey, they get that's uh that's that's the the the quandary, but I it must be big time. Well, that's a spring game. That's a that's the preseason.

SPEAKER_00 12:23

Our meet is much our meet is much more exciting than football. It is, actually.

SPEAKER_03 12:27

It is now Friday night football is sacred here in the South.

SPEAKER_00 12:31

No, it's actually our the Bowls is our host school, and the athletic director can't make it to the beat because bowls has a home game that night. When I was in high school, the nerds ran cross-country and the cool guys played football. I don't think that's changed much. We have different audiences.

SPEAKER_04 12:48

Now, weren't you also the elite coordinator for the River Run, the Gate River Run? Was that you?

SPEAKER_00 12:54

Yeah, I did that for nine years. Doug alredt asked me to do that. I did that from 2009 to 2017.

SPEAKER_04 13:00

So you're one of the running gurus of our area, uh, my man.

SPEAKER_00 13:04

Yeah, I I just I just I love the sport and it's nice to do.

SPEAKER_04 13:07

Which elite guy was most impressive to you? I remember because I I mean I've I've been photographing river runs as long as you've been doing that New World thing. And you know, I was there when Benson Maja won and and Bill Rogers was in and guys like that. Who was who was your uh nicest guy coming in? I'll ask you that.

SPEAKER_00 13:25

Among the men there was a guy, Shadrach Chirchir from Kenya, who won a couple times, and he actually stayed with me one year, and was just the nicest, most polite guys in the U.S.

SPEAKER_04 13:35

Army, and you know, he got up and made his bed and wrote me a thank you note and when they had that they used to have that 5k and green cover that Mary and John Steinberg put together, and they put all the elites in local houses, and and we had the guy who won it was uh stayed with I'm trying to remember his name now, but but uh remember Corey Monday from Clay High? I don't know if you remember that name. I do, I think. He was a stater and went to Flagler, set some records, and he was said he was gonna blow the first mile up. And I said, dude, there's a whole bunch of elite guys out there, and it wound up being some kid from a ridgeview wearing a Superman outfit. Just like the first mile was straight down 17 toward Flamen Island, and this kid just went hog wild down.

SPEAKER_00 14:19

I think that was Scott Hans who ran it.

SPEAKER_04 14:21

Yeah, you're right, you're right, from Ridgie High. Yeah, he had a Superman thing on, and and uh he lasted about three-quarters of a mile, and then they made a right turn toward the river, and you never saw him again. But I said, hey, that's how you make the paper, man. Get out in front on the opening thing.

SPEAKER_00 14:36

And Shillane Flanagan was probably the coolest female elite I worked with. She came in at the last minute and said she was gonna break the American record. And her coach came with her. I gave a course tour the day before the race, sure enough, she blew the field out, set an American record, and she was just the nicest, most polite, uh, most gracious.

SPEAKER_04 14:54

So we got we got 15 seconds, Richard. Do is there ever a time where we're gonna have a surprise move on the course, like you know, throw a hill in there somewhere, or you are you are you staying with what's what's made you what's made you great?

SPEAKER_00 15:08

The kids like the fast course, but you just never know. We'll see what happens.

SPEAKER_04 15:11

Uh Richard Fannon coach over there. Uh former coach, what he's he's always around. Uh big running guru, thank you for dropping in on us. We know that uh the the summer classic is a gigantic event. You want to see who the best are in the southeast, that's where you want to go. Tell me the date again, August.

SPEAKER_00 15:27

Um, Friday night, August 21st. That's right. We've got the middle school race and six high school races. And um, but thank you for the time, Randy. I appreciate it.

SPEAKER_04 15:36

All right, Richard, thank you, bud. See ya.

SPEAKER_00 15:38

All right, take care, guys.

SPEAKER_04 15:39

All right, Clay County Sports fans, Randy Levko here, Clay Today Sports, Tim Mooney. Hey, ClayRadio.com, Derek Kanisky, Orange Park boys head coach. We're not gonna talk about basketball, though. We're gonna talk about another sport that the K-man uh got his first whiff of today.

SPEAKER_02 15:53

And that's a horrible use of the word because whiff of it, that's a nasty smell, what you guys were out doing.

SPEAKER_04 15:59

Oh, it sure was. And then on the horn, we got a return phone call from one of our greatest soccer players who who who fulfilled the championship prophecy of this radio. That's just what we do. That's what we do. So uh Laura Matteo, you out there? Hello, how are you? Lauren Matteo, Asheville City uh football club at Asheville City, North Carolina. We talked to you last week and you were on the precipice of uh of your playoffs. And uh tell us what happened in that uh previous game. Not the last game, but the one before that. You were playing what Lone Star?

SPEAKER_06 16:33

Yes, we played Lone Star.

SPEAKER_04 16:35

What was good before wait no no wait wait wait Birmingham was Birmingham was the big game for you, right?

SPEAKER_06 16:40

Um Birmingham was uh two goals, um, which was amazing.

SPEAKER_04 16:44

And then wait, wait, wait, one a header. Yeah, we had a header because you are the headball mistress there. So uh so that's that's what makes you famous. So we want to make sure we would throw that in there.

SPEAKER_06 16:56

Yes.

SPEAKER_04 16:57

So that got you what? The league championship?

SPEAKER_06 17:00

Uh yes, the Lone Star, I think, yeah, that got us league. Lone Star got us the league championship.

SPEAKER_04 17:06

But the Birmingham one got you the what?

SPEAKER_06 17:09

Birmingham got us into the playoffs.

SPEAKER_04 17:11

Into the playoffs. Okay, your what was your rate? Like six, one and one, I saw?

SPEAKER_06 17:14

Uh yes. So we played we did Birmingham Lone Star, and then the last game that we won actually won us the championship.

SPEAKER_04 17:21

FC Miami City.

SPEAKER_06 17:23

Yes, very great team, very great players, good girls.

SPEAKER_04 17:26

You know what I noticed now. You guys are into the uh USL United Soccer League uh national championship semifinals. You're gonna be playing Vermont Green, correct?

SPEAKER_05 17:36

Yes.

SPEAKER_04 17:37

In Vermont, where I I hear there's like three inches of snow up there. So Really? Yeah. Yeah, yeah. Bring your bring your booty. Bring your booties and all that, uh, some gloves because it's Vermont is up there.

SPEAKER_02 17:49

You can if you believe that, you can also buy the Golden Gate Bridge up there as well.

SPEAKER_04 17:54

So then and then you got what Minnesota Aurora, who has been the number one seed versus Seattle Bay. Is that correct? Yes. Now, one of them I saw on the roster was Grace Ivey. Is that the Grace Ivey from Barstam Trail?

SPEAKER_06 18:09

Oh, Grace Ivey, yeah. Grace Ivy was a great player.

SPEAKER_04 18:12

Two-time Gatorade player, Darry Farmers, and all that stuff. Uh-huh. Daughter of um of um Daryl Daryl Ivey, the the coach at Fleming Island for Yeah, she's amazing.

SPEAKER_06 18:23

I love her.

SPEAKER_04 18:24

Yeah, she was sh I don't know if she's on one of the two teams that on the other side of the bracket, but I think she was on one of the teams that the other side of the bracket won. That they that eliminated her. I th I saw her name on the roster, and I went, I wonder if that's Gracie Ivy, uh, Daryl's kid. So that was pretty cool.

SPEAKER_06 18:41

That's so cool. Yeah. Representing for Jack's Jackson.

SPEAKER_04 18:45

I find those things here, Laura. You know, it's not all about you.

SPEAKER_06 18:50

Darn I'm just messing with you.

SPEAKER_04 18:51

So in the Lone Star game, why didn't you score?

SPEAKER_06 18:55

Oh, I wish I did.

SPEAKER_04 18:57

That's not the question. That's not the question.

SPEAKER_06 19:00

Uh I didn't put my opportunities away. I thought I should have. But we had a girl, uh Huly. She put she finished two goals for us that game, absolute bangers they were.

SPEAKER_04 19:10

And then I saw in the uh the FC Miami City game, that was for the championship to propel you into the nationals. Um you sailed a couple over the crossbar.

SPEAKER_06 19:21

I know. What's up with that? I thought you were, you know, I I they're still replaying in my head.

SPEAKER_04 19:27

That is I keep telling Tim how great you are in the headball, and you're you're throwing field goals over the crossbar.

SPEAKER_06 19:34

Like, what the heck is that? So we I gotta get over them.

SPEAKER_04 19:38

I know. You gotta get under them. You gotta get in the goal there. I was like, Exactly. They were banging them there, but they were like going into the stands. Like you look like you look like Jan Stenerude.

SPEAKER_06 19:48

We get three points for those ones.

SPEAKER_04 19:50

Yeah, do you know who Jan Stenerud is?

SPEAKER_06 19:52

Kicker for Vikings.

SPEAKER_04 19:53

No, not the Vikings. You know who Jan Stenerood is, Lauren? New Orleans.

SPEAKER_06 19:57

Oh, I'm sorry.

SPEAKER_04 19:59

He was a Hall of Fame kicker for uh Kansas City Chiefs back in the 70s, I believe. So uh you weren't even you weren't even born then, huh? No. So in the FC Miami City game, great play by goalies on both ends. I think it was 20 shots on goal per team, right? Maybe you guys were in the middle of the room. Yeah, they had 20.

SPEAKER_06 20:17

We had 20, I think they had 17.

SPEAKER_04 20:19

Yeah, you guys were rocking the goalies there, but nothing, nobody was uh blinking. Went into two overtime, zero zero.

SPEAKER_02 20:25

Nil-nil. Oh, what? Soccer, it's nil-nil.

SPEAKER_04 20:30

Is that what you say, Lauren? Or you say zero zero?

SPEAKER_06 20:32

I say it's a mixture between both.

SPEAKER_02 20:34

I've been watching a lot of World Cup and that's what they say.

SPEAKER_04 20:38

Okay, man, nil-nil. Okay. Uh so so you were what, the number three batter?

SPEAKER_06 20:43

Uh two. Number two.

SPEAKER_04 20:44

Number two. So you come in, it was tied one one.

SPEAKER_06 20:47

Uh no, you had to go ahead and go. No, I had it was one-one, but the girl before me on Miami missed her goal.

SPEAKER_04 20:55

Ah, then you stepped up.

SPEAKER_06 20:56

So then I came in and we got a big one. Well, what oh my god.

SPEAKER_04 21:00

So you stepped up, you walked to the ball and said, Okay, I make this, we have the advantage. So how do you how does the soccer gal decide where to go? Are you looking at the goalie's eyes, you're looking at her fingers, you're looking at her foot, you're looking at what are you looking at to to know where to because you just you kind of kicked a a low ball in the lower left corner. She took a she took a half a step to the to your right, away from the ball, and then it went under her. So what was there is there something in there that's a tell?

SPEAKER_06 21:31

For me personally?

SPEAKER_04 21:32

No, for for me personally, right here in the studio.

SPEAKER_06 21:36

What do you think?

SPEAKER_04 21:36

What do you think I'm asking? I'm okay. What do you think? What's your thing? He doesn't, he's a basketball guy. I'm asking you, knucklehead.

SPEAKER_06 21:42

Yeah. We um we basically or I sorry, personally. I look into the goalkeepers' eyes and just just don't give them anywhere to like a lot of people either look left or right to tell where they're gonna go. I just look in the goalkeeper's eyes and just pass the ball into the goalkeeper.

SPEAKER_04 22:01

Because it wasn't a hard shot. It was kind of a dribbler.

SPEAKER_06 22:04

No, the PK kick will be like I think it's the easiest goal that you'll ever have. It's a to be honest, a mental game. It's also a game.

SPEAKER_04 22:13

It's also the easiest one to not get it in because you try too hard to put it in.

SPEAKER_06 22:18

People overthink it.

SPEAKER_04 22:22

So then now you're ahead when you turn around, you kind of went like, yeah, like that. And then and then what did the team say to you? Did they say anything to you?

SPEAKER_06 22:31

They're very excited, just continuing to just say good job, and then we lock in for the other three that we had left.

SPEAKER_04 22:38

So tell tell the K-man how the next three batters went, because that was more dramatic than anything.

SPEAKER_06 22:44

Yes. So our third kicker was Sarah Gorham. She hit an upper 90 into the top right corner, which is an absolute banger.

SPEAKER_04 22:52

Hold on, you know where the upper 90 is? Oh, he's he's he's saying yes when he went to the World Cup. He went okay, okay.

SPEAKER_06 23:00

So then he's our first low key for her fourth kicker was an A. She goes to the FIT, which is actually in our conference, which is awesome.

SPEAKER_04 23:09

There was a couple. I saw there was a there was a temple girl on maybe on the other team.

SPEAKER_06 23:14

TV was our first kicker.

SPEAKER_04 23:16

Yeah, yeah. Quite a few collegiate people out there.

SPEAKER_06 23:19

Yeah, and then we have Maya who goes to West Virginia. Um, she was our fifth kicker and put it away for us.

SPEAKER_04 23:25

But when the FC Miami girl came up, she missed it initially. And your goalie and your goalie got flagged for leaving. Explain that. She can't come forward before the kick.

SPEAKER_06 23:36

Yeah, so on a PK for goalkeepers, they have to stay on the line until the goal until the ball is kicked.

SPEAKER_04 23:42

Right.

SPEAKER_06 23:42

So after the ball is kicked, they can come off of their line.

SPEAKER_04 23:45

And she just left the hair early because it wasn't. I played it back a couple of times. I'm like, what did they do?

SPEAKER_06 23:50

No, no, no. We we personally don't think she came off her line. We have pictures of her staying on her line, but if the ref saw that that's what the ref saw.

SPEAKER_04 23:59

So then so then now what? Now what happens? So the girl got to re-kick.

SPEAKER_06 24:03

Yes, the girl got to re-kick it.

SPEAKER_04 24:05

So what was going on in your head? I always like to know what's going on in your head when you see the second shot. So what I want to know what happens if she makes it.

SPEAKER_06 24:12

If she makes it, we continue on to the fifth kick. So our fifth kicker didn't uh kick any balls because uh we won already by the time exactly.

SPEAKER_04 24:21

So she sailed the her second kick and that was it.

SPEAKER_06 24:25

Yes, and I think uh she went to the the last one I didn't remember, she went to Kaiser University.

SPEAKER_04 24:30

So now you're going against Vermont Green. What do you know about them and what are you practicing?

SPEAKER_06 24:34

Um Mont Green. Um Munt Green. We haven't gotten any we just know that they're a very, very good team, winning a lot. I think they're undefeated for the season um so far. And just honestly just go out there and play hard. That's what's going on in my mind personally. Personally.

SPEAKER_04 24:52

Personally. In your mind. In your mind, I hope. Is your mom going up to Vermont?

SPEAKER_06 24:57

No, they won't be going up to Vermont.

SPEAKER_04 25:01

Oh, you don't know where the championship is yet, do you?

SPEAKER_06 25:04

No, we do not know yet. I know. It's so nerve-wracking. We just gotta keep playing our game, keep winning.

SPEAKER_04 25:11

So we got listen, listen, we got four minutes here. We got the K-Man here, and him and I went to the uh Jacksonville Greater Kingfish Media Tournament today. That's exciting. I know. It was the first time he's ever done it. He was almost uh hyperventilating before it because he lost his dramamine. Thank God there was a uh lady there who was the uh regional representative for uh Ashley Moody. And she was going on a boat and she happened to have a couple of extra dramamines and and uh came in, came in and got saved, and uh what popped the pill and I was good. Popped the pill and you know, he's shooting up in his veins, and he was all ready to rock and roll there.

SPEAKER_02 25:47

You need you needed dramamine for that?

SPEAKER_03 25:49

I was just my wife said take it. I'm glad I took it.

SPEAKER_06 25:54

I have heard that on the on the DC. You know what?

SPEAKER_03 25:56

It was really rocky. I'm glad I took it.

SPEAKER_04 26:00

We have to qualify what Tim's saying because he's a guy that jumps out of helicopters and jets and stuff like jets.

SPEAKER_02 26:06

I just I spent 21 years in the Navy on a lot of ships, so it's the rocky. I never know what to say to that because it's I I I you're welcome, I guess.

SPEAKER_06 26:16

All I told him was all I told him was that's the most basic answer.

SPEAKER_04 26:20

All I told him was don't look in the boat when we see Oh yeah. He I said, look at the horizon, look at the boats out there. Yeah, I have heard that. It was very choppy. And I was standing in the back where you know, right next to the engine, so it wasn't moving, and and and I was saying, Oh my god, he's gonna be throwing up at a time. But he was good, he was a soldier. And so the uh crushed it.

SPEAKER_06 26:43

Good job.

SPEAKER_04 26:44

So the uh so the first one, tell us about the first one there, Tim. Oh, you weren't there.

SPEAKER_02 26:48

I wasn't there.

SPEAKER_04 26:49

Okay, man, tell us the first one. Oh, we got a shark kill both of them. Shark we had a we had a jaw scene, we had a jaw scene, Lauren.

SPEAKER_03 26:58

Yeah, we had a fish on the line, and the shark ate the fish before we got it in the side.

SPEAKER_04 27:01

I got a I got a Colby, probably about a 40-foot Colby on the line. Tim, he I was actually now the the captain of the boat said that the Colby took half of Tim's line and and then connected to my line, and then when I pulled him up and it got him out of the water, the shark literally bit his body off, and we pulled up his head. It looked like a decapitated body or decapitated head when we pulled it up, and I was like, what the heck?

SPEAKER_06 27:30

That's crazy.

SPEAKER_04 27:31

So it was like it was really spooky, and then and then uh so the second one, we were we were kind of fishing around all day, and then the and then the K-man locked in. All right, K-man, you're up.

SPEAKER_03 27:41

And we had it, we locked probably about 45 minutes. We locked in and lost to a shark. Yeah, we had a shark.

SPEAKER_04 27:47

Well, he he tagged it, he tagged the kingfish. This is what now the captain, because in the the so he tagged the kingfish, and there it was out of probably about 80 yards from the boat, and it were we started to pull it in, and then all of a sudden uh the shark breached the water and had both of them in the air. And in on the video, I'm gonna put the video on my Instagram letter. You can hear both of us going, oh god, what the heck was that? You know, and and uh and the captain said that was a shark. The shark literally ate the entire kingfish and then got stuck on the line. So we were trying to get the shark in, which they said the captain said that's about 150, 200-pound shark. And and uh K-Man and I were tag teaming them like every 10-15 minutes to get him in. And and uh we got him, we got him pretty close to the boat in the final minutes, and then uh and then I tapped out, he was done, so I said, Jeremy, which was the son of the captain, I said, You want to finish this up? And I figured, give it to that guy, he'll finish it up, we'll get it in. He lost the he lost the the shot. No, like I thought you were good at this. You get the two amateurs bringing it eight feet from the boat, and then he blew it. So he was uh it was good about it.

SPEAKER_06 29:01

Next time, next time.

SPEAKER_04 29:02

Next time. So Lauren, hey, good luck on there. Keep me posted. If you if you keep winning, you keep coming on the radio. That's our deal. So uh if you win this one, you get it, you get a header and uh, you know, maybe get a a bonus in your check from us when uh when you get a headball in there. So hey, have a great have a great couple more days of practice. We're gonna take a break here. Law Mateo, thank you for calling us up.

SPEAKER_05 29:23

Thank you for having me.

SPEAKER_04 29:24

All right, we'll be right back. Right up for this. All right, Clay County Sports fans, ready to left go clay today, back with uh Tim Mooney. He sent noise, and we got Coach Derek Kernisky from the Clay uh Orange Park basketball team. But we went out. He was giving you a look real quick. We stepped out of our comfort zone, as uh Coach Kernitsky said, and I took him out on the 46th greater Jacksonville Kingfish Media Tournament, and he survived. He had got a little bit of a little bit of drama meme, but uh what do you think, Kev?

SPEAKER_03 29:53

What do you think? It was definitely an experience. It was very interesting.

SPEAKER_04 29:57

Very interesting. In all of your athletic uh endeavors, where does this rank as a new sport?

SPEAKER_03 30:03

Well, we didn't catch anything. Well, we yeah, but we've you caught it, you just didn't reel it in.

SPEAKER_04 30:07

We didn't. We did it to the boat. We got it to the boat, and it didn't it didn't jump in the boat for us.

SPEAKER_03 30:11

It was good. I've listened I've been to national championship games, I've been to Major League Baseball games.

SPEAKER_04 30:16

Did you have to dig deep? Did we because we were I mean this was good? We were tag teaming it pretty nicely. We would have caught if we would have caught Jaws, I think we needed a bigger boat. Yeah, I don't know. He said that when the captain said that thing wouldn't have fit, we were gonna have to flop it around and see what happened. In fact, that line and and Jaws, we're gonna need a bigger boat. Yep. So the greater kingfish, we'll give them a little plug for uh for inviting us to that. July 9th to the 18th. They got uh tournaments all week until the uh big one award ceremonies of July 18th, but they got Kingfish kickoff beach tournament, youth dock tournament, junior angle offshore tournament, uh captain's uh general tournament, redfish tournament, kids' own open award ceremony. And the one thing that I noticed when I was looking at some of the stuff they gave us, they have gave us like a bling bag with uh shirts and some stuff on it, is the prizes. I mean a $250,000 boat.

SPEAKER_02 31:10

I would love that.

SPEAKER_04 31:10

And and I remember a couple years ago we had a local kid out of uh Lake Asbury won the junior angler. His first year he won a he won like a uh a a one boat. It wasn't wasn't old enough to even drive it. And the next year he won again and he won a second. So he had two boats in his driveway that he couldn't drive because he was he was such a good angler. You know, and and and uh I I was telling coaches Clay High, and actually Fleming had one too, uh has been a major bass uh fisherman. They have but they actually have uh high school bass state championships.

SPEAKER_02 31:43

It's just crazy to hear. I grew up on the West Coast, we didn't have fishing teams or anything like that.

SPEAKER_04 31:48

Yeah, Clay High has has won it a couple times. I went to Nationals, we're up in uh uh Lake Gunner's one time. I was supposed to go out with them uh to do a little, you know, take some photos and talk to them, and like one of their boats blew up or something, and it maybe that's what they just told me. But Steagle, I think was the kid's name. And then we had a guy right here in Orange Park that is on the Bass Masters tour. Uh you know, and he's he's making money doing that and going all over the world doing that kind of stuff. So maybe when we retire, coach, we uh shark fish. So the kingfish thing could always good. I've been doing it for probably the last eight years, and uh, I want to thank uh Miss Melody out there is the one who always invites me up there. I've actually won the media tournament twice, Tim. Did you know that?

SPEAKER_02 32:33

Did not know that.

SPEAKER_04 32:33

Yeah, yeah. I was second last year, and uh but they're you know, it brings in all the media guys, you know, they want us to write about and talk about it like we are here. But it's a great bunch of great charit ton of great tra charities out there that they give a lot of money to. So uh if you're not doing anything all week, check it out there. They got fishing all over the place, and uh they got they got music going on and tents over at uh Sisters Creek at uh Jim King Park right there off of Hexer Boulevard. It's really easy to get to, but really a fun uh uh fun festival there. So now K ma'am, what's sports coming? Football, football, and and cross country and cross. Well we just talked to it. Yeah, we got cross country on there. We got uh Richard Fannon to thank uh for kicking off the cr cross country for us. It is every time I go to that thing, it's just firepower. You know, you wanna you wanna see how shape how much shape you got over the summer because a lot of times in the summertime and you know this Tim, you gotta work on your foundation, and once you get your foundation, then you work on your speed. But for some reason with Richard's race, they must uh flip the script or something because to run 14 I was thinking that as he was talking, 1440 something?

SPEAKER_02 33:43

That's ridiculous.

SPEAKER_04 33:45

Yeah, and this guy is a four-time state cross-country champ, four-time uh 3200 and 1600 champ. And the only the only thing that I can say is uh two years ago, the Fleming Island's four by eight hundred team uh beat the Balen Jesuit team in the four by eight hundred state championship. And it was Roman Bullockone who uh absolutely I mean it was uh actually Roman got the baton as the anchor, but the guy before him was Michael Michael Barray. And uh but the two guys before him, John Keating and and Graham Myers, Myers just uh got fourth in the uh race. Uh uh we did the celebration run over there, and then John Keisher was running at University South uh Florida. But they had magnificent first two 800s, and they gave uh I think it's Michael Rousseau. He actually was coming in and uh, you know, I don't want to say he was unknown, but the other three guys on the team were the studs, and and he just he was a senior, they put him in there, let him run a sea, and he ran a tremendous leg to give uh Roman Molicone, who would eventually become the 800-meter state champion enough room because Molicone was wicked at the end, but this uh Montecone guy from Balein Jesuit was even more wicked. But Mollocone held him off and they won the state title, and it was it was I mean, Balen Jesuit has been the champion of that stuff for ages. They just they just keep producing great guys like that.

SPEAKER_03 35:10

But football did he say he they run at Cecil Field Golf Course?

SPEAKER_04 35:14

Yeah, yeah.

SPEAKER_03 35:15

Over off Normandy Boulevard.

SPEAKER_04 35:17

Okay. Used to be over there. It is fast, it's super fast. No hills, it's all flat. There's a little, there's just little things like this, and there's one portion of it in the back, which is where they're gonna run it, where it actually drops down and then goes. So you can't say there's no hill, it it undulates nicely, but it's not it's not uh uh wicked or extreme. There's no like gigantic like if you go to a state mate up in Tallahassee in Appalachian Park, I mean they they call it Parachute Hill because it it's straight up and they run it twice. And it's a killer. I mean, it's uh if you're not ready for that by because in Florida you don't get a chance. I mean, our guys I know run the Doctor's Inlet Bridge and a little bump over there by Fleming Island Golf Course. That's kind of their hill workout. But like he was saying, Coach Dave Allen uh you know gets the most out of what he's got here every now and then. I don't know if they ever go to Thunder Road. Thunder Road's gotta be the biggest uh hill in Clay County.

SPEAKER_03 36:10

Don Hall used to take the kids to the hilltop to run the hill. Oh, the hilltop restaurant. Don Hall used to take the kids to the hilltop. I mean that's it.

SPEAKER_04 36:19

And run the hills on the hilltop. There's only select places in there where you can get that kind of uh feeling. Remember Don Hall? Yeah, the Don Hall. That's the stadium over there, Arch Park High. Yeah, legendary uh track coach and all that. And and uh he was throwing shot put when he was like 87. Him and uh Wow Him and uh who was the other guy? There was a guy that coached at um Middleburg with him, but he was the he was he was competing all the way and then and then they they named the track after him, you know. Great guy there. So it's pretty good. So there we we we got football. Football. We're back in. Most of the teams were uh off for a week, you know, getting them a little vacation, a little restart, recharge, whatever you want to call it. I know uh Middleburg, Ryan Wolf over there's got Bishop Kenny coming to town uh tomorrow to to do a little seven on seven there. Keystone's got another uh uh big jamboree. They coach Cam reports, I tell you what, he's he's putting those Keystone guys, you know, in in the m in the battle, you know, and he told me he says little by little, uh they're they're learning how to tie their shoes right, how to show up on time, how to work a hundred percent during practice, and then we'll teach them football. He says it's just one of these processes where you're going from ground zero, you know, a lot of new faces, a lot of new kids, and and uh they're slowly uh putting it together. They played clay high in that 707 last week and held their own against clay. They actually upset them. They have a big boy competition where they have a weightlifting kind of competition in the in the weight room, and then they come out and they do a bunch of uh agility drills or throwing medicine balls and carrying at each other. And uh, you know, Keystone upset Clay.

SPEAKER_02 37:56

I think Keystone's gonna have a way better season than last year. Yeah, they're gonna they're already starting to gel together as a team. They're starting out again. I like it breaking it down into the nuts and bolts, basic, and then build them right back up. Yeah. The entire summer they've been working together.

SPEAKER_04 38:09

So I mean, it's such a to to and and coach, you know this. When when you have the kids doing the small things right, then the big things come. You know, when you have your your your half court traps, if you ain't got your foot on that sideline, that guy's gonna sneak right past you. And a little baseline, you don't put your foot on the baseline, that guy's going under the basket, you know.

SPEAKER_03 38:30

We call it habits. You gotta develop habits and it and it it only works with reps. So I'm sure he's he's repping everything and going over it and going over it. You've got to build up good habits and how did you guys do? You guys went to the uh what is it, Florida? Yeah, we went to the FABC probably about four or five years ago. What's FA B C Florida Athletic Uh uh Basketball Club? Association of Basketball. About four or five years ago, they lobbied to have a scholastic live period because it's all travel ball and AAU. So us high school coaches in Florida lobbied for it and we got it, and it's really good. So there's two weekends, one for girls, two for boys, so three weekends. Oh, yeah. So we're where college coaches can watch high school kids in a high school school.

SPEAKER_04 39:10

And they and they brought the heavies to that thing. There was some there were some Final Four teams, some state champ teams, and and uh Fleming was down there for the first week. Yeah, and uh, you know, they flexed a little muscle. They're they're expected to be okay, and they look like they're going to Carson Crawford. I talked to him, he was down there doing well, and and uh and uh Coach Kranisky's guy, Austin Triggs, transferred over there, but he transitioned and and Crawford said he was doing a nice job with him down there. He was a great athlete here, you know. So, you know, people move and go to school summer merry-go-round. You know, so so you you know you summer portal. You kind of you kind of if that's the rule, that's the rule, you know. It's our new world. Yeah, that's what you gotta do. And then uh and the girls, the Fleming Island was down there, Clay, yeah. Oakley Peters was there, yeah. He went from four wins to 20 wins, two seasons back to back. Oh, he does a good job. And he's got a lot of a lot of his returners back on Elise Havda, one of his lead girls there that's gonna do well, and then uh Oakley. I'll tell you what, Fred, Fred, Fred's a miracle man. He had I think he had all all his kids were like under five foot. He's a good coach. And they were they were like they were like they're like mosquitoes with a no scenes going on. Nyla Parsons is such a pest, you know, and and the and they played um I think it was American Heritage out of Delray, who was a Final Four finisher, and was five inches on everybody. And they they was 4340 going into the fourth quarter, but you know, and what happened is Oakley left like eight layups on the flag. Yeah, you know, they had the steals, the the steals and deals, as I call it, Niala Parsons, uh uh Brinkley Thays, a great great floor uh general down there knocking it out. And uh they just you know they just you know it's early, it's summer, but don't count. You know, so at least they know they can fight, you know, and then Clay the same way. They had a couple of good games. Annalisa's gonna emerge in, and uh Aliyah Chamorra is the other one. They got two pretty good girls down there, and then Fleming Island wasn't playing with Gianna Crawford, so you got a little ding in her knee, but they have Emma Crow from Orange Park over there, and she was kind of another summer portal merry-go-round. Yeah, she was she was kind of leading the troops over there. The other one was uh from Orange Park was Trinity Dinkins playing for Bishop Snyder. Who has now gone to Potter's House? Trinity Dinkins?

SPEAKER_03 41:30

He's got the Potter's House.

SPEAKER_04 41:32

Oh, wow. Yeah, summer merry-go-round. Yeah, it's nuts. So I'm sure when I'm sure when we put the Clay Today football magazine together, I'll have to go. I always go to the last day to make sure who's where I because I remember years ago when Jarvis Lee played for Kyle Kennard over at Clay. He was gonna be on the cover of our magazine, and Kyle called me up and said, Hey, uh, Jarvis is going to IMG Academy. And he was I was I was gonna he was like one of the best athletes in the county going on the cover of the magazine. I had to rewrite the whole re-reconstruct the whole thing within a week to get it done to put somebody else on there, but it was crazy. But that's football, man. You gotta you know, you play with what you got right up until August 29. Yeah. And uh, you know, we're getting excited. I think uh Oakleaf has got two great quarterbacks coming in, one from Mandarin, one from Riverside, uh uh that are gonna be slinging the ball. Michael Con Michael Connor over there, one of the best all-around athletes in the state, if not the country, is should be a magnificent playmaker. They got big guys up front. So uh Oakleaf's gonna be good. Uh Jason Smith, 20 seconds. Jason Smith is my guy, man. He is bringing in the he is bringing in the speed. And uh according to Ridgeview, yeah. Yeah, but it was uh who was it, Michael Johnson, speed kills when he went.

SPEAKER_02 42:49

Who was the the Johnsons down in the 92 Olympics?

SPEAKER_04 42:52

The Miami hurricane guy, speed. Michael Irvin.

SPEAKER_02 42:55

Michael Irvin.

SPEAKER_04 42:56

But it was the who was the coach? Jimmy Johnson. Jimmy Johnson was the one that says speed kills. And uh, and uh he's down there. Jason Smith is down with a bunch of guys that are, you know, they're they're they're reading the clippings, and I'm trying to give them a little little kudos there. And Orange Park the same way. They got a new uh defensive coach, weightlifting coach, has got him in the weight room, pounding. Let's go. Let's go. Uh, I think that's gonna be good for them because he said they will be bigger and stronger in the fall, and and they got two of the best running backs in the county. So we'll see what happens. It's gonna be exciting. Tim Bowie, you ready for football? We got we got I mean July 15th is the official first day. I think they do the conditioning thing for a couple days and then they put the pads on. And then we're and then we're knocking heads in a week. It's a perfect time of year. Okay, man. Why don't you coach football?

SPEAKER_03 43:41

I used to. I was the get back coach. Get back, get back.

SPEAKER_04 43:45

Yeah, that's important to have, actually.

SPEAKER_03 43:47

You gotta have a get back coach, and then it w it's just too much time.

SPEAKER_04 43:50

All right, Coach K. We appreciate you coming back. This is uh you're one of our two timers here now. We got a lot. And uh, and then uh we got we we talked to Lauren Mattel, we talked to Richie Fanna, we're getting all kinds of people on our show, Tim.

SPEAKER_02 44:01

I like it.

SPEAKER_04 44:02

Just guess on next week. See you then.

SPEAKER_02 44:03

All right, later.