Tampa Bay Soccer Champs

When the Jesuit soccer team returned to campus from Christmas break on Monday, January 8, it brought with it some fresh hardware for 2018.

The Tigers were newly crowned Tampa Bay Invitational champions.

The wrestling team also had added to the school's burgeoning trophy case: On Jan. 3, the Tigers captured the District Duals championship.

Soccer and wrestling's major trophies highlighted some outstanding athletic achievements during the break, but the best story was the presence at the Tampa Bay Invitational of the San Ignacio (Puerto Rico) soccer team.

San Ignacio, a Jesuit high school in San Juan, was ravaged by Hurricane Maria in late September. In early October, Jesuit Tampa students helped raise more than $30,000 in relief funds, $25,000 of which went directly to San Ignacio.

The Tampa Bay Times and Spectrum Sports covered the Jan. 4 soccer match, the opener of the Tampa Bay Invitational, between Jesuit and San Ignacio, click here for a wonderful story by Kelly Parsons of the Times. On Jan. 8 during the 10:30pm Spectrum Sports show on Bay News 9, a segment by Katherine Smith about San Ignacio soccer is scheduled to air.

Jesuit defeated San Ignacio 2-0 and then beat Seminole 3-1 to advance to the championship match vs. Strake Jesuit of Houston on Jan. 6, where the Tigers prevailed 1-0. Zach Board '20 notched the winner in the 63rd minute on a diving header off a cross from Lucas Gobea '20. Goalkeeper Thomas Knipe '19, behind a backline of Trevor Stanley '19, Noah Kurtz '18, Andrew Motzer '19, and Andres Cartaya '18, earned the shutout.

The Tampa Bay Invitational, in its first year, brought together four top regional schools (Melbourne, Mitchell, Seminole, and Osceola) and four Jesuit schools (Tampa Jesuit, Strake Jesuit, San Ignacio, and Belen Jesuit of Miami), for a premier tournament. 

The Jesuit basketball team traveled to Atlanta for the St. Pius X Christmas Classic on Dec. 28-30, going 2-1 in the three games despite losing top scorer Thierry Moliere '18 to an injury in the first game.

Wrestling participated in three events over the break, also traveling to Atlanta for a prestigious national tournament on Dec. 29-30, the Prep Slam, and finishing 7th out of 46 teams from across the country. The Tigers then won the District Duals, defeating Robinson 49-21 with a flurry of pins, and this past weekend the team traveled to Jensen Beach and placed 6th out of 27 teams at the Cradle Cancer Invitational.

Ethan Basile '20 (145 pounds) captured the title at both tournaments. In his semifinal in Atlanta, Basile rallied from four points down to win, and he remains undefeated this season. Mason Arnold '21 (220) was 3rd in both tournaments, and Luke Surak '18 (120) also placed in both tournaments.

Please view photo slideshows below of Jesuit soccer vs. San Ignacio on Jan. 4 and vs. Strake Jesuit on Jan. 6, and below that is a wresting photo slideshow from the District Duals victory over Robinson on Jan. 4.