Mia Winnik is a new member of the MIA Varsity Cheer team. Winnik always had an eye for the sport but was never able to fully commit. She showed up to the second practice and immediately fell in love with the sport and the energy of the girls.

Winnik’s favorite ongoing memory of the season was whenever she would stunt with Kaylie Young, Helena Davis, and Cassie Letendre. “One night we all decided to meet up and practice some stunts on our own; that was one of the best bonding experiences I’ve ever had with girls from any team.” Her favorite part of the sport was cheering with her senior teammates and creating closer relationships with people she had never connected with before.

“

If Mia could give any advice to the underclassmen on the team, she would say: “Get out of your comfort zone and try out new things. Also, have respect for the people around you.”

— Mia Winnik

After high school, Winnik is still trying to figure out what she would like to do. She is still hearing back from a couple of schools, and if she were to go the college route, then Health Science would be her degree of choice. Winnik has always loved cars, so if she chooses to pursue that, trade school could be an option. She would also consider going into the military.

Helena Davis is a senior at Marco Island Academy and has been newly involved with cheer since earlier this school year. Helena’s interest in joining the team came from her desire to spend time with her friends who similarly joined this year, as well as make everlasting memories for her last year in high school. 

Some of Helena’s favorite memories from the season include performing at the annual Christmas Tree Lighting ceremony, as well as Basketball and Winter Cheer’s senior night. “Senior night was so much fun being able to celebrate my friends and end off with a win for the girls.” 

After joining the sport for her senior year, Helena advises underclassmen with a similar interest in cheer to simply “just do it.” 

“

She elaborates, “If there is an activity that you’ve been wanting to do, go for it your senior year. It’s the last year you’ll have a chance, so you should take it.”

— Helena Davis

After graduation, Helena plans on attending college to pursue a degree in business, though she has not yet decided which university she will be attending. 

As for cheerleading, Helena does not plan on continuing the sport after high school, though she truly cherishes the experience, and wishes she had joined the team sooner. 

Collette has been cheering all four years of her high school career. She was given the role of team leader in her junior year, which continued through to her senior year. Collette had a rocky start with cheer at her old school; however, when she moved to MIA, her love for cheerleading grew, and she became grateful for her team and the family she found within it.

Some of Collette’s favorite memories with her team throughout high school include choreographing halftime performances for both basketball and football seasons, as well as the Tropical Smoothie trips with the team before the games. Collette was also very happy to do full extensions with Kaylie.

Something Collette would say to underclassmen is, “Stick with your sport even if you don’t like it in the beginning. Everything normally takes a turn for the better.”

Collette’s plan for her future is to attend college in Florida to study Business and Entrepreneurship. If she attends Florida Southern, she will continue her cheerleading career there.

Annabelle Frazer joined the MIA Cheer team her senior year of high school, however, she has wanted to join the cheer team since her freshman year of high school. She states, “ I haven’t joined because of the anxiety that comes with it, but I decided to join because of the joke that I just wanted the uniform and it also helped that a lot of my friends were on the cheer team.”

Annabelle’s favorite memories from the cheer season was when Grayson made a half-court shot and the student section went wild.

Annabelle’s advice for the underclassmen is if there is a sport that you are hesitant about, try it, and you can always drop it if you don’t like it, but you never know what can come out of it.

After high school, Annabelle plans on attending DePaul University in Chicago to pursue journalism. At the moment she does not have any plans on doing cheer in college.

Isabella Kakaty joined the cheer team for the first time this semester for MIA’s Winter season. 

Isabella and her friend group collectively decided to join the cheer team for their last year of high school. She has done competitive dance her entire life and thought it would be fun to try to cheer for a change. She is hardworking and perseveres through any obstacles that may get in her way. She is not scared to step out of her comfort zone and try new things while always having a positive attitude.

Some of Isabella’s favorite memories include being able to cheer with her best friends for her senior year, practicing their halftime routine to random songs, trying new stunts at practice, and tumbling with one of her best friends and fellow team members, Colette Combs. Isabella would advise underclassmen to give cheer a chance and join because, as she quotes, “It has been one of my favorite experiences at this school. It’s nice to have a community of girls and work together as a team.” 

After high school, Isabella is planning to attend Belmont University in Nashville, Tennessee to study communications. She will likely try out for the cheer team at whatever college she decides to go to. 

Ava Tobiason first joined MIA’s Varsity Cheer Team during her sophomore year of high school. She decided to rejoin during her senior year to spend more time with her friends before graduating. Both years spent on the school cheer team brought Ava so many lifelong memories and friendships.

Ava’s favorite memories from cheer are the bus rides to away games, during which she would sit with her friends, eat snacks, and laugh. She also loved trying new stunts with her teammates and doing prep with her senior friends on senior night.

Ava has demonstrated leadership and teamwork skills throughout her time spent on the team and continues to display these qualities during her senior year. She excels as a backspot and prides herself on being someone her teammates can trust.

Ava’s advice for the underclassmen interested in cheer is to just go for it and join! She believes that cheer provides great opportunities to meet new people and develop a passion for the sport. She enjoys being part of a team and working together.

After high school, Ava is unsure of whether she will cheer in college. She plans to attend a private Christian university in Nashville, Tennessee, where she will study Communications.

Nicole Sutton has been doing cheer since she was four years old. However, she joined the MIA cheer team during her senior year. Sutton has been able to get a lot closer to the other cheerleaders and has been a great addition to the team. She chose to join cheer because it’s a great way to show school spirit and enjoy time together with her peers.

Her favorite memory of cheer was dancing at the Christmas tree lighting and learning the choreography. Her advice to underclassmen on, or joining, the cheer team is to always remember to smile and just have fun.

After high school, she plans on attending a college in Florida. She hopes to study medicine and eventually earn her doctorate. She will always cherish the memories from her time on the MIA cheer team.

Katelin Reisinger has been playing on the girls’ basketball team since her freshman year. She got into basketball when her brother and cousin introduced her to the team, and after the first practice, she fell in love with it.

She loves that she got to play for a small school. “Since it’s a small school, it was really easy for me to get comfortable with my teammates and easier with the pressure of learning the sport.” Her favorite memory from playing on the team was during her sophomore year when the girls’ basketball team won the PCAC championship, and everyone flooded the floor.

The most inspirational people during her time on MIA’s basketball team were her cousin, Joseph Reisinger, who introduced her to the team and showed up to all of her games, and her first coach, Coach Barry, who taught her the sport and motivated her throughout her time.

Katelin plans on attending a university in Florida while majoring in Marine Science and working with sharks.

Emily Reisinger has played basketball throughout her entire high school career. She joined the team after her sister, Katelin Reisinger, and former players, Jocelyn and Cadence Snover, convinced her to join.

Some of her favorite basketball memories include spending time with her teammates and her first-ever three-pointer during which she recalls, “I fell on my butt after.” She encourages underclassmen interested in joining to, “Go for it! It’s a lot of fun and the community is amazing.” 

Although Emily does not plan to continue playing on a team after high school, she hopes to play basketball casually in college. Emily has been accepted into a few Florida schools including the University of Central Florida and Florida State University. However, she is still waiting to hear back from the University of Florida to decide. She plans on majoring in civil engineering.

Lyndsay Lowdermilk is a senior on the girls’ basketball team. Lyndsay has been on the basketball team for two years. She is sad that the season has come to an end so fast, as she loves all the girls on the team and has shared memorable moments with each one of them.

“My favorite memory was the Vero Beach tournament last year!” Shared Lyndsay. She said it was a great bonding experience with the girls. She is sad to let the memories go but is excited about her future. 

Lyndsay is unsure of which university she wants to attend but plans to stay in the state and attend a college in Florida. She wants to double major in Entrepreneurship and Hospitality and Tourism Management 

Grayson Jones has been on the basketball team since his freshman year of high school, but he has been playing basketball for about six years. Grayson has always loved basketball, and his passion for the sport continued to grow over the years as he progressed through high school.

Grayson’s favorite memory of his basketball career was hitting a half-court shot this year and when his team flew to Atlanta to watch an NBA game.

He would advise the underclassmen to simply enjoy every sport they play and give it their all every day, as time goes by extremely fast. Always remember to be on time and show respect to your coaches and teammates.

After graduation, Grayson plans on attending a university in Florida to study exercise science. He also plans on continuing his basketball career in college after graduation.

Ivan Harrison is a senior on the MIA soccer team. Ivan has played soccer since he was 13 years old. He plays anywhere from goalie to forward, but currently plays as a left or right winger.

Ivan’s favorite memory from this past soccer season was going out to eat with the team after games. His favorite memory was at Hooters after tying against Community School of Naples, and the team convinced the server that one of his teammates was paying for everyone’s food.

After high school, Ivan plans on attending the University of Central Florida and studying mechanical engineering. He does not plan to play soccer at the collegiate level as of now.

Senior Ryan Sweeney was the goalie for Marco Island’s soccer team. Ryan began playing soccer in his sophomore year after saying, “For months, Mr. Miller was asking me to play.” Ryan has been in goal since his sophomore year and has made several saves that led them to the PCAC, which happens to be Mr. Sweeney’s favorite memory.

He says, “My favorite memories from soccer were winning the PCAC championship sophomore year and just spending time with my teammates, whether it was practices, games, or eating after.”

As Ryan leaves high school to pursue a college degree in either the medical field or as a firefighter, he leaves the younger classmates some advice: “If you’re interested in playing soccer, or, matter of fact, any sport, just have fun, and if you are going to play, give it your 100%. Be a good teammate by helping and giving everything you have to offer.”

Despite Sweeney’s skills, he doesn’t plan on playing soccer competitively in the future, although he still has a love for the sport and his team.

Chase Polley is a senior at MIA and has played on the soccer team every year since he was a freshman. His love of soccer started at just 6 years old and said that he started playing because of his parents. “They wanted me to join as a kid so I wouldn’t just be sitting at home doing nothing.”

Chase’s favorite memory of the team is going to regionals his freshman year. From soccer, he has learned the value of patience and helping others. In his own words, “I have learned that patience is key. Some people may not be as experienced and it’s good to try and help as much as you can.”

In the future, Chase hopes to pursue Business and Entrepreneurship at Nova Southeastern University. He also plans to attend Captain’s School to acquire a Captain’s License.

Wyatt Bailey joined the MIA Boy’s Soccer team his senior year but has a long history with the sport. He has played soccer since he was young and has about eight years of prior experience. Bailey decided to join after his friends on the team convinced him, hoping to create good memories during his last year of high school. 

Wyatt’s favorite memories include hanging out with his coach, Señor Higuera, and his teammates, as well as being able to restore his passion for soccer and feel like “young Wyatt Boss” again.

After graduating from high school, Wyatt plans to attend college with a major in business and a minor in finance. Although he does not plan to further his soccer career, he hopes to pursue lacrosse at the collegiate level.

Nick Gionet has been a soccer player since he was six years old. He said that he originally started playing the sport as it looked interesting and enjoyable to him. 

Nick’s favorite memory from the soccer season is the senior night that took place on January 8th. Here, the soccer team celebrated the success of its senior athletes in their athletic careers and final high school season. 

Nick says that he plans to go to college after high school, but unfortunately does not plan on playing soccer there. 

Ava Cartwright has played soccer at MIA for all four years of her high school career, and has been playing for as long as she can remember. Ava began playing when she was six years old and played for both club and school teams throughout her life. She has been a captain for the team since her sophomore year and is a leader to her peers, on and off the field. Ava is always there to help her teammates and works to create a positive environment for the team as a whole.

Ava’s favorite memories of playing soccer are playing on the field with both her friends and family and getting Slurpees from 7-Eleven after practice. Ava encourages everyone, experienced or new to the sport, to just try out for the team. 

After high school, Ava plans on attending either an in-state or out-of-state university to study either mechanical or biomedical engineering. Ava doesn’t plan on playing soccer competitively after she graduates but plans to keep soccer as an important part of her life.

Iran Zarate-Centeno has been playing soccer ever since she was four years old. She got into soccer once she saw her father and older sister playing the sport.

She has made amazing memories while playing with her friends and meeting new people and coaches. Of course, scoring and assisting throughout the 2023-2024 soccer season is one of her favorite memories!

Her advice for the underclassmen who play or show interest in soccer is to “Have fun, give it your all, and never be scared.”

She plans on going to a four-year out-of-state university for nursing, researching the side, and then going into an anesthesia program. She sees herself continuing to play soccer by participating in intramural soccer.

Emilee Morris has been on the MIA girl’s soccer team since her freshman year of high school. She’s been playing soccer ever since she was young, for the OCMI soccer team.  

Her favorite memory of high school soccer was when the team was playing in the “World Cup” and someone ended up kicking the ball at her face but the ball ended up scoring the goal. 

Throughout her years at MIA, she has learned to not be afraid of the players on the opposing team and to try something new at every practice. She would advise the younger players to do the same.

After high school, Emilee plans on pursuing a career in forensic psychology, but is so far undecided in which college she will attend. She’s still deciding if she will play soccer in college, but definitely will continue to play in her free time.

Jenna Golec has played soccer for the past three years of high school and decided to become the team manager for her senior year. Jenna joined the team after playing in middle school, which inspired her to continue playing throughout high school. She has demonstrated athleticism throughout the years and provided a strong support system for the team this year. The coaches think very highly of her and missed her talents as a player this year.

“

Jenna’s advice to other high school athletes, “Don’t let injuries and time constraints stop you from being involved in the sports you love… or just simply don’t destroy your knees.” -Jenna Golec

— Jenna Golec

Some of Golec’s favorite memories from soccer are her Chipotle trips with Janie Cartwright and the Cartwright car rides to away games. She is very glad she got to see Ava Cartwright’s senior year.

After high school, she does not intend to pursue her soccer career, but she does plan on attending college in Florida for children’s development and psychology or attending Palm Beach Atlantic for children’s ministry.