An athletic program that excelled in numerous sports across the past year, St. Thomas Aquinas has been named the ITG Next 2021-22 Florida Athletic Program of the Year, presented by Baker’s Sporting Goods.
When looking back at the 2021-22 school year, St. Thomas Aquinas’ success originally began in the fall with the Raiders football team. Losing only one game all season, which came early in the year to eventual 6A state champion Jesuit on the road 24-21, St. Thomas Aquinas would go 14-1 to claim the Class 7A state title, topping Tampa Bay Tech 42-14 in a dominant showing.
In fact, dominance is a word that could describe the Raiders 2021 season, one in which they outscored opponents a combined 640-171 for the year. Yes, the St. Thomas Aquinas offense led by quarterback Zion Turner and running back Anthony Hankerson was that good, averaging 42.7 PPG to rank among the state’s best.
The success during the fall would not stop on the gridiron either as the Raiders girls volleyball team would also have success, posting a 25-5 record and reaching a regional final before falling to eventual Class 6A state champion Mater Academy Charter.
As you’d likely guess, the success for St. Thomas Aquinas would carry over into the winter months as well, with the Raiders girls basketball team winning the Class 6A state title. Led by two double-digit scorers in Karina Gordon and Alancia Ramsey, the Raiders were one of the state’s top teams regardless of classification, while the boys team also had success reaching a regional semifinal.
The spring season would then continue to bring St. Thomas Aquinas success as the Raiders took home state titles in both boys lacrosse and girls tennis. As was the same with both the fall and winter as well, the success for the Raiders athletic program did not stop with those two sports in the spring as St. Thomas Aquinas also made regional semifinal appearances in baseball, as well as both boys and girls soccer.
Looking ahead to the 2022-23 school year as well, St. Thomas Aquinas are likely to among the favorites to win yet another state title in a few sports entering the year. While time will obviously tell the answer on if that will happen, it’s clear already that the Raiders will be in the mix once again, with that likely to begin in the fall on both the gridiron and volleyball court.
An athletic program that had success from the start of the school year in August to the conclusion in May, there were few schools, if any, who succeeded more across multiple sports than the Raiders. Congratulations to St. Thomas Aquinas, the ITG Next 2021-22 Florida Athletic Program of the Year, presented by Baker’s Sporting Goods.
