By Rod Gipson
MaxPreps.com
Tampa Chamberlain is making plans to name its football stadium after its longtime coach Billy Turner.
With 243 total wins over 37 seasons, including 193 at Chamberlain, Turner is the winningest coach in Hillsborough County history. This season will be Turner’s 30th at Chamberlain.
The measure to change the stadium name is expected to go before the school board in early September. If the motion is approved, the stadium would be renamed Billy Turner Field at John Adcock Stadium.
Turner, 71, led the Chiefs to a 9-4 record and the Class 5A region finals last season. Turner has guided Chamberlain to the state playoffs 15 times, including its current stretch of nine-straight seasons.
Volleyball: Tampa Plant Taking on Nike Challenge
The two-time defending Class 5A state volleyball champion Tampa Plant has been invited to the prestigious Nike Challenge tournament in Chicago.
The Panthers will attend the 24-team event Oct. 3-4. Plant, which went 30-1 last season en route to its state title, will play five matches in the Windy City.
Plant will play in the Tampa Prep preseason tournament Aug. 30 and begin its regular season Sept. 2 against Tampa Sickles.
Coaching Carousel
Four coaching vacancies in the Bay area have been filled in the past few days.
Plant City Durant was nearing the start of volleyball practice without a coach in place. The coach the school hired in January, Justine Patton, opted to back out and take a job in Texas, and left last month.
Durant found its future in its past. Former Durant assistant Jeff Davis returns to the school as its new head volleyball coach. He was an assistant on the Cougars’ state title teams in 1999, 2001 and 2002.
In other coaching moves, Tampa Robinson has hired Juan Fontela as its new baseball coach. It is the first head coaching position for Fontela, a former assistant coach at Tampa Jefferson. Also, Tampa Middleton has hired Cornell Young as its boys basketball coach.
And St. Petersburg Gibbs has a new boys basketball coach also.
The school has hired Chad Johnson to head the Green Devils’ program. Johnson, 28, has been a head coach at the junior varsity level in north Florida and an assistant with Tallahassee-area AAU teams.
Soccer: Tampa Prep Duo Decides
Two members of the state title-winning Tampa Prep girls soccer team recently announced their collegiate destinations.
Forward Paige Goodwin and goalkeeper Courtney Zwetsch, both returning seniors at Tampa Prep, have announced they will attend Division I programs Central Florida and Florida Atlantic, respectively.
A four-year starter, Goodwin scored the winning goal in the Terrapins’ 2-1 penalty kick victory against Delray Beach American Heritage in the Class 2A championship match. Zwetsch, who played keeper in nine games, allowed just six goals in that span.
The Terrapins begin defense of their state championship in October.