Athletics

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Foundation Academy Athletics - "Every Athlete A Disciple"

Mark Butler-Athletic Director

The Foundation Academy athletic program is committed to making disciples through sports with excellence, effectiveness and efficiency while meeting the needs of our FA community. The goal of Foundation Academy athletics is to do our best as unto the Lord and impact kids for Chirst through sports. The heart of any successful Christ-centered athletic program depends heavily on the coaches, as they inspire, influence, and guide their athletes. It is my prayer that you will see that the coaches here at Foundation Academy are of the highest quality with a deep commitment to the Lord and to our mission of making disciples through athletics.

"Every Athlete a Disciple" is our focus. Our coaches strive to be intentional in this effort by creating discipleship programs for each of their teams, teaching them important life lessons on sacrifice, self-discipline, perseverance and community. The central purpose of Foundation Academy athletics is to use athletics as a tool to prepare young people for life as Christian leaders.

Foundation Academy offers a variety of athletic opportunities from Elementary through High School. The Lions are members of the Florida High School Athletic Association (FHSAA) and competes for district, regional and state championships each year. We are blessed with exceptional facilities such as our sports complex with four softball fields, baseball field, and football/soccer practice fields. Our multi-purpose gymnasium features two regulation-size basketball courts, three volleyball courts, weight room, kitchen/lunch area, in addition to a full-size stage for drama and music performances. Our sports facilities help us to increase the skill level of our student-athletes. Foundation Academy has tremendous coaches who are committed to Christ, encourage good citizenship, excellence in academics, and all things that bring honor to God.

FOUNDATION ACADEMY ATHLETIC DEPARTMENT

CONTACT INFORMATION

ATHLETIC DIRECTOR

Mr. Mark Butler

mbutler@foundationacademy.net

PHONE: 407-877-2744 EXT. 226

FAX: 407-877-1985

ASSISTANT ATHLETIC DIRECTOR

Mr. Dave Baginski

dbaginski@foundationacademy.net

PHONE: 407-877-2744 EXT. 230
FAX: 407-877-1985

ADMINSTRATIVE ASSISTANT TO THE AD

Mrs. Christy Baginski

cbaginski@foundationacademy.net

PHONE: 407-877-2744 EXT. 258

FAX: 407-877-1985

MS/HS SPORT OFFERINGS (Grades 6-12)

FALL SPORTS

Volleyball
Football
Golf
Cross Country
Bowling
Cheerleading

WINTER SPORTS

Basketball (Boys & Girls)
Soccer (Boys & Girls)
Cheerleading

SPRING SPORTS

Tennis
Baseball
Softball
Track

ELEMENTARY SPORT OFFERINGS (Grades 2-5)

Fall: Golf, Flag Football, Volleyball, Cheerleading

Winter: Boys Basketball, Girls Basketball, Cheerleading

Spring: Boys Soccer, Girls Soccer

Track Important Links and Information:

FALL COACHING STAFF

VOLLEYBALL

Foundation Academy Girls Varsity Volleyball.

FOOTBALL -Varsity Football Head Coach- Brad Lord, blord@foundationacademy.net

Coach Brad Lord is entering his 4th year at Foundation Academy as the Head Football Coach. Coach Lord played linebacker at the college level and was the defensive coordinator at Marblehead High School from 1985-1989. Coach Lord then moved to Florida and got back into coaching in 2005 working as the defensive line coach at Olympia High School. He then came back to Foundation Academy as the defensive coordinator in 2006 before being named the Head Coach in 2008 and immediately transformed the Lions’ football program. Coach Lord has created a winning atmosphere at Foundation by compiling a record of 16-14 in the past 3 years. He has compiled a tremendous coaching staff which bring much experience to the program. Coach Lord is state certified and has brought outstanding leadership to the football program at Foundation Academy.

The Foundation Academy Lions recorded thier second winning season in a row by defeating Windermere Prep 31-21 on senior night in front of a packed crowd. The Lions overcame a sloppy first half and rallied together to take the game over in the second half. “Our defense played the best half of football that they have played all year in the second half. Our offense focused and had a tremendous fourth quarter scoring 17 points.” stated Head football, Coach Brad Lord.

This Victory secured a 5-4 record for the season and a 3-3 district record for getting back into district play. “This victory will propel us into our off season workouts. We have many returning starters on both sides of the ball next season and we expect to compete for the district title. It is up to the boys and how hard they are willing to work in the off season. Our line on both sides of the ball has to get stronger physically to compete. It was evident how much we missed Kelvin Ankoh and Brent Vassallo this past season. They were strong players that got off the ball and lived in the opponents’ backfield."

Brendon Tillett had a record breaking season at quarterback passing for over 1800 yards and twenty touchdown passes. Junior Bryan Aviles ran for over 800 yards and Riley Thomas led the district in tackles breaking his own record with 141 tackles. Darius Lis also led the district in receiving.

Scotty Brazell was the first Foundation Academy Athlete to be named to the Florida Athletic Coaches Association all district 11 team for punting. Tillet was also the district 11 2A runner up for player of the year.

Leadership is the key to next years’ season. Our captains; Tal Minks, Justin Minnick, Tyler Lawless, Brent Vassallo, Jeffrey Cole, and Bryan Aviles need to build unity amongst the team. Gary Hibbert, Alex Butler, Nick Byrd, Kevin Sullivan, Quinlan Marshall, Drew ODonnell, Rylan Thomas and Paul Mansingh are to name a few that will get the Lions ready to compete for the District. Having Brent Vassallo and Cody Moore come off the injury list will add to the Lions Strength.

GOLF- Coach Chris Bateman, cbatemangolf@embarqmail.com

Family: Wife: Sue (married 44 years)
Children: 3 girls
Grandchildren: 5 girls
Hobbies: Playing golf and Bass fishing
Life Verse: Psalm 37: 3-5 “Trust in the Lord and do what is good; dwell in the land and live securely. Take delight in the Lord, and He will give you your heart‘s desires. Commit your way to the Lord, trust in Him, and He will act on your behalf.”
Sport: Head Varsity Golf Coach
Colleges attended: BA from Orlando Jr. College
BS from Florida State University
Coaching Experience: 36 years – 4th year at Foundation Academy
Current Occupation: Professional Golf Instructor.
Golfing Background: Graduate of Professional Golf Instructors Institute in 1998, and taught at Professional Golfer’s Career College. I played college golf and also completive armature golf. Taught and coached for 30 years in high schools in Central Florida. Retired from teaching in school systems in 1998 and began teaching golf professionally. I have enjoyed working most with high school and college golfers throughout my career.

We began this year with a desire to provide an environment that would allow each player on the golf team to grow both as a golfer and mature in their Faith. We believe as coaches our team accomplished those goals.

This year’s team was the youngest high school team in the District. Our best player was a sophomore and our number two player was a junior. The rest of the team was comprised of two sixth graders, a seventh grader and an eighth grader. The exciting thing about this team is that everyone improved their scores throughout the season and all players shot career low rounds during competition.

Our record was 4-12 and included wins over class 6-A high school Boone and Orangewood Christian School. The schedule that FA played was the best ever in the school’s history. Every team on our schedule but one, had winning records. We played several 6-A high school teams, including Boone, Apopka and Winter Park and participated in two of the best tournaments in Central Florida.

The most exciting highlight of the season was when Macy McRaney became the first girl in school history to advance to the Regional tournament.

We are very proud of each player on our team and the support that their parents gave to Foundation Academy. All competed well and were responsible team members. As a coach, this was one of the most satisfying seasons ever. We invite new comers to join the program as we endeavor to vie for a State Championship.

A special thanks goes to Dan Saylor who was a tremendous addition to our coaching staff this year.

In His grip,

Chris Bateman

Head Varsity Golf Coach

CROSS COUNTRY - Coach Rob Smith, rsmithprint@cs.com

Married to Kathy Smith 24 years.
2 Children, Rachel 21 and Robert 19. Both graduates of Foundation Academy.
Involved at Foundation Academy for 15 years Head Girls and Boys Cross Country Coach 7 years
Coached the Girls to the Regional Finals and Boys to the District Finals.
Coached several boys to the Regional Finals as individual runners and coached Robert Smith through the State Finals in 2009. He finished 38th with a time of 17:27.
My goals are to encourage and build confidence in each Athlete so that they can perform at their highest levels. Also to disciple each Athlete to accept and follow Jesus Christ, "I can do everything through him who gives me strength" Philippians 4:13.

BOWLING - Coach Rick Martin, rmartin@foundationacademy.net

Coach Martin has been coaching for twenty-four years in the Central Florida area. During that time he has coached on different levels the following sports; football, basketball, baseball, softball and bowling. While coaching varsity softball his team played in the FHSAA Girl’s 1A Final Four six years in a row. They finished in the State Championship game four times during that period, and won the State Championship twice.
He has coached the bowling program at Foundation Academy the past four years. His aspiration is for the FA bowling program to become recognized throughout Florida. He asks that you pray for dedicated bowlers and coaches to help accomplish this goal.

CHEERLEADING - Head Coach Tami Uhrig, tuhrig@foundationacademy.net

Tami Uhrig is the Head Cheerleading Coach for Foundation Academy. Coach Uhrig has been involved at Foundation Academy for more than 9 years with two children both attending FA. She is beginning her seventh year coaching elementary through varsity cheerleading and as instructor for the FA Summer Cheer Camp. Coach Uhrig has an AACCA National Safety Certification along with NFHS Stunt Progression I & II Certifications. She continually stays current by attending camps, coaches clinics, and training through UCA , FCC, FACA, and FHSAA. Coach Uhrig made her transition into coaching cheerleading from an extensive background in dance and theatre with her training spanning from Texas to California and New York. Along with many other stage and TV credits, Coach Uhrig worked for 13 years with the Walt Disney World Company as a dancer/Actors' Equity performer, staging assistant, and show choreographer for the Disney theme parks and conventions. While at Disney, she also worked with many Jr. High and High School bands and performing groups as part of the Magic Music Days program at Disney. Prior to working at WDW, she attended Texas Christian University. Coach Uhrig has been a member of St. Luke's United Methodist Church in Windermere for 23 years and is in her 3rd year teaching girls MS & HS Physical Education and Health at FA. She has a heart to serve and a desire to make a positive impact on the young people she coaches and the families that represent Foundation Academy and all it stands for. GO LIONS!

WINTER COACHING STAFF

Foundation Academy Boys Head Basketball Coach-Andrew DeClercq, adeclercq@foundationacademy.net

Foundation Academy welcomed Andrew DeClercq as the Head Basketball Coach beginning the 2010-11 school year. Coach Declercq played in the NBA for 10 years, seven of those, with our own Orlando Magic. He also played for the University of Florida and helped to lead the team to its first Final Four appearance in the college’s history. He developed All-Pro Fundamentals Basketball Camp with Dan Cross from 2007-2009. In 2009, he created and currently runs DeClercq Basketball Training, which provides the next generation of basketball players with the building blocks of fundamental basketball skills through camps, clinics, small group and individual training sessions. You can find out more information about his camps at www.DeClerqBasketball.com. Andrew lives in Clermont with his wife and three beautiful children. He is actively involved with his church, Highpoint Church in Ocoee and is on the Board of Directors for Vision360, a church planting and pastor training organization.

“We are very excited to have Andrew DeClercq coaching our boys varsity team. We know that he will be able to bring us to the next level of play. His vision for the players and the program matches our philosophy that Every Athlete a Disciple” says Athletic Director, Mark Butler.

Middle School Boys Head Basketball Coach- Michael Stewart

6th Grade Boys Head Basketball Coach- Buddy Smith

Varsity Girls Basketball Head Coach: Christie Thompson, cthompson@yourtrinityfitness.com

Coach Christie Walker-Thompson graduated with a Bachelor of Science Degree with a concentration in exercise science, nutrition, and physical education from Virginia Commonwealth University. Coach Christie was an excellent student while at the VCU and also displayed her athletic abilities for the University’s Division I Women’s basketball team. She was granted a full athletic scholarship as she is no stranger to hard work and discipline. During her final year at VCU, she was an employee at the training institute U-Turn Sports Performance Academy. The purpose of this facility was to raise up not only top athletes, but to prepare them for life and build a Christian foundation for the area’s youth, no matter what their economic status. Here she worked with young adults in the weight room, on the court, and in Bible study. During this time Coach Christie was also the assistant coach for the U-Turn Warriors 13 and under basketball team, which was ranked top 5 in the state of Virginia. Residing in Florida since 2004, she was excited to bring her talent to Foundation Academy two years ago as the strength and conditioning coach and last year as the Girls Varsity Asisstant Coach. Coach Christie now assumes the head coach position of the girls varsity basketball team and is looking forward to help building the girls basketball program and the Faith of her student athletes.

Middle School Girls Basketball Head Coach: Lindsay Prather

Boys Soccer Head Coach: Raul Menacho, rmenacho@foundationacademy.net

Raul Menacho joined Foundation Academy in 2009 but has been playing Soccer most of his life. At the age of 17 he was playing in the first division. He played soccer in international tournaments in Argentina, Brazil, Colombia, and Ecuador as well as playing in Spain on the Rosas team of Madrid for one year. He was selected as MVP three times. Born in Santa Cruz de la Sierra, Bolivia, Miguel says “In 1992, I made the most important goal of my life: accepting the Lord Jesus Christ as my Savior. I am married to a wonderful Christian woman and I have three sons. As a family, we worship the Lord through the music ministry at our church.“

Girls Soccer Head Coach: Lisa Mester, lmester@foundationacademy.net

Assistant Coach: Ashley Mester

Lisa Mester joined the Foundation Academy team in 2010, but has been an educational therapist for 8 years. Lisa has a B.A. in Business Management and Organizational Development, and is currently working to complete her MBA. She has lived in Florida for 12 years. She loves investing in the lives of the children at Foundation Academy and helping each child to reach their potential. Lisa has three grown children, all of whom have played soccer since they were 5. Lisa’s oldest child, Ashley, is currently finishing her business degree. Ashley was responsible for starting the girls’ varsity soccer program at The Master’s Academy. They are looking forward to repeating that success at Foundation. Ashley also played in college on her sorority soccer team. Lisa and Ashley have worked together in a family business that they owned for 6 years, and have a good working relationship. Between the two of them, they bring extensive experience in management, leadership, organization, soccer skills, teamwork, responsibility, and positive role modeling. We thank God for answering our prayer request for strong leadership and good role models for the girls’ varsity soccer team in this mother-daughter coaching team.

Varsity Baseball Head Coach: Joe Cioffi, jcioffi@foundationacademy.net

Assistant Coach: Rick Martin, rmartin@foundationacademy.net