Kickin’ it with Northern St. Johns School Sports

​by Mikayla Lindenfeld
Senior at Bartram Trail High School

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With the kick-off of the school year comes another very exciting beginning: school sports! Student athletes all over the county are looking forward to getting back into the swing of things. A few St. Johns county students are excited to share about the upcoming season with their sports team.

​Sean Flaherty is a swimmer at Creekside High School. He has practice for two hours every morning before school preparing for the upcoming meets. He is beyond excited for the Creekside vs. Bartram meet, mostly because he is ready to “kick their butt this year!” Sean and his teammates at Creekside have been working very hard and are enthusiastic about the upcoming season.

Jacob Kauzlarich is on the Cross Country team at Bartram Trail. This year, the team moved from the 3A to 4A division, along with a few other schools, including their toughest competitors: Nease and Creekside. The team builds off their successes throughout the season until they eventually compete at the state meet in November. Jacob and his teammates are a family, and he is very optimistic about the team’s performance this year.

Alexa Machols is the captain of the Bartram Trail High School Dance Team. Football season has finally begun and she is pumped to be able to perform on the sidelines. She will also take her team to \New York for a competition in the Spring. The dance team practices constantly, before school, after school, and they even go home and practice some more! Alexa loves her role of captain, and claims, “I love being able to work with such a talented and dedicated group of young ladies as we have on BTDT.”

Tyler Leonard is a varsity cheerleader at Ponte Vedra High School. She is looking forward to cheering under the Friday Night Lights, especially homecoming week. She is confident that this year her team can make it to UCA Nationals for the first time in PVHS cheer history! The team practices very often, but fortunately, Tyler explains, “…my teammates are my sisters and I am so thankful that I spend so much time with them in and outside of the gym.” 

Tommy Zitiello plays strong safety and wide receiver for Ponte Vedra High School. He is excited for football games to begin against seasoned rivals, such as Nease. At Ponte Vedra, the standard on the football team is “we not me,” which shows how invested the team is in each other as a whole. Tommy says he enjoys being a senior on the team and making a difference as a leader. 

It is a very exciting time for school sports, and it is only just the beginning! These student athletes have a lot of work ahead of them, but they are all confident that they are going into a season they will never forget.  

Sean Flaherty

Jacob Kauzlarich

Alexa Machols

Tyler Leonard

Tommy Zitiello