Original article by Andy Villamarzo,
LAND O’ LAKES — The Academy at the Lakes’ softball team went out on a quest May 22 to do something that no other Pasco County prep softball team has ever done in history, win two state championships in a row.
That mission was accomplished when the Wildcats were able to do it in just six innings of play, as Academy at the Lakes cruised to an 11-0 victory over Mount Dora Christian in the Class 2A state championship game on Wednesday morning in Dodgertown.
In winning back to back state crowns, Academy at the Lakes joins Palm Harbor University and Canterbury as the only schools in the Tampa Bay area to complete the feat. Both games at states for AATL ended up becoming the precursors to taking the Class 2A title once again.
The Wildcats, 19-7, leaned heavily upon the right arm of Alabama-signee Lexi Kilfoyl, who has remained one of the top pitchers in the state, regardless of classification. Between the state semifinal versus Peniel Baptist and Mount Dora, Kilfoyl and crew only needed a combined total of 11 scoreless innings to come away with a second straight crown. AATL defeated Peniel Baptist 10-0 on May 21 in the Class 2A state semifinal.
Though AATL will now look towards the future with Kilfoyl and a host of other starters graduating, with the former heading off to the Crimson Tide, she and the seniors will leave behind a legacy in which no other team in Pasco County can lay claim to: Winning back-to-back state championships.
