The 2026 Southwest Florida Sports Awards rolled out the red carpet on May 27 for hundreds of area high school athletes, coaches, administrators, their families, and friends.
Barron Collier’s Abi Burke and Mariner’s Alessandro Gonzalez earned the marquee honors at the show, held at Alico Arena on the campus of Florida Gulf Coast University. The pair was crowned the Girls and Boys Athletes of the Year by The News-Press and Naples Daily News. In all, 41 awards were handed out for the 2025-26 school year.
Burke made quite the splash as a swimmer in her freshman year, sweeping through districts and regionals in the 100 and 200 freestyle races. At the Class 2A state meet, she won first place in the 100 and 200 free, posting All-American times in both events. She also helped the Cougars finish in second place in the 200 free relay and third place in the 400 free relay.
“It feels great,” Burke said. “This season was a great season for Barron Collier. We faced a lot of challenges, especially at the state meet, but I think everybody pushed through really well.”
Gonzalez, who will play soccer at Western Nebraska Community College, finished the year as the area’s most prolific scorer, netting 47 goals to go along with 11 assists. He helped the Tritons reach the Class 5A-Region 3 title game and finish with a 25-3-2 record. After the season, Gonzalez was named the Florida Dairy Farmers’ 2025 Mr. Soccer.
“It’s amazing; I’m so grateful,” Gonzalez said. “I’m going to miss my teammates and all the time we spent together.”
The Riverdale football team won the Boys Team of the Year Award. The Raiders made history, finishing with a school-record 12 wins and reaching the Class 5A state semifinals for the first time.
“Oh man, it’s truly a blessing,” Riverdale football coach Kendoll Gibson said. “Some of these guys, I’m looking at them now, they’ve been with me the last three years or four years of their lives. So to see them honored for all the work they put in, it’s amazing.”
Also making history was the Canterbury girls soccer team, which captured its first state title with a 1-0 win over Victory Christian in the Class 1A state championship. The Cougars, who finished with a 20-5 record, were honored as the Girls Team of the Year.
“We’re just honored to represent Canterbury, and it’s a true luxury to be recognized as the team of the year,” Cougars coach Paolo Acosta said. “To win as a collective unit, that’s something that we can continue to share, and it just adds to the special season that we’ve already had.”
The Jeff Sommer Memorial Coach of the Year Award, named after the late Estero High cross country and track mentor, has been presented annually to the Southwest Florida coach who not only succeeds in the athletic arena, but also best exemplifies the 3Ds that Sommer championed — Discipline, Desire, and Dedication. The year there were two recipients: Cypress Lake’s Todd Dusenberry and Fort Myers High’s Garret Copeland, who were both honored for their contributions to Special Olympics Unified Sports.
Dusenberry, who has worked at Cypress Lake for more than two decades, founded the Lee County Special Olympics Field Day 21 years ago. What began as a local initiative has grown into a cornerstone event that touches the entire county by providing a platform for athletes of all abilities to shine while fostering an environment where students with and without disabilities compete together as true peers. Dusenberry also coaches the school’s Unified basketball and bowling teams.
Copeland is the driving force behind the Green Wave’s Unified Sports programs. Under his leadership, the school’s Unified Program has grown into a nationally recognized model of acceptance, teamwork, and community engagement. This year, the program earned its second National Banner Recognition and received the ESPN Distinction Award for Top Inclusion School in Florida. The Fort Myers Unified Bowling Team also placed third in the FHSAA state competition, while Unified Flag Football captured a state championship.
“This year I believe that a lot of people are taking notice of what we’re doing in Lee and Collier counties with Unified Special Olympics,” Copeland said. “We’d love to get more schools involved. We’re still trying to get more schools involved from the middle school level to the high school level throughout the state.”
Unified Sports, a division of Special Olympics, is continuing to grow in Southwest Florida, with four athletes receiving honors at the sports awards. For Lee County, Fort Myers’ Cody Baguidy was named the Boys Special Olympics Athlete of the Year while Cypress Lake’s Jadah Becker earned the Girls Award.
Baguidy participated in basketball, bowling, flag football and track and field. He had a high score of 102 and helped the bowling team to a third-place finish at the FHSAA state meet. He also played center, receiver and rusher for the Green Wave’s Division 3 champion flag football team.
Becker has been a standout in Unified Basketball for the past three years and played a key role on the Panthers’ state runner-up team in 2025. She has also competed in Unified Bowling and has participated in JROTC for three years while maintaining a 4.0 GPA.
In Collier County, Golden Gate’s Jayden Perez and Immokalee’s Kelsey Rhodes were named the Boys and Girls Special Olympics Athletes of the Year, respectively.
Perez set school records for both most touchdowns in flag football and most points scored in basketball while also competing on the tennis team. Rhodes was a key member of Immokalee’s FHSAA state runner-up bowling team, demonstrating not only consistent skill but also exceptional leadership.
The Courage Award is annually presented to an athlete who overcomes long odds to succeed in the sporting arena. This year’s winner was St. John Neumann’s Gus Fusco.
During a game on March 13, Fusco was hit in the mouth with a baseball while trying to bunt. He suffered extensive injuries, including lost teeth and had to undergo surgery. Wearing a special protective mask, he returned just over a month later and played in 29 games, batting .324 with 27 runs scored and 14 RBI.
Here’s a complete rundown of all of this year’s award winners.
Premier Awards
Male Athlete of the Year
Alessandro Gonzalez, Mariner
Female Athlete of the Year
Abi Burke, Barron Collier
Courage Award Recipients
Gus Fusco, St. John Neumann
Jeff Sommer Memorial Coach of the Year
Garrett Copeland, Fort Myers
Todd Dusenberry, Cypress Lake
Collier County Special Olympics Female Athlete of the Year
Kelsey Rhodes, Immokalee
Collier County Special Olympics Male Athlete of the Year
Jayden Perez, Golden Gate
Lee County Special Olympics Female Athlete of the Year
Jadah Becker, Cypress Lake
Lee County Special Olympics Male Athlete of the Year
Cody Baguidy, Fort Myers
Boys Team of the Year
Riverdale football
Girls Team of the Year
Canterbury soccer
Florida Power Play Award, Presented by Florida Power & Light
Gloriana Chalkias, Canterbury girls soccer
Broxson Award
Marshon Jackson, Immokalee
Player of the Year Awards
Baseball Player of the Year, Presented by Vanquish Media
Joey Lawson, Bishop Verot
Boys Basketball Player of the Year
Daniel Rees, St. John Neumann
Girls Basketball Player of the Year
Nalah Smith, Evangelical Christian
Beach Volleyball Players of the Year
Delayna Kerry and Brooke Smith, Estero
Boys Bowler of the Year
Trey Lemus, Mariner
Girls Bowler of the Year
Mackenzy Stouffer, Cypress Lake
Boys Cross Country Runner of the Year
Angel Cruz, Mariner
Girls Cross Country Runner of the Year
Sienna Audrey, Community School of Naples
Defensive Football Player of the Year, Presented by Lee County Electric Cooperative
Al’mirian Thomas, Cape Coral
Offensive Football Player of the Year, Presented by Lee County Electric Cooperative
Jayden Petit, St. John Neumann
Flag Football Player of the Year
Lila Dinkel, Bishop Verot
Boys Golfer of the Year, Presented by The Roast and Rush Society
Jack Ryan Donovan, Barron Collier
Girls Golfer of the Year, Presented by The Roast and Rush Society
Caraline Hartfield, The Village School
Boys Lacrosse Player of the Year
Isaac Lyon, Community School of Naples
Girls Lacrosse Player of the Year
Mia Metcalf, Community School of Naples
Softball Player of the Year, Presented by Vanquish Media
Keyah Kamara, Gulf Coast
Boys Soccer Player of the Year, Presented by Zak’s Jewelry
Alessandro Gonzalez, Mariner
Girls Soccer Player of the Year, Presented by Zak’s Jewelry
Kenlee Dominguez, North Fort Myers
Boys Swimming and Diving Athlete of the Year
Lucas Casey, Community School of Naples
Girls Swimming and Diving Athlete of the Year
Abi Burke, Barron Collier
Boys Tennis Player of the Year
William Freshwater, Barron Collier
Girls Tennis Player of the Year
Te’Anna Mata, Naples
Boys Track & Field Athlete of the Year
Kobe Johnson, Dunbar
Girls Track & Field Athlete of the Year
Cherldine Paul, Barron Collier
Volleyball Player of the Year
Trinity McCormick, First Baptist
Boys Weightlifter of the Year
Jonathan Scott, Evangelical Christian
Girls Weightlifter of the Year
Cadence Strauss, Bonita Springs
Boys Wrestler of the Year
Lincoln Sledzianowski, St. John Neumann
Girls Wrestler of the Year
Kiera Partello, Barron Collier
This article originally appeared on Fort Myers News-Press: 2026 SWFL Sports Awards honors best athletes, teams in Lee and Collier
Reporting by Dan DeLuca, Fort Myers News-Press & Naples Daily News / Fort Myers News-Press
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
