Winter Haven High School is holding its second Hall of Fame induction ceremony, and again it’s an impressive group of inductees.
The ceremony will be held at 6 p.m. on Saturday (Oct. 25) at Heartland Church in Winter Haven. The Master of Ceremonies is a member from last year inaugural class, Olympic marathon runner Keith Brantly.
This year’s list includes six athletes, one coach and one contributor.
Andre Berto (Boxing)
Berto, whose late-father Dieusuel Berto was an MMA fighter and ran Tiger’s World of Martial Arts in Winter Haven, is a former two-time welterweight champion. As an amateur fighter, Berto, 42, won bronze at the 2003 world championships. He represented Haiti in the 2004 Summer Olympics after being disqualified at the U.S. Olympic trials. Between 2008 and 2011, he held the WBC and IBF Welterweight titles and held the WBA interim title in 2015. He retired with professional career record of 32-6 with 24 knockouts.
Dwight Frazier (Track and Field)
Frazier, now an assistant principal at Frostproof, was a star track and field athlete at Winter Haven in the 1980s. He set the school record in the 200 and finished second at the state meet in the 100. In college at North Carolina State, he was first-team All-American as part of the 4×100 teams in 1987 and 1988 and competed in the Olympic Trials in 1988.
Tommy Ho (Tennis)
Before turning pro at age 15, Ho, who trained with Rick Macci at Grenelefe, captured 17 U.S. National titles and two Orange Bowl titles. He was named junior player of of the year by World Tennis and Tennis magazines. He turned pro in 1988 and at the U.S. Open, he became the youngest player in the open era to play singles in the men’s main draw. He lost in the first round. Later in August, he became the second youngest player to win a men’s main draw match in the first round at Rye Brook. His best finish in the majors was reaching the third round of the U.S. Open in 1992. Ho, who was plagued with back issues in his pro career, had his best success in doubles. He won four doubles titles with a highest ranking of No. 13 in the world in 1996. Teaming with Brett Stevens, he reached the French Open semifinals in men’s doubles in 1995. He was inducted in the USTA Florida Hall of Fame in 2011.
Jordan Schafer (Baseball)
Schafer first hit the national scene when he named the national’s top 13-year-old as a seventh-grader in 2000. He played varsity high school baseball for three years beginning as a seventh-grader at All Saints and played on two final four teams. He transferred to Winter Haven as a sophomore. As a junior, he was The Ledger’s player of the year after leading the Blue Devils to a state-runner-up finish. He went 11-2 with a 1.00 ERA and batted .461. He went 22-0 as a senior, winning the state semifinal game as Winter Haven finished state runner-up again. In 2005, he was drafted in the third round by the Atlanta Braves. He spent six years in the majors as an outfielder, playing for Atlanta, Houston and Minnesota. His best season was 2011 when he batted .242 in 83 games. He also played 106 games in 2012 and 105 games in 2014.
Amber Smith (Girls Basketball)
Smith was a standout high school basketball player at Winter Haven where she played for four years. She helped take the Blue Devils to the next level by winning state titles in her sophomore and senior seasons and was The Ledger’s Player of the Year her junior year. Smith then went on to play four seasons at Kentucky where she earned her bachelor’s degree. She was second on the team in minutes as a sophomore and her best year was her junior season when she averaged 9.7 points, 4.5 assists and 1.4 steals.
At Kentucky, she helped lead the Wildcats to an SEC title and to the postseason four times, including two trips to the NCAA Elite Eight.
Sheryl Covington-Thomas (Track and Field)
Covington-Thomas was a three-sport standout at Winter Haven in the 1980s as she played volleyball and basketball and ran track, her best sport. In high school, she was state runner-up in the 100 as a sophomore and junior then sent a then-state record by winning the 100 in 11.84 as a senior. She also won the 200. Covington-Thomas ran track at Florida State and won seven All-American Awards, indoor for the 55 meters and 200, and outdoors for the 4×100 (twice), 200, 400 and 4×400. Her best finish at the NCAA National Championship was fifth place finish in the 400.
Garry Walker (Football)
Walker was a star running back for the Blue Devils in the 1960s and was a high school All-American. He was a key player on the 1966 Winter Haven squad that went 8-2 and made the FHSAA playoffs for the first time, losing in the Class 2A state semifinals to Fort Lauderdale, 20-14. Walker went on to play college football at the University of Florida.
Coach
James Morrison (Basketball)
Morrison spent 20 years as a basketball coach, first at Frostproof then at Winter Haven. In the 1994-1995, he led the Blue Devils to the Final Four for the first time since the Otis Birdsong-led squad in 1973. After stepping down as basketball coach in 2000, he became athletic director for 11 seasons. Winter Haven won two Ledger All-Sports Awards for big schools in 2004 and 2010 during his time as athletic director.
Contributor
Dr. Eric Larue
Larue is a 1971 graduate of Winter Haven and has been a supporter of the football program for more than 40 years.
This article originally appeared on The Ledger: Winter Haven’s 2nd Hall of Fame Class includes state champions, professional athletes
Reporting by Roy Fuoco, Lakeland Ledger / The Ledger
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