January 6, 2025
Jelani Bentley Leads Tavares High Wrestling Team With First-Place Finish At Lake Mary Meet
By Kyle Coppola
Jelani Bentley Leads Tavares High Wrestling Team With First-Place Finish At Lake Mary Meet
LAKE MARY, Fla. — Tavares High School’s wrestling team shone brightly at a highly competitive meet hosted by Lake Mary High School this past Saturday. Facing off against athletes from 20 schools, the Bulldogs showcased their toughness that has come to be expected of coach Gavin Jones program.
Jelani Bentley, competing in the 215-pound weight class, claimed a dominant first-place finish, adding another accolade to his impressive season. Bentley’s performance was a highlight for Tavares, as he overpowered his opponents. Bentley has been among Lake County’s top wrestlers and is going to be a favorite especially as the individual rounds happen in February.
(Tavares Head wrestling coach Gavin Jones looks on as Jelani Bentley works on his opponent.)
The Bulldogs also had notable contributions from Jeremy Batista, who secured a commendable fourth place in the 190-pound weight class. Ari Bentley, competing alongside his brother Jelani in the 215-pound division, finished fourth as well. Meanwhile it was Josh Bell who rounded out the team’s top performers with a fourth-place finish in the 285-pound heavyweight division.
Photo Credit – Tavares High School
Kyle Coppola was born in Newton, Massachusetts and received his Bachelor of Fine Arts in Communications from Curry College in 2016. After traveling to Florida on a family vacation, he decided he could not get enough of the warm weather and made the move from snowy Massachusetts to central Florida 8 years ago.
For the last decade Kyle has gained valuable experience in social media content creation, marketing and sales, writing, video production, sports announcing and even broadcasting for local radio stations, such as FM 102.9 in The Villages and FM 91.5 in Massachusetts. Every year he volunteers at The Villages Charter High School as a play-by-play sports announcer for the football games as well as a public address announcer for the basketball games, including the annual Battle at The Villages Tournament.
Outside the office Kyle is a husband and father to two beautiful girls along with their cat. In his spare time he likes to spend time with his family, travel, play golf and swim. He is also a huge sports junkie and even bigger motorsports fan and loves to attend racing events when he can.
