By Kyle Coppola
Lake Minneola’s Camila Antonsanti Soto Eyes Big Senior Year
From the courts of Puerto Rico to the hardwood gyms of Central Florida, Camila Antonsanti Soto has turned early promise into high school dominance. Now a senior at Lake Minneola High, the Arkansas State University commit is ready to push the Hawks toward even bigger goals this season.
The journey started more than a thousand miles away. Camila first picked up a volleyball at age 8 in Puerto Rico. She outgrew the local competition fast, capping her rise there by winning an AAU National Championship with her Puerto Rican 10U team in 2019. That success prompted a family leap of faith.
“My parents saw the potential in me and my brother Fabian early on,” Camila says. “They knew if we were going to chase our dreams, we needed to be where the opportunities were.”
In 2021, Eric Antonsanti and Soelimir Soto, both former professional basketball players in Puerto Rico, packed up and relocated the family to Clermont. The move placed their children in an environment built for athletic and academic growth. It paid off almost immediately.
At East Ridge Middle School, Camila helped deliver back-to-back District Championships. Her club team advanced as well, qualifying for the 13U open division at the USAV Girls Jr. Nationals. By the time she reached Lake Minneola she already had many college coaches eyeing her talent.
Last season she powered the Hawks to a District Runner-Up finish and an FHSAA Regional Quarterfinal appearance, posting 175 kills, 35 service aces and 156 assists. Those numbers speak volumes as to why she ranks among the most dominant players in Lake County and one of Central Florida’s top high school volleyball talents.
“Winning the 2024 district championship was my favorite memory so far,” she says. “It showed me how far we’ve come as a team and how far I’ve come since that first serve in Puerto Rico.”
The same mindset that fuels her passion of volleyball on the court shows up in the classroom, where she carries a 4.6 GPA and has her sights on a sports and exercise science degree at Arkansas State. Her parents’ lessons remain constant.
“My parents have always emphasized fundamentals, hard work, and never being afraid to make mistakes,” she says. “Mistakes don’t define you. You learn, you grow and you get better.”
Family success runs in both directions. Her brother, Fabian Antonsanti, starred in baseball for Lake Minneola, graduated this spring and will play for Stetson University in 2027.
As Camila prepares for her final high school campaign, the gratitude she has for Clermont and her team is evident.
“I love Clermont. I love my team. And I’m so grateful to my parents for believing in me enough to come to Florida so we can live out our dreams,” she says. “I just want to make the most of every opportunity.”
Photos by Eric Antonsanti and Nicole Hamel
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.
