By Kyle Coppola
Jarett Johnson Named Boys High School Basketball Player of the Year
We let the public vote on who they thought the best basketball player was in Lake & Sumter County, and Jarett Johnson has been awarded that honor.
If you look up the definition of a student-athlete, Jarett Johnson is one name that will be at the top of that list. Johnson, who plays for Real Life Christian Academy in Clermont, is one of the most genuine student-athletes you will ever meet. “Jarett is one of the best teammates you can ask for. He is unselfish and loves his teammates,” says his coach Frank Johnson.
(Jarett has an incredibly warm personality and is loved by his coaches and peers.)
Jarett averaged 15.1 points per game. He also averaged 5.5 rebounds per game and 6 assists per game. Additionally, he averaged 5 steals per game. He is ranked 6th in the state of Florida in steals and 51st nationally. Jarett and his team led RLCA to the best record in team history at 20-5. They finished 6th this year in the NACA Tournament. Jarett holds the record for the most points scored in a single game in school history with 45 points. He also holds the school record with 13 three-pointers scored in one game.
For Jarett, it’s a season that nearly did not happen for him. At the beginning of the year, Jarett was going to walk away from basketball to focus solely on education and the workforce, but his girlfriend, who currently resides in Europe, convinced him to play, and that was a very good decision. He led RLCA in points, would lead the team in steals with 102 total steals, and led the team with 124 assists. He was known as one of the best defenders in the Sunshine State Conference.
(Jarett was ranked 6th in the state of Florida in total steals. He was ranked 51st Nationally. Despite being great at basketball, Jarett has a big focus on academics and traveling the world.)
What a season it was for Jarett as he impressed everyone who would see him on the court. For Jarett, he intends on traveling over Europe this upcoming summer with his girlfriend. He is very talented, intellectually smart, and will succeed in anything he puts his mind to.
Debi Lawson, the athletic director at Real Life Christian Academy, says of Jarett, “He is a confident basketball player. More than anything else, he is talented but even more humble. He does not get shaken up at all during a game but always gives 110%, not just on the court but in the classroom as well. He is that same way as a person. Jaret is a leader on and off the court. He is very much a team player and always lifts his teammates above himself,” says Debi Lawson.
Lawson would go on to say, “Jarett is not only the type of player all coaches love to have on their team but also the type of young man you want your kid to be friends with. We are so proud of Jarett, who he is and who he is becoming. He is the very definition of a student-athlete,” says Debi. Congratulations to this young man on a great season and to all the people who voted for him. At the end of the day being a good player on the court is just as important as being a model student and good person off the court and for that reason, Jarett Johnson is our high school basketball player of the year.
Lake & Sumter All-County Team
The following athletes in Lake & Sumter County have the honor of being a part of the Lake & Sumter All-County Basketball Team. This is a digital team made up of the best players in Lake & Sumter County. This is a huge honor for these players who are some of the best in all of Florida. The list is below:
Chris Washington – The Villages Charter
Jermarien Williams – Leesburg High
Herly Brutus – Umatilla High
Isaiah Pina – South Lake High
Jarett Johnson – Real Life Christian Academy (Clermont)
Javi Rowell – Mount Dora Christian Academy
Angelo Moton – Leesburg High
Jalen Brown – Leesburg High
Adyn Corbin – The Villages Charter
Jared Thompson – The Villages Charter
Javeyon Dale – Eustis High
Anthony Hines – Eustis High
Timothy Key – Eustis High
Cornelius Hines – Eustis High
Lomar Sparrow – Eustis High
TJ McCormick – Mount Dora Christian Academy
Evan James – Leesburg High
Dwayne Foreman III – Hope Academy
Landon Blackwell – Lake Minneola High
Mikeen Harrison – South Sumter High
Mali Boone – South Sumter High
Artis James – Umatilla High
Jordan Corman – East Ridge High
Nicholas Vazquez – East Ridge High
Amari Smith – First Academy-Leesburg
Ben Koubek – The Villages Charter
Zayden Garcia – Wildwood Middle High School
Henry Clendinen – Umatilla High
Jay Miller – Umatilla High
Alex Patterson – Real Life Christian Academy (Clermont)
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.
