March 31, 2025
Lake Minneola’s Cecilia Peroni Earns Nick Johnson Inspiration Award at ODP National Championship
By Kyle Coppola
Lake Minneola’s Cecilia Peroni Earns Nick Johnson Inspiration Award at ODP National Championship
CLERMONT, Fla. — Cecilia Peroni, a junior standout for the Lake Minneola High School water polo team, left her mark on the national stage at the Olympic Development Program (ODP) National Championship, held in Utah from March 28-30, 2025. Competing with a combined team from the Northeast Zone (NEZ), Southeast Zone (SEZ), and Southwest Zone (SWZ), Peroni’s performance and leadership earned her the prestigious Nick Johnson Inspirational Award, one of the highest honors in the sport.
(Cecilia Peroni’s performance and leadership earned her the prestigious Nick Johnson Inspirational Award, one of the highest honors in the sport.)
Peroni’s water polo journey began in eighth grade when she joined Orlando Thunder at the National Training Center in Clermont. Now a key figure in the formation of Lake Minneola’s inaugural high school water polo team, she has been instrumental in growing the sport in Lake County. The program’s emergence has inspired a new generation of athletes, with several younger players from the area who competed at the ODP National Championship set to join the Lake Minneola squad in the coming years.
(Peroni is one of the top high school water polo players in Central Florida.)
The Nick Johnson Inspirational Award, established in 2015, honors athletes who embody the values of the Olympic Development Program, including dedication, sportsmanship, and leadership. Tournament coach Jay O’Neill, of St. Francis University in Pennsylvania, praised Peroni’s resilience and ability to uplift her teammates, saying her influence was felt both in and out of the pool.
(Peroni has been instrumental with the success of the inagural season of girls water polo at Lake Minneola High School.)
“The way Cecilia carries herself and motivates those around her is something special,” O’Neill said. “She is a leader in every sense of the word.”
Peroni’s leadership has also been pivotal in Lake Minneola’s inaugural season. With just three games left before district playoffs against Apopka, the young team, under the guidance of head coach Rachel Carnevale and captains Peroni and Augustine Wladyczka, has made significant strides. In addition to securing victories and competitive performances, they have introduced dozens of students to the sport and fostered lasting friendships across Lake County schools.
(Rachel Carnevale talks to her team. Lake Minneola has had a fantastic firs season of water polo. These young students hope to inspire others to get into the growing sport.)
With her journey still unfolding, the future looks bright for this rising star and for the sport of water polo in Lake County. Congratulations!
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.
