Lee County's newest class of athletic luminaries inducted into LCAC Hall of Fame
The Lee County Athletic Conference officially welcomed eight new members into its Hall of Fame Thursday evening at the DoubleTree in the Bell Tower Shops in Fort Myers.
The 11th annual event celebrated a worthy cast of athletic trailblazers, record-breakers, mentors and contributors.
At a time when women’s basketball is enjoying unprecedented popularity, it was fitting that former Dunbar High hoops standout Kiara Desamours was the evening’s first inductee. As a freshman in 2012, she helped power the Tigers to the Class 4A state championship, the first title for any girls basketball program in Lee County history. Desamours led Dunbar in scoring, rebounding and steals during that championship season. In her four seasons with the Tigers, Dunbar advanced to the Final Four every year and the state championship game three times.
From January: Kiara Desamours, Antwan Dixon, Holly Fritz among 2024 LCAC Hall of Fame class
“It’s such a huge honor,” Desamours said of her induction. “I’m just so appreciative of everyone that helped make this possible.”
Antwan Dixon, who starred in football, basketball and track and field at South Fort Myers High from 2011-15, earning 12 varsity letters, thanked his family for their support during his battle with aplastic anemia, a life-threatening blood disorder that threatened not only his collegiate football career but his life.
“The people that helped me get here, the doctors, the nurses, my parents, my grandma, those are the people that need to get this award because without them, I wouldn’t be here,” Dixon said. “I wish their faces could be on here as well.”
Dixon is now drawing on the lessons his learned during his playing days as the head football coach at Lehigh Senior High School. So too is former Fort Myers softball star Brittani Houghton, who in seven seasons as an assistant coach at the Wesleyan School in Peachtree, Ga. has helped steer the team to four state championships. She thanked former Green Wave coach Brenda Volk, currently the head softball coach at the University of Wisconsin-Whitewater, for the impact she had on her during her high school playing days.
“The value of a coach in a player’s life can really be a massive gift and it’s a responsibility that I am honored to continue passing on,” she said.
Holly Fritz (Sperry), who set Lee County’s all-time goal-scoring record during her four years at Mariner High School, had the honor of being presented by her first coach, her father Michael, who introduced her to the game when she was 5 years old.
“I hope to be able to really just dive into my children’s passions like you have for the past 20-something years,” said Fritz, who also played collegiately at both Florida State and FGCU. “The amount of time, effort, energy, money, everything that you put in to allowing your kids to pursue their dreams was incredible and I definitely want to be that kind of parent too.”
Frankie Luster helped put a young Estero High athletic program on the map when he became the first Wildcats player in any sport to receive an athletic scholarship. Luster, who graduated in 1990, went on to play football at Mississippi State, where he started on defense for three seasons.
In 2019, Luster watched his former Estero coach Joe Hampton be inducted into the LCAC Hall of Fame. He said Hampton told him that night that no matter what, he would do whatever it took to see that Luster would one day join him. On Thursday, Hampton was there to introduce Luster as a member of the Hall’s Class of 2024.
“I definitely want to give a special thanks to him and to (Estero athletic director) Gary White for being so diligent and I’m so honored to be here.”
Dr. John Kagan, who spent 42 years as the team physician and Fort Myers High School and helped treat thousands of Lee County athletes during his medical career, was honored as a special contributor. He was also instrumental in proving on-site athletic trainers and donated $250,000 to help Fort Myers install Lee County’s first synthetic turf field.
Longtime Mariner wrestling coach Dave Phillips and former Ida Baker soccer coach Dave Trepkowski were also inducted Thursday. Phillips, who spent 21 seasons leading the Tritons’ program, guided his teams to four district championships, one regional title and eight top-ten finishes at the state tournament.
In his eight years with the Bulldogs, Trepkowski led Baker to a record of 150-31-21, including a 27-game winning streak during the 2009-10 season, In 2012, the Bulldogs became the first team in school history to win a state championship, defeating George Jenkins, then the No. 3 ranked team in the country, 1-0 in the title game.
Trepkowski, who has also excelled in coaching tennis, bowling and golf, said he wasn’t a particularly adept performer in any of those pursuits. However, he shared what he believed to be the secret of success for any coach or teacher.
“The secret is caring about the kids,” he said. “If you can show and convince students and players that you truly care about them, students and student-athletes will strive to be the best they can.”
This article originally appeared on Fort Myers News-Press: LCAC Hall of Fame class includes Antwan Dixon, Brittani Houghton
