Eight to be inducted to Lee County Athletic Hall of Fame
The School District of Lee County has announced the Lee County Athletic Conference Hall of Fame inductees for 2019.
These six athletes and two staff members are being recognized for their outstanding athletic accomplishments for their school or their students.
The athletes are Joe Cherry from Riverdale High School, Dallas Crawford from South Fort Myers High School, Caitlyn Farrell from Cypress Lake High School, Jon Garcia from Ida Baker High School, Chris Singleton from Dunbar High School and Matt Whaley from Estero High School.
The special contributors elected to the hall are coaches Dave Funk from Cape Coral High School and Joe Hampton from Estero High School.
Cherry is Lee County’s second leading scorer in boys’ basketball. At Riverdale as a senior, Cherry was First Team All-State, All Area Basketball MVP and News-Press Player of the Year in 1988.
Crawford played four years of varsity football at South Fort Myers High School. He was Offensive Player of the Year in 2011 with 2,374 passing yards and 26 touchdowns, 462 rushing yards and 14 rushing touchdowns as well as a receiving score. On defense that year Crawford had 76 tackles, nine interceptions and three forced fumbles.
Farrell led the Cypress Lake High School girls’ soccer team to a District Championship in 2003. She was named All-Southwest Florida three times, all-state first team selection twice and All-Southwest Florida Player of the Year.
Garcia played football at Ida Baker High School. He helped lead the Bulldogs to an 8-3 record in 2009, the best record in school history, and first-ever playoff appearance.
Singleton was a first-team all-state selection in Class 2A, Orlando Sentinel Florida Top 100, ranked in the top 50 cornerbacks nationally and top 100 overall in Florida by Scout.com when he finished his football career at Dunbar High School in 2005.
Whaley was one of the first great runners at Estero High School. In the mid 1990s he was a three-time state champion in the 1,600 and 3,200 and a former All-American in the 3,000.
Funk coached the Cape Coral High School boys’ basketball team from 1985 to 2006. He reached the 400-win milestone while at Cape Coral and recorded 557 total wins in his 38 years coaching in Florida.
Hampton led Estero High School’s football team to Lee County’s only appearance in a State Championship in 1998. In 12 years at Estero he led the team to 80 wins. He was a longtime assistant to LCAC Hall of Fame member Sam Sirianni Sr. at Fort Myers High School, and most recently was an Assistant Coach at South Fort Myers High School.
The Lee County Athletic Hall of Fame was created in 2011 and inducted 36 inaugural members in 2012. Up to six students and two contributors have been added every year since. Students must have graduated at least seven years ago and contributors must have started their coaching careers at least 20 years ago.
The inductees will be honored at a banquet scheduled for Thursday, April 25, at the Crowne Plaza Hotel. The banquet will begin at 6 p.m. and tickets are available for purchase for $25 per person.
The Crowne Plaza Hotel is located at 13051 Bell Tower Drive, Fort Myers. Those interested in purchasing tickets should email David LaRosa at DavidPL@leeschools.net