MIA Celebrates Big Year in Sports

There was a lot to celebrate in 2023 for Marco Island Academy’s sports teams and players. The girls’ cross country team, with seven freshmen on the roster, advanced to the regional finals, and one of those freshmen, Brianna Ferro, advanced to the Class 1A state meet, where she finished 19th. The young and talented volleyball team notched their first regional win after winning their conference championship for the sixth year in a row. The baseball team won their first Paradise Conference Athletic Conference championship. But the most exciting moment in MIA’s 2023 sports year came when the football team snapped their five-year, 36-game losing streak by beating Warner Christian Academy 36-20 on Friday, September 22, at Winterberry Field.

“We didn’t win the Super Bowl, said Lew Montgomery, MIA head coach, “we won a game.”

But the pandemonium following the Rays’ win was Super Bowl quality. The Marco fans poured onto the field like a tidal wave.

“It felt like the whole island rushed the field,” Montgomery said excitedly. "I just saw so much relief from community members. We have city officials that are excited. The parents are excited. We have alumni that were here at 5:00 PM at the locker room with us. They've been around all week looking forward to this game and saying, ‘You know, now's the time to turn the corner.' We had a lot of people supporting us all along the way. The fact that we were finally able to celebrate with them and give them that victory feels good. It almost doesn't feel real.” 

For the volleyball team, arguably MIA’s most successful program, winning the conference title has become old hat. The Rays (21-7), with a sophomore-dominated lineup, won the PCAC championship in their home gym, sweeping Mason Classical 25-12, 25-19, 25-6. The Rays won their opening regional match, beating St. John Neumann to advance to the Sweet 16 before being eliminated by Keswick Christian in St. Petersburg.

The cross country team returned to the regional finals after turning the trick last season. Freshman Brianna Ferro set school records during the regular season and post season.

The MIA baseball team won the PCAC title for the first time. The Rays (11-14) dominated the Village School Knights, 9-1, at home to win the championship. It marks the first time the Rays have brought home a conference championship or a trophy of any kind for baseball.

“It's very meaningful,” said Lazaro Ferro, the Rays head coach. “The fact that it's the first baseball trophy for the school is a great accomplishment because we're going to be losing seven seniors. So it's a big impact.”

Kathryn Barry closed her outstanding basketball career in 2023. Barry led the Rays to two Paradise Coast Athletic Conference championships in her four-year varsity career. She finishes with three school scoring records: 1,271 career points, 472 points in a single season (her senior year), and 38 points in a game (also her senior year). She was Marco Island Academy’s representative for the county’s Winged Foot Scholar-Athlete Award, given to the top student-athlete in the county. Barry was also MIA’s valedictorian. The 2023 girls' basketball team finished 12-8.

In 2023 the boys’ basketball team finished 8-12 and runner-up in the PCAC.

The boys’ soccer team finished 2-5 and the girls finished 4-4-1. The lacrosse team finished their inaugural season 4-5.