Friday, November 13, 2026
Colin Raymond had a solid senior season, passing for 16 touchdowns and 1,306 yards.
Freshman Nino Joseph gained 825 yards in seven games.
Rookie head coach Kit Fowler, a former player, made inroads during his first year.
Lely’s Alesandro Sarasini makes a play.
Joshua Philogene had a fine career at Lely as a cornerback and running back.
Junior Ivan Cisneros will be one of the outstanding returning starters next season.
First year coach Ben Hammer brings organization and discipline to the Lely program.
Junior transfer Gage Rice leaves the ground to pull in a pass. Rice moved over from Marco Island Academy.
Senior cheerleader Tyesha cheers on the Trojans.
Cynthia Powell follows through on a kill shot.
Senior Sarah Friedhoff celebrates.
Marilyn Malinowski accepts a plaque from Lely principal Jennifer Bledsoe. Malinowski and her late husband, Leo Malinowski, have supported the Trojans since the beginning.
A Lely cheerleader in action during 2023.
The Lely band brought lots of spirit to all games.
Jayce Cora dunks the ball.
Logan Carle cranks a home run for the Trojans.
Freshman Romel Rodriguez fires one home.
While they weren’t winning championships, several of Lely High School’s sports programs were turning in solid performances in 2023 as three major programs, football, volleyball, and baseball welcomed new head coaches.
Kit Fowler returned to his alma mater to coach the baseball team. Fowler led the Trojans (8-15) to a season that had a number of outstanding performances. The Trojans had several big wins in 2023 and were involved in a number of tight losses. Fowler played college and professional baseball before returning home to Lely to coach. Immokalee, First Baptist Academy, and Evangelical Christian were among Lely’s wins in Fowler’s first season.
Ben Hammer took over the Lely football program in 2023, finishing 5-5, beating playoff-bound Immokalee, 68-44, in the final game of the year. Hammer brings organization and discipline to the Trojans. Two underclassmen running backs with 1,000-yard potential are sophomore Jayvian Tanelus and freshman Nino Joseph. Joseph gained 825 yards in six-plus games after replacing Tanelus, who was injured after gaining 454 in four-plus games. Tanelus was one of the leading rushers in the county when he went down with a season-ending injury during the fifth game.
Colin Raymond turned in a good year as the Trojans’ senior quarterback. Raymond clicked for 1,163 yards, 16 touchdowns, and only seven interceptions.
Lely’s volleyball team struggled under former player Theresa Keegan, who led the team to a 6-18 finish in her first year as head coach.
Longtime Lely head basketball coach Fritz Jacques led his boys basketball team to an 11-15 finish. Highlights for Jacque’s 2022-2023 Trojans were wins over Golden Gate, Ft. Myers, Gulf Coast, Immokalee, Naples, and Palmetto Ridge.
The Lely girls ended up 6-8 with wins over Naples, Golden Gate, Immokalee, Palmetto Ridge and Dunbar.
In his 29th season, Robbie Schank led his boys soccer team to a 7-8-2 finish with wins over Naples, Palmetto Ridge, and Immokalee. Girls soccer finished 5-9-1 with wins over Immokalee, Golden Gate, and First Baptist Academy.
The girls lacrosse team was one of Lely’s most successful teams, finishing 9-5, second in 1A D12. The boys finished 4-10.
The Lely girls softball team finished 10-12 with wins over Neumann, Seacrest, and Golden Gate.
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