Focus, fire rekindled

By MARK W. MILLER
VINDICATOR SPORTS STAFF
SEBRING -- Now that Sebring High has taken care of a 36-game losing streak, the Trojans are preparing for their home opener against Southington.
Sebring is coming off a 20-19 victory last Saturday over Conotton Valley that may have done wonders for the program.
"It was good to have it happen early in the season," Sebring coach Joe Lee said of the key win. "It set the tone for the rest of the year and it gave our kids a lot of confidence."
It was the first varsity win for eight seniors. The Trojans' last win came against Western Reserve in 1999.
"It's an accomplishment; we all worked hard for it," said four-year starter Jake Graham, one of four captains. "We have a good feeling about our second game. We're working hard at it and hopefully we can keep this going.
"We've been through our ups and downs and now we are in our 'ups.' "
Winning drought
The last time Sebring had a winning season (7-3) was in 1993. Since then, the Trojans also endured a 47-game losing streak.
Lee became Sebring's coach two years ago. He said the year before he took charge of the program, the team had 19 players. Last year there were 26 on the squad and this year there are 32.
"These kids matured a lot last year," said Lee. "Our team was dominated with juniors and sophomores and the kids have grown up and learned a lot about our system and what we expect of them.
"This is the first year that the kids have really worked hard in the off-season. They disciplined themselves, having to do some things on their own such as running and lifting."
Back to work
Practices have gone well this week at Sebring, Lee noted.
"It's a new situation for us to have a win under our belts and now we are even hungrier for our second win," Lee said.
"Our concern the rest of the season is to end all the bad streaks we've had in the past and win more than one game," he added. "There are several opportunities for us to take advantage of."
Sebring lost to Southington 26-0 last year and hasn't beaten the Wildcats since 1991.
"Southington is going to be well prepared for us and their kids will come to play hard," said Lee. "We'll have to play a good game to make it interesting."
miller@vindy.com