By DAVE DEVEREUX, “mailto:ddevereux@breezenewspapers.com”>ddevereux@breezenewspapers.com

Late in the season, as high school teams try to reach that next level, they often turn to their leaders to make a difference.

There are reasons some individuals earn this kind of reputation.

Talent is one thing. Another is the consistent performance from week to week or game to game, and the leadership and attitude displayed off the field, in practice and in the heat of competition.

Both choices for Athlete of the Year awards were role models for younger players. They performed exceptionally well throughout the year and were difference-makers at key times for their respective teams.

Cape Coral’s David Pasquale, a two-sport athlete as a senior, is the Breeze Male Athlete of the Year.

Pasquale capped off his four-year high school football career (two as starting quarterback) by leading the Seahawks to a 10-3 record and a Class 5A Regional Finals berth. It was the Seahawks’ deepest playoff run since 1993.

Pasquale, bound for Toledo, excelled the past two seasons in the Seahawks’ shotgun-spread offense, making good decisions and improvising when things broke down.

Pasquale, who also played safety, was a three-year letterman in basketball and four-year letterman in track, reaching state in the shot put as a junior.

Ida Baker junior Caitlin Holloway is the Breeze Female Athlete of the Year and is the first recipient of the honor from Baker, which opened in 2004 and began competing in varsity sports in 2005.

Holloway, a three-year letter-winner in both softball and volleyball, made her biggest impact on the softball field.

She was the Bulldogs’ top offensive threat — belting five home runs and driving in 43 runs — and played stellar defense in center field, leading the Bulldogs to a 23-7 record and their first-ever regional appearance.

Holloway has remained a key contributor for the Baker volleyball team, which posted its first winning season (13-10) in 2007-2008.



Pasquale welcomes,

handles pressure



Pasquale already had established himself as a solid safety when he battled, and ultimately won, the competition for quarterback heading into his junior year.

Pasquale said among the reasons he wanted to become the Seahawks’ quarterback was he liked the pressure and having to make decisions with the ball in his hands.

“It’s like you’re a coach on the field,” he said. “I love the game of football and it’s a great feeling being able to make the decision of where to throw the ball and seeing what the defense is going to do, and I like having a lot of pressure on me.“

Last season, there were plenty of pressure-packed moments to deal with.

In the regular-season finale against rival Mariner, the Seahawks needed a win to secure only their second postseason berth since 1993. Pasquale did the most damage on the ground, rushing for three touchdowns, behind strong play from the offensive line. The Seahawks won 32-15 to clinch a playoff spot.

The next week, in a first-round playoff game at Venice, Pasquale scored on a 42-yard touchdown run on the first play from scrimmage. He also made the game’s signature play in the fourth quarter.

Trailing 10-6 and faced with a fourth-and-goal at the 10, he escaped a heavy rush and raced in for the go-ahead TD.

“He had that refuse-to-lose attitude,” Seahawks coach Mike Goebbel said. “I thought he carried us at times and that permeated through the team. We had a lot of good kids that jumped on board.“

Another thriller came the following week at Dave Warkentin Field when the Seahawks faced perennial power Bradenton Manatee, which had knocked the Seahawks out of the playoffs in 2005.

In a back-and-forth game with Manatee leading 28-24 with 5:56 remaining, Pasquale jumpstarted the offense with a 35-yard run across midfield. He completed a 21-yard pass to fellow senior Alex Coviello, and scored on an eight-yard run to put the Seahawks ahead 31-28 with 3:50 left.

Manatee was stopped short on fourth down at the Cape 1, giving the Seahawks a dramatic playoff win on their home field.

“On the field you don’t really think about the nerves, you just think about what you have to do,” Pasquale said. “After that game, it was like ‘wow’ we beat Manatee. It was a great feeling to have.“

Pasquale was one of several seniors who helped set the tone for success.

In essence, it started at the end of the previous year when the Seahawks were 7-3, but fell short of the playoffs in a three-way district tiebreaker with North Fort Myers and Fort Myers.

Aside from becoming more of a presence in the locker room, Pasquale continued to show progress at quarterback as a senior. He passed and rushed for 14 touchdowns. He stepped into the shotgun-spread offense as a junior when Goebbel was the offensive coordinator.

“I think once he was established as a quarterback, he fit right in there very well,” Goebbel said. “I thought he blossomed, and didn’t buckle under pressure, and just showed a great confidence that you need from that person.“



Holloway provides

stability for teammates



Since Baker began playing varsity sports three years ago, softball coach Morgan Klare has become used to writing Caitlin Holloway’s name on lineup cards.

Klare knew what she would get each time Holloway stepped on the field.

“She comes out and gives her heart and soul every game,” Klare said, “and she doesn’t hold anything back.“

For three years, Holloway provided stability for the Bulldogs, who continued to add more talented players each season.

After going 17-8 in 2007, the Bulldogs took another step, finishing 23-7 this season. They defeated established programs like Mariner, Riverdale and North Fort Myers, before earning their biggest win ever — a 3-0 victory over Fort Myers in the District 5A-15 semifinals.

“To be in our third year and to beat (Fort Myers), the powerhouse team of the county, was awesome,” Holloway said.

Though the Bulldogs had a deep lineup, Holloway was the primary run producer from the cleanup spot. She finished with a .414 batting average and an area-best 43 RBI. She had five home runs, including two in a district quarterfinal game against Mariner, boosting the Bulldogs to a 4-3 win.

Two of her biggest plays, though, came defensively in the win over Fort Myers.

“She had two extremely good plays in the outfield,” Klare said. “One was a diving catch and the other she threw out a runner at the plate, which gave our team a lot of momentum.“

The Bulldogs advanced to the regional quarterfinals where they lost 1-0 to Fort Lauderdale St. Thomas Aquinas, but it was an encouraging run for a team that loses just one senior.

“We’re making a name for ourselves,” Holloway said. “It’s really an honor to be among the other talented girls.“

Holloway began playing softball when she was 10 years old. She lived on Pine Island, mostly growing up before her family moved to the Cape. She played volleyball one year at Trafalgar Middle School and softball several years at Burton Park.

Holloway took dance lessons for eight years, but became interested in softball while at the field when her father coached baseball on Pine Island.

“We only had baseball out there, so we had to travel into Burton Park for softball,” she said.

She joined the Baker program at the beginning, but said the experience was made easier by knowing many of the other girls from Burton Park and travel ball.

“I realized it was going to be a new experience,” she said. “I knew we had to build our program in order to be successful and beat other teams.”