Hit or Miss: Jen Blanco

Caroline Lesage traded in the frozen waters of her Canadian homeland for a suntan and six weeks of intense kayak training. 

A chance meeting with an alligator, well, that wasn’t necessarily part of the plan. 

The 18-year-old kayaker from Montreal, Canada, came face-to-face with a medium-sized alligator during a training run at Nathan Benderson Park March 30. Lesage, who races for the Pointe-Claire Canoe Club, was participating in Canoe Kayak Canada’s Assessment Regatta when she and fellow kayaker Monica Black, who rows for Cascades Club, in Quebec, got a first-hand look at one of the state’s most recognizable faces. 

While they weren’t expecting to share the course with an alligator, Lesage and Black weren’t intimidated by the water’s inhabitant.

They actually considered themselves fortunate as other competitors had no such brush with gators. 

“All we saw were some big fish,” said 18-year-old Juliette Brault of the Pointe-Claire Canoe Club. 

Lesage and her teammates arrived in Florida at the end of February and have been training in Melbourne for the past six weeks. Canadian teams, which have been training across the state, came together at Nathan Benderson Park to compete in a series of races to assess their skills.

“It was mainly a training and testing opportunity to see where we are and to prepare for the future and the rest of the season,” said Mississauga Canoe Club’s Katie Vincent, 20. 

Those who are selected will represent Canada at the U23 World Championships, at the end of July, in Belarus. 

“It would be pretty great,” said Brault, who has made the national team twice. “It’s a unique feeling competing at the world championships. All of the countries are there, and it’s really cool to be there as an athlete representing your country. If it all came together again, it would be pretty special and cool.” 

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It was all part of a plan. 

Knowing she wanted to play softball for Braden River and Lakewood Ranch before she reached high school, junior shortstop Kinsey Goelz opted to play two years at each school. 

With the majority of her Tampa Mustangs travel ball teammates split between the two schools on opposite sides of Interstate 75, Goelz wanted to experience playing high school softball with all of them. 

After two years as a Pirate, Goelz is a Mustang this season, and she’s loving every minute of it. Goelz is batting .433 with 29 hits, 23 RBI and 26 runs scored while leading Lakewood Ranch to a 19-3 record and a No. 5 ranking for Class 8A in the latest Miracle Sports Florida High School Softball Poll. 

"I love everyone on the team," Goelz said. "We all have each other's backs and are always there for each other."

She hasn't preferred one school over the other. 

“I don’t really see a difference,” Goelz said. “Both schools are great academically and athletically.”

Aside from the rivalry aspect, Goelz hasn’t been hit by any “traitor” trash talk. She did enjoy getting the best of her former team when the Mustangs knocked off the Pirates 10-6 in the first meeting between the two East County rivals March 15. She went 2 for 4 with two RBI.

She wasn't overly keyed up for the rivalry game. 

“I just (tried) to keep my composure and stay calm,” she said.