American Heritage Plantation loses more elite athletes. Phoebe Gustely, the State’s number one ranked junior in Discus, and sister Sophia Gustely, number one State ranked freshman in Discus are transferring out of Heritage along with their father Kenneth, Director of Track and Field and Cross Country Programs at the school. Their departure follows the 2013 transfers of Diamond Spaulding and Daesha Rogers from Heritage.
Coach Gustely stated “First, I want to thank President William Laurie for this opportunity. I was hired to restructure and organize the track and field and cross country programs. We accomplished several major goals. We significantly increased participation from the talent pool within the school. The majority of our athletes were 9th grade and younger, many new to the sport of track and field. This firmly positions the program for the future. More importantly, I brought in committed coaches who worked hard on communicating to our athletes that discipline, dignity and respect are keys in securing a reputation that others value.”
With the latest coaching carousel, this will be Heritage’s fifth track and field head coach in as many years.
“You learn from each unique coaching and teaching experience. At the end of the season it was apparent that this was not a good fit for us. A lack of facilities, particularly for girls, and mixed signals on the athletics program direction flagged our concerns. After many years in the corporate world you learn to interpret subtle cues. I taught business at Florida Atlantic University and for 25 years was an active player in restructuring corporations. The initial reaction is culpability. However, I try to teach my daughters change is inevitable. You need to adjust, focus on the positive, use your moral compass and discover your next opportunity, because you have a finite number of days.”
It is not known at this time what school the coach and girls are headed.
Coach Gustely said “for Phoebe and Sophia to add the 20-30 foot leap in their throws, they are going to weight train for the first time in their careers. Phoebe is being heavily recruited by Ivy League and SEC schools, and Sophia by the Big Ten. Phoebe was ranked number 1 going into the 4A state discus last year and in the pouring rain, fouled out landing in16th place. I am most proud of her determination and character over the past year. This year at State, with identical weather conditions, she found a way to win the State Discus title.”
Between the sisters they have four consecutive middle school state titles in the discus, and with Phoebe’s recent win at state, they will try for four consecutive high school titles before heading off to college.
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