Robbie Schank of Lely won the Jeff Sommer Memorial Coach of the Year award at the Southwest Florida High School Sports Awards, presented by Babcock Ranch, Friday at the Suncoast Credit Union Arena.
Other finalists were Dunbar’s Sam Brown, South Fort Myers’ Willie Eyre, and Naples’ Mary Beth Watkins.
Commitment to one school over the years in today’s era of coaching is hard to come by, but not for Schank. The 49-year-old has been coaching the Lely boys soccer team for 30 seasons, dating back to his late teens. Over the years, the Lely team has posted countless winning seasons under his guidance, which included a district championship and a regional berth this season as his team finished 13-6-5. He’s done all of this while serving as a firefighter in Collier County and operating a charter service centered around backwater fishing in Southwest Florida.
