Meet the 2018 State College of Florida athletic Hall of Fame Class
Quitting isn’t in Lance Carter’s vocabulary when it comes to baseball.
The Manatee High graduate, who played one season at then-Manatee Community College, didn’t quit when he needed his first Tommy John surgery to repair the ulnar collateral ligament in his pitching elbow.
And Carter didn’t give up when he needed a second Tommy John surgery that usually leaves pitchers searching for their next career move.
Instead, he rehabbed for 18 months after each devastating injury and never lost sight of fulfilling his dream.
First, he battled past the first surgery to make his MLB debut with the Kansas City Royals in 1999.
Then, Carter persevered past the second surgery in fighting his way back to the big leagues when he pitched for the then-Tampa Bay Devil Rays.
“The thing that motivated me was I’d run into people and people would tell me, ‘Why don’t you just move on and do something else,’ ” Carter said. “... We all have something that motivates you, and that was one of them for me is to prove people wrong and to prove myself that I could do it.”
Carter’s tale is just one example of this year’s State College of Florida Hall of Fame Class, which gets inducted Thursday in a ceremony held at IMG Academy Golf Club, that has overcome obstacles to continue the Manatees’ tradition.
“We’re looking at four different generations of students, and the ultimate success that they had is what State College of Florida athletics is about,” SCF athletic director Matt Ennis said.
James Life, Aurora Davis and Tiffinee Harvey each have overcome hurdles to get into SCF’s athletic HOF this year.
Life’s basketball future was put in peril when he was expelled from Cape Coral Mariner High as a junior for a fight.
Then basketball head coach Brac Brady was the only one to give Life a chance, and he flourished in Bradenton. Setting the program’s single-game record with 55 points and 10 3-pointers against Pasco-Hernando State College in 2005.
Life parlayed his junior college opportunity into a scholarship at the University of Massachusetts and a pro career in Europe and Puerto Rico.
“He had a bit of a past before he came to us, and I believe that James was always appreciative for Manatee Community College for taking a chance on a guy like him,” Ennis said. “And he’s repaid us.”
Davis played volleyball under her maiden name of Newgard in 2009-10.
Her obstacle?
Finding enough volleyball to fill her appetite for the sport.
Ennis said that in between SCF’s August volleyball practices, Newgard went to the beach to play more volleyball.
That translated into playing for Florida State University’s first beach volleyball team, and she’s currently playing professionally.
Harvey, a softball player had the daunting task of facing teams that didn’t want to pitch to her after hitting .457 with seven home runs and 77 RBIs as a freshman in 2006-07.
Harvey found a way.
So she hit .414 with eight home runs and 43 RBIs as a sophomore in 2007-08 and later returned to SCF as an assistant coach for the 2013 and 2014 seasons.
“(Former head coach) Meredith (Headings) said, ‘After coaches figure out you’re a star your freshman year, they pitch around you,’ ” Ennis said. “ ‘For her to put up the numbers she did as a sophomore is impressive.’ And that really is true at our level.”
Carter, who played at SCF in 1994, wasn’t a top prospect coming out of high school.
The thing that motivated me was I'd run into people and people would tell me, 'Why don't you just move on and do something else,’ ... We all have something that motivates you and that was one of them for me is to prove people wrong and to prove myself that I could do it.
Bradenton’s Lance Carter on overcoming two Tommy John surgeries to become an MLB All Star
A huge fan of the Florida Gators, the SEC school didn’t recruit Carter.
Owing to his childhood memories of grabbing foul balls and returning them to the concession stand for a soda, in addition to having several family members play when it was called Manatee Junior College, having it in his backyard and the MLB Draft eligibility of signing with a JUCO, Carter landed at MCC.
He played one season for the legendary Tim Hill.
“He didn’t demand your respect, he commanded it,” Carter said. “He let you know how he felt and he pushed you to be the best you could be.”
Carter credits his parents — including his dad Zeb’s coaching — for developing him into a talented baseball player, as well as older brother Danny for including him in neighborhood games despite being seven years older.
That led Carter, who has coached for four seasons in the Boston Red Sox organization, to pro ball after his one season at MCC.
Later, when the Royals let him go after a second Tommy John surgery, Carter was back in Bradenton attending an MCC baseball camp when he bumped into Bradenton resident Hal McRae.
Carter asked McRae, who was managing the Devil Rays at the time, for a tryout in 2002.
Carter, who played at Manatee High with McRae’s son, Cullen, eventually became an American League All-Star and Tampa Bay’s closer.
Eventually, Carter played in Japan as his career came to a close and he transitioned into coaching, first with the Philadelphia Phillies’ organization and then the University of South Florida before joining Boston’s organization.
On Thursday, though, the Bradenton native will enjoy the celebration of joining SCF’s Hall of Fame.
“I’m really happy for the other people that are getting inducted as well,” Carter said. “It’s an honor for them just like it is for me.”
Jason Dill: 941-745-7017, @Jason__Dill
This story was originally published January 17, 2018 at 6:09 PM with the headline "Meet the 2018 State College of Florida athletic Hall of Fame Class."