TJ Goelz, the highly successful travel ball and high school softball head coach, announced on social media Wednesday that he will be taking a year off to coach the Tampa Mustangs – TJ club team.
One of the most successful club and high school coaches of the last decade, TJ Goelz– who has won a PGF national championship leading the Tampa Mustangs 18U team and has won Florida 7A high school softball state titles the past two years leading Lakewood Ranch (Bradenton, Fla.) High, announced earlier Wednesday that his team Mustangs – TJ take the fall and summer.
“TMTJ (Tampa Mustangs TJ) is not done for good,” Goelz posted in a tweet today. “A break was needed for many reasons.”
** Tampa Mustangs-TJ will not field a team this fall or next summer. TMTJ is not done for good. A break was needed for many reasons. The players were notified a couple of days ago and, with the help of our coach, are investigating their options. Best wishes to all! @CoachTJGoelz pic.twitter.com/2u5MW7fZ7e
— Tampa Mustangs TJ (@TampaMustangsTJ) August 10, 2022
One potential reason for the temporary layoff is that TJ has two daughters competing for the Florida Gators program next year: Kinsey (who has one season of eligibility left) i Avery, who was a sophomore. Going away for a short period of time would allow the coach and his wife, Liz (also a coach), to get to see them play together one last time, at least in the SEC.
Extra Inning Softball selected Coach Goelz as a 2021 High School Coach of the Year after the Mustangs went 30-2 and won the 7A state crown last year; the team repeated that success this year, and in five years as Lakewood Ranch’s head coach, Goelz has amassed a 122-10 record and been to at least the state semifinals in each of the last five seasons (the 2020 tournament was canceled due to COVID-19).
The Tampa Mustangs – TJ team that won the 2015 PGF Nationals.
The Mustangs club has also had success winning titles and Top 5 finishes in national tournaments; Last summer, for example, the Tampa Mustangs – TJ 18U team won the Atlanta Legacy Invitational, in 2020 they captured the USA Elite Select WFC title, and in 2019, the Mustangs placed in the top 3 at TCS Sparkler /Firecracker (2nd), PGF Nationals (3rd) and the United States Elite Speed Field World Championship.
Coach Goelz and his team have been especially strong at PGF Nationals, winning it all in 2015 and also finishing in third place three times and fifth once.
Extra Inning Softball has reached out to Coach Goelz for comment, including whether he will be coaching the high school team next spring, and will update as we receive more information.
— Brent EadsExtra Entry Softball
