Brooksville's Ethan Bergantino signs with North Florida after ACL comeback

A torn ACL at Mitchell High School on Jan. 14, 2025, put Ethan Bergantino’s college basketball future in doubt, but the Brooksville resident turned the setback into a Division I signing with the University of North Florida. After months of surgery and rehabilitation, the Calvary Christian High School guard said the year away from the game made him appreciate basketball even more.

Bergantino tore the ligament after hearing a series of pops in his knee during the game at Mitchell. He underwent reconstructive surgery in February 2025 and spent months working back to full strength, a stretch that kept him off the floor for almost a year. By the time he returned, the injury that once looked like a season-ending blow had become the backdrop to a comeback.

The 6-foot-3, 180-pound senior played the past two seasons at Calvary Christian High School in Clearwater while still living in Brooksville and commuting for school. MaxPreps lists him in the 2026 class and shows he appeared in 18 varsity games in the 2024-25 season, posting enough production to stay on college recruiting boards. Prep Hoops also identified him as a Florida guard at Calvary Christian-Clearwater, and in May described him as an unsigned senior worth tracking.

North Florida had already been watching Bergantino before the knee injury, then circled back after he recovered and continued to develop. That interest mattered in a recruiting cycle that remained active into the 2026 offseason as the Ospreys kept adding pieces to their roster. For Bergantino, the fit gives him a chance to join a Division I program in Jacksonville after proving he could return from a serious injury and keep moving forward.

The signing also lands close to home in a county that has followed his basketball journey for years. Bergantino comes from a family with deep local ties, with brothers who all played high school basketball in Hernando County. Calvary Christian’s 18-11 season and its run to the FHSAA Class 3A regional semifinal, where it fell 53-40 to Lake Highland Prep, added another layer to a career that developed against strong competition rather than in isolation.

For Brooksville and Hernando County, Bergantino’s path is more than a recruiting update. It is a reminder that a homegrown player can lose almost a year to injury, rebuild himself, and still reach the Division I level without leaving his hometown identity behind.