TAMPA, Fla. — Alonso High School, a 2,700-student, bursting-at-the-seams campus in northwest Tampa, has long been known for its athletic prowess.

There was dynamic MLB pitcher Jose Fernandez, a Cuban import who became a National League Rookie of the Year and All-Star. There were a half-dozen NFL players. There were high-level college performers in basketball, tennis and track and field. There was also the unprecedented feat of having Alonso alumni who captured Most Valuable Player honors in the NCAA Baseball and Softball College World Series.

But lacrosse?

Never lacrosse.

Until now.

Although lacking the natural pedigree common to the powerful programs that dominate the Tampa Bay area’s lacrosse scene — and led by an innovative coach who probably didn’t know the difference between a FOGO and a BOGO just a few years back — the Ravens have suddenly become a force that can’t be ignored.

The Ravens were displaying championship form in March when their 8-1 season was halted by COVID-19. There will always be a sad sense of what-might-have-been. But the tangible results also produced some exciting accomplishments.

According to MaxPreps, the nation’s foremost source for high-school sports information, the Ravens had three players who led the state (and the nation) in statistical categories. It might be an apples-to-oranges comparison — due to the virus, not every team played the same amount of games — but it was still a notable accomplishment for a school that has proven it’s possible to build a successful boys’ lacrosse program without tradition or across-the-board socioeconomic advantages.

Alonso senior attack Tyler Wagner had a nation-leading 54 goals. Junior attack Kennedy Klaus added a nation-leading 38 assists. Senior midfielder Dante Mendez won a nation-leading 161 faceoffs and had an outstanding 81.7 percentage.

Wagner (Colorado State University-Pueblo) and Mendez (Florida Southern College) are among the four college-bound lacrosse players Alonso has produced the past two seasons.

“Alonso boys’ lacrosse has been nothing short of remarkable,’’ said Joe Kuebrich, a former player at West Point who coaches neighborhood rival Sickles High School, along with the Bay Area Sand Sharks travel program. “There is more hunger and determination from the Alonso group than any of the other schools we see. Having to coach against them, it’s often frustrating because I want my players to exemplify what the Alonso boys are doing.’’

“Alonso boys’ lacrosse is fantastic,’’ said Pete Mastro, founder of the TampaLAXReport.com website. “They came out of nowhere. Those kids have so much passion. The more they play, the better they’re going to get.’’

After back-to-back 5-9 seasons, Alonso jumped to a playoff-qualifying 12-6 mark in 2019. The Ravens hit an even higher level before the virus hit this season.

“We are blue-collar all the way, not the flashiest team,’’ said Mendez, who had no lacrosse background when was recruited out of the classroom by coaches. “But we have developed our culture. I think we’ve set the groundwork for other kids to take our place and continue to work hard. This is just the beginning.’’

How did it all start?

Three years ago, at a “Meet the Coaches’’ night for incoming freshmen, coach Alex Brown met Eric Klaus, who was attending on behalf of his son. Klaus seemed willing and eager to help. By the end of the evening, Brown, who didn’t have any assistant coaches, had convinced Klaus, a financial advisor and former University of Richmond baseball player, to join the Alonso coaching staff.

Klaus, who was introduced to the game only a few years earlier when his son no longer wanted to play Little League baseball, instantly fell in love with lacrosse. He developed an incredible appetite for learning with YouTube videos, clinics, helping with the local recreation and travel teams and constantly asking questions.

Klaus, named Alonso’s head coach last season after Brown stepped down, became “more addicted to lacrosse than I expected.’’ Now he refers to teaching the sport and helping his players develop as young men as “my ministry.’’

“When the kids bought into the discipline and organization — and they put more time into the game — things started to change,’’ Klaus said. “Alonso was a pretty lightly regarded lacrosse program, but now we are getting respect, and that’s very gratifying.

“Our mantra all along has been, ‘Don’t judge yourself by the scoreboard, judge yourself by how much you’ve gotten better today and where you’re going.’ Maybe we didn’t have the pedigree or experience of other programs, but we have worked our way toward that level. The kids have earned it.’’

Initially, Klaus sought to change the culture and implemented an offseason program, but he had no practice field. He utilized “any patch of grass we could find,’’ jumping between public parks until finally finding a legitimate field that was available. He would co-opt ideas from other sports and was willing to commit to unorthodox methods, such as looking to basketball for off-ball spacing, movement and pick ideas and using tennis balls constantly in practice.

“One thing we emphasized to pick up as quickly as possible … stick skills, stick skills, stick skills,’’ Klaus said. “You’ve got to learn to pass and catch with both hands. Otherwise, you can’t play this game. You’ve got to get a lot of repetitions. When you think you’ve had a lot of reps, go get more.’’

Klaus said Alonso’s rise was initially greeted by skepticism from the more experienced programs. Now, it’s all respect. And it has provided hope for lacrosse-enthusiastic players and coaches from non-traditional backgrounds.

“What we all want is to grow our game and help it to flourish,’’ Kuebrich said. “Alonso has a very inclusive program. It’s attracting a lot of different players, some with backgrounds in other sports, and it’s starting to take off.

“The traditionally strong programs are still strong. But you’re seeing less of the win-by-15 or lose-by-15 type of games. It has become more competitive with a deeper pool of talent and teams. That’s a very encouraging trend for high school lacrosse. That helps everyone.’’