Lake Nona rallies to secure soccer title
Lake Nona overcame a late deficit by scoring three goals in the second half Friday to claim its first girls soccer district title since 2016.
The Lions (17-3-0) captured the Class 5A-5 championship with a 3-1 win over Timber Creek (17-2-1) at Showalter Field in Winter Park. It was an evenly played match much of the way between a pair of Orange County teams ranked in the Sentinel Super Six.
“They fight back every game. They’re all seniors, so they really want this,” Lake Nona coach Cheryl Watson said. “They’re very positive with each other and at the water break [midway through the second half] they just talked about how every ball has to be ours.”
Lake Nona senior Kendall Bobbitt put a move on a defender in the upper left corner of the 18-yard box and banked a shot off the far post for a goal to tie the match at 1-1 with less than 11 minutes to play.
The Lions, ranked No. 4 in the Super Six, scored again with five minutes to play when the ball bounced between the teams while inside the goal box following a corner kick. Senior defender Cristina Velasquez added the final goal of the night minutes later.
Timber Creek won the first meeting between the teams 3-1 on Nov. 16. Lake Nona advanced to the finals after beating No. 5 Winter Park 2-0 on Wednesday.
“It just took motivation from everyone,” Bobbitt said. “I’ve been with these girls since middle school and we just wanted it so bad because this is our last year playing together, so we just worked hard that last 20 minutes to get it done.”
Timber Creek, which was chasing its first district title since 2015, took a 1-0 lead less than three minutes into the second half.
A header off a corner kick by Victoria Sierra was deflected away from the end line, but senior defender Reagan Young was there to follow up for her fourth goal of the season.
“It was mostly [about] who wanted it more,” Velasquez said.
Both teams advance to Feb. 6 region quarterfinal matches.
Lake Howell landed a familiar face in its search for a new head football coach.
returns to Seminole County after spending four seasons in Orange County at Cypress Creek, where he compiled a 9-32 record.
The 1996 Lyman graduate was an assistant at Lake Howell for two years before landing the Cypress Creek head coaching job.
He becomes the ninth football coach in Silver Hawks history, the school announced Thursday. Lorenzano replaces
who is leaving the education field after going 10-30 during his fouryear stint with the Silver Hawks.
New Smyrna Beach is looking to fill its football coaching vacancy after announcing the resignation of
on Friday. Hubbard was 15-15 in three seasons with the Barracudas.