Gulliver’s Lombard, Westminster Christian’s Matias are Dade Athletes of Year for 4A-2A
George Lombard Jr. and Emily Matias both put together spectacular individual years, and their teams followed them to major success.
Lombard took Gulliver Prep’s baseball team to the final four for the first time since 2015 and won a state title in boys’ soccer. Matias helped Westminster Christian get to the state final in both girls’ volleyball and beach volleyball.
They’re now also the Miami Herald’s Miami-Dade County Athletes of the Year for Classes 5A-2A.
South Florida is often a hotbed for baseball talent and few players this year have scouts salivating more than Lombard. The star infielder batted .512 with 24 RBI, six home runs and 14 doubles, and powered Gulliver all the way to the Class 3A semifinals. He was also a second-team All-County selection as a defender in soccer and helped the Raiders win the Class 4A championship.
Lombard, who’s the son of Tigers bench coach George Lombard, signed with Vanderbilt for baseball, but is also the No. 38 prospect in the 2023 MLB draft, according to MLB.com.
“It’ll get a little busy for me coming up, but it was definitely a good year for us,” Lombard said in the spring. “We exceeded some of our expectations. We made a pretty good run. Unfortunately, it didn’t end the way we wanted it to but I’m proud of my team and how we responded to a lot of adversity this year.”
Matias was a first-team All-County selection in girls’ volleyball and one of the Miami-Dade County Beach Volleyball Players of the Year.
In the fall, Matias had 317 kills, 158 digs and 36 aces. She was also the Miami-Dade County Girls’ Volleyball Player of the Year for Classes 4A-2A in 2021 before coming back to put together another all-county season in 2022.
She’ll play at FIU next season.
“It’s pretty awesome,” Matias said in the spring. “My senior year, I get to finish off with being player of the year with my little sister. Not many people get that opportunity. I’m really grateful for it.”
OTHER FINALISTS
Boys’ sports
Miami Central sophomore Armondo Blount was a first-team All-County selection in football, and a first-team AllCounty selection in track and field. He played football at Dillard before transferring across county lines for the second semester.
Central senior Rueben Bain was the Miami-Dade County Defensive Player of the Year for Classes 2M-1M and the MaxPreps Florida Player of the Year. He led the Rockets to a Class 2M championship — he won state titles in all four years of high school — and signed with Miami.
True North Classical Academy freshman Jasen Lopez was a first-team AllCounty selection in boys’ basketball and a second-team All-County selection in football. Riviera Prep senior Eric Fernandez was a first-team All-County selection in baseball and a finalist for the MiamiDade County Scholar-Athlete Award, and also competed in swimming and diving. He’s committed to the Hurricanes.
Ransom Everglades junior David Serra was the Miami-Dade Boys’ Track and Field Athlete of the Year, and Miami-Dade Boys’ Cross-Country Runner of the Year. He won Class 2A championships in the 1,600- and 3,200-meter runs.
Girls’ sports
Palmer Trinity senior Emily Montes was a first-team All-County selection in girls’ basketball, and an All-County honorable mention in track and field. She’s committed to Columbia.
Carrollton School of the Sacred Heart senior Broghan Rice was a first-team All-County selection in girls’ soccer and an All-County honorable mention in softball, and a nominee for the MiamiDade County Scholar-Athlete Award.
Westminster Christian sophomore
Zoey Matias was one of the MiamiDade County Beach Volleyball Players of the Year, and a first-team All-County selection in girls’ volleyball.
St. Brendan senior Emma Hencock was the Miami-Dade County CrossCountry Runner of the Year, and a firstteam All-County selection in track and field. She’s committed to the Hurricanes for both cross-country and track and field.
Gulliver senior Aria Torretta was a first-team All-County selection in both water polo, and swimming and diving.