South Dade wins another Duels title

Although the real business at hand is still more than a month away, the South Dade wrestling program once again flexed its collective muscle last weekend and gave the rest of the state a little preview of things to come.

The Bucs traveled to Osceola High School in Kissimmee to compete in the State Dual Team Wrestling Tournament and came away with a third consecutive state title, easily defeating host Osceola, 57-13, in last Saturday night’s 3A final.

But the real work had come earlier in the day when the Bucs took on rival Orange Park Fleming Island in the semifinals.

After clobbering Cypress Bay in Friday night’s quarterfinal (57-7), the Bucs squared off against a Fleming Island team they barely beat a year ago for the title (32-28) and is considered a legitimate threat to possibly unseat them when they go for their seventh consecutive state title at the state wrestling finals March 6-7.

Thanks to some clutch performances, the Bucs once again knocked off Fleming Island 34-22 to reach the final.

After Miguel Diaz (106), Alex Cueto (120), Adrian Neco (132), Steven Villalobos (160) and defending state champions Bretli Reyna (145) and Joshua Swan (152) all won their matches, Cordell White clinched it for the Bucs when he pinned Tyler Williams at 3:47 to win the 138-pound division.

“It’s a new season with a new group of kids, but we always have the same exact goals,” South Dade coach Vic Balmeceda said. “It’s awesome to see these new guys step up to the challenge and bring back a third straight dual meet state title.

“We only have a short time to enjoy it though because the traditional state tournament is right around the corner.”

St. Thomas Aquinas made it to Saturday’s 2A final but lost 71-6 to Tampa Jesuit, and Pembroke Pines Somerset made it to the 1A semifinals before losing to Crawfordville Wakulla 38-32.

BOYS’ BASKETBALL

American 65, Hialeah-Miami Lakes

55: AM – Wade 21, Clark 12, Moratinos 12, Corredera 7, Figueroa 6, Nimmons 5, Fisher 3. HML – Lowe 11, Ewart 10, Schulman 9, Miranda 8, K. Bodin 7, D. Bodin 4, Salazar 3, Herrera 2. Half: HML 32-29. 3-pointers: Lowe 3, K Bodin, Salazar, Wade, Figueroa, Fisher, Nimmons. Rebounds: Clark 9, Moratinos 9. Assists: Wade 5, Figueroa 5. Steals: Wade 4.

Palmer Trinity 60, Archbishop Carrol 40: PT – James 24, Fumagalli 9, A. Waldman 8, Young 8, McCray 4. AC – Vicente 8, Dacosta 7, Maldonado 6, Giz 6, Guerra 5. Half: PT 27-24. 3-pointers: Giz 2, Maldonado 2, Vicente 2, Guerra, Sadin, Dacosta, Robertson, James, Fumagalli. Rebounds: James 9. Steals: A. Waldman 7, McCray 4, Friedland 4. Assists: A. Waldman 4, Robertson 3, McCray 3 PT: 11-5

Hillel 43, Hebrew Academy 31: HIL – Taieb 22, Acherman 10, Berkman 4, Abbo 3, Almkies 2, Birmaher 2. HA – Stein 12, Saka 6, Acevedo 4, Nunes 3, Itzkowitz 2, Rubinov 2, Levy 2. Half: HIL 14-8. 3pointers: Acherman 2, Taieb, Saka. Rebounds: Taieb 14. Assists: Abbo 5. Steals: Berkman 3. HIL: 9-10.

GIRLS’ BASKETBALL

Miami Country Day School 46, Melbourne Florida Prep 38: MCD – Daley 16, Nelms 12, Theodule 9, McCormack 5, Gonzalez 2, Corbitt 2. Half: MCD 29-23. 3-pointers: Theodule 3, Risch 2, McCormack, Joiner. Rebounds: Daley 9. Assists: Theodule 5. Steals: Daley 3. Blocks: Corbitt 2. MCD: 15-9.

TERRA 54, Mater Academy 23: TER – Hernandez 13, Agudelo 8, Andrea Gutierrez 8, Ricklick 6, Mayorca 5, Cosomano 4, Holthaus 4, Ashley Gutierrez 2, Lizardo 2, Vazquez 2. MA – Fogler 15, Rucker 8. TERRA senior Rachel Hernandez became the first girl’s basketball player in school history to reach 1,000 career points. TER: 14-4.

Somerset Academy South Homestead 44, Mater Bay Academy 10: Arawin Recio 15 points, 8 rebounds, 6 steals, 2 assists; Rachel Ulysse 13 points, 7 rebounds, 8 steals, 2 assists.

BOYS’ SOCCER

Westminster Christian 2, Pine Crest 0: Christian Bri bag and Jack Butler one goal each. Matias Gutierrez and Munir Reyes 1 assist each. GK Johnny Gleason shutout. WC: 6-4-4

University School 2, South Broward 2: Sebastian Smith and Sebastian Baredes one goal each for University. US: 14-0-2.

GIRLS’ SOCCER

Ransom Everglades 1, Palmer Trinity 0: Lindsay Gould scored the lone goal and Preston Edmunds recorded the shutout.