South Broward stamps return ticket after thrilling win
A year after coming within two victories of winning a state championship, South Broward stood two points from losing its chance to make another run at the title.
Down 13-9 in the fifth set of a spirited match against neighborhood rival Flanagan, a team hoping to make a name for itself if it could get to state for the first time.
But the Bulldogs had their own standard they wanted to maintain.
“I told my team we had to stop them making a name for themselves because we have our own to keep up,” South Broward coach Leo Jimenez said. “We wanted a tough match right before state that would make them rise to the occasion and they did.”
South Broward found a way to score six consecutive points and secure a 26-24, 23-25, 25-15, 22-25, 15-13 comeback win over the host Falcons in the regional final late Tuesday night to secure its fifth consecutive trip to the state tournament.
The Bulldogs (18-5), who had dropped an earlier matchup against Flanagan (18-4) this season in three sets, will now take on Cardinal Gibbons — the state’s top-ranked team — on Friday at 1:30 p.m. in a quarterfinal at Archbishop McCarthy.
South Broward, which had its furthest advancement ever in the state tournament last season when it reached the semifinals, will make its seventh appearance all-time at state and is one of four teams from Broward and Miami-Dade Counties that advanced to this year’s tournament.
In the other quarterfinal matchups, Miami High will take on Winter Park at 3:30 Friday and Southwest will face two-time defending state champion Orlando Freedom at 5:30. Lake Worth Park Vista will square off with Lake Mary at 7:30.
The winners will advance to the semifinals to be played at 10 a.m. and noon on Saturday with the
championship match to follow at 4.
The turning point for South Broward, which brought back four starters from last year’s team, could have come in the first set when Flanagan senior Kory Grant twisted his left ankle after landing awkwardly following a spike. Grant, who led the Falcons with 253 kills this season, was forced to leave the match.
Flanagan, however, did not fold.
The Falcons battled
back to win the second set after dropping a close first set behind the attacking front of Kyle Mitchell and Mason Martindale and the setting of Jackson Lahey.
“It’s unfortunate that happened because he’s a great kid,” Jimenez said. “We needed to make sure that didn’t affect us because we knew they were going to fight for him.”
Even after South Broward cruised to a win in the third set, Flanagan took the fourth and seemed ready to put the match away in the fifth.
But senior Jonathan Hardaway managed to tip a ball over for a point and an unforced error by Flanagan cut its lead to 13-11. Another kill by the Bulldogs and a Falcons error tied the match.
Senior Cameron Thorne gave South Broward the lead with one of the several thunderous spikes he had in the match that contributed to his team-high 36 kills and Hardaway sealed the win with the second of his two aces.
Thorne also had 13 digs while Colton Bueter led the Bulldogs with 10 kills and eight digs. Hardaway finished with seven kills and six digs.
“I have to give it to Flanagan, they fought and our kids knew how much it was going to take,” Jimenez said. “Our boys wanted it more. We have a history to continue and we’re not done.
“We underestimated them and had a bad game the first time we played. It was a wake-up call because we needed to realize they have a great team and we had to bring our A-game.”
MORE RESULTS
Southwest d. Belen 27-25, 25-18, 25-18:
Marlon Albornoz totaled 16 kills and nine digs as the Eagles (22-8), a state runner-up each of the past two tournaments, will make their 11th appearance at state. Alessandro DeLaO had 12 kills, Erick Pinzon had 39 assists and Alejandro Leon totaled 15 digs.
Cardinal Gibbons d. Boca Raton 25-18, 25-23, 25-19: Caden Day led the Chiefs (27-2), who are seeking their third state title and first since 2018, with 20 kills while Gino Brigilio finished with 46 assists.
Miami High d. Hialeah Gardens 25-10, 25-13, 25-13:
Denzel Madrigal led the Stingarees (24-6), who return to state for the second consecutive year, with 20 kills. Gabriel Cabanzon finished with 39 assists and Hector Alarcon had 25 digs. Jefferson Moreno-Maldona totaled 10 kills and five blocks.