Montverde reaches soccer title game
It was only a matter of time for Montverde Academy’s girls soccer team Wednesday afternoon at the FHSAA state tournament.
After near-misses on several scoring chances, the defending state champions netted three goals in the final 20 minutes for a 3-0 win over Gainesville P.K. Yonge (16-4-3) in a Class 3A semifinal in Auburndale.
Senior standout Estefania Gonzalez scored two goals, the first on a shot from the upper left corner of the 18-yard box after settling a throw-in from a teammate. Antonella Mazziotto also scored for the Eagles.
Top-seeded Montverde (17-41) plays No. 2 Edgewood (14-2-2) of Merritt Island in Saturday’s 10 a.m. championship game at Lake Myrtle Sports Park. The Eagles are 3-0-1 vs. Edgewood since the 201617 season. The teams played to a 2-2 tie on Nov. 17.
Edgewood won its semifinal 2-1 vs. Fort Lauderdale NSU (15-4-0).
Admission is $11 in advance and $14 on game day through the GoFan website. Matches are streaming online for a fee at NFHSNetwork.com.
Bishop Moore girls (13-6-2) will play Delray Beach American Heritage (10-1-3) at 10 a.m. today and Bishop Moore boys (23-2-0) face McKeel Academy (19-3-0) of Lakeland at 4 p.m. in 4A semifinals.
Orangewood Christian (16-3-1) matches up with No. 1 seed Carrollwood Day (17-2-1) from Tampa in the boys 2A state final Friday at 7 p.m.
Coed championships?
Leesburg’s girls and boys basketball teams, both coached by Sean Campbell this season, are each a win away from the 5A final four. That means he could be coaching back-to-back state semifinals at the RP Funding Center in Lakeland on Wednesday, March 6.
For the first time in years the FHSAA will have girls and boys playing state semifinals and finals alongside each other. The 1A-4A tournaments are next week, tipping off Tuesday.
“It’s going to be exciting when you can have back-to-back games with teams from the same school,” said Polk County Public Schools athletics director Dan Talbot, a member of the host committee. “Before, you could have your boys team playing a Friday region final when the girls were playing in Lakeland. We were forcing our communities to make a choice.”
What isn’t good about the new format is having large-class region champs (5A-7A) sitting idle next week before going to Lakeland for their tournaments, March 6-9.
Rankings hold up
All six No. 1 seeds and five of the six No. 2 seeds made it to Friday finals in regions involving Orlando area boys basketball teams.
Area No. 1 Oak Ridge is a win away from its fifth final-four appearance in seven seasons. The Pioneers were state champs in 2018.
Edgewater is shooting for its 10th final-four appearance dating to 1954. The Eagles were state champs in 1976 and 2004.
Ten-time state champ Orlando Christian Prep is vying for its 16th final-four appearance in 17 years. But the Warriors are ranking underdogs against 2A No. 1 Victory Christian of Lakeland.
Games tip at 7 p.m., according to FHSAA brackets. Region champions advance to the state tournament.
Class 7A Region 1
No. 2 Seminole (22-7) at No. 1 Evans (19-9)
Class 7A Region 2
No. 2 Olympia (19-8) at No. 1 Oak Ridge (25-3)
Class 6A Region 2
No. 2 Oviedo (25-4) at No. 1 Edgewater (21-7)
Class 5A Region 2
No. 2 Leesburg (18-4) at No. 1 Tampa Blake (24-5)
Class 3A Region 2
No. 3 Holy Trinity (21-6) at No. 1 Windermere Prep (22-7) Class 2A Region 2
No. 2 Orlando Christian Prep (22-4) at No. 1 Victory Christian (25-4)
Girls basketball
Wekiva knocked off a No. 1 seed and is one of nine area girls teams playing for state tourney berths today.
Tierra Coleman scored 25 points and Senaia Asanya had 18 points and 11 rebounds on Monday as the Mustangs won 66-58 at St. Cloud.
Dakara Merthie scored 29 points in Lake Mary’s 51-39 win vs. Hagerty.
Class 7A Region 1
No. 6 seed Lake Mary (22-7) at No. 1 Colonial (25-3)
Class 7A Region 2
No. 3 Oak Ridge (14-12) at
No. 1 Dr. Phillips (24-4)
Class 6A Region 2
No. 5 Wekiva (18-10) at
No. 3 Horizon (19-6)
Class 5A Region 2
No. 2 Leesburg (24-1) at
No. 1 River Ridge (24-5)
Class 4A Region 2
No. 2 Palm Bay (22-7) at
No. 1 Lake Highland (22-5)
Class 2A Region 2
No. 2 North Tampa Christian (22-2) at No. 1 CFCA (22-4)
Wrestling winners
Osceola County wrestling powers Harmony and Kissimmee Osceola dominated their district wrestling meets last week. The Longhorns won nine of the 14 weight classes and piled up 300.5 points in 3A District 9.
The Kowboys had 10 individual champs and scored 274 points in 3A-5.
It was a lot more balanced in 3A-4, where Ocoee topped runner-up West Orange 152-140.
Timber Creek won 3A-4 and Winter Springs dominated 2A-4.
Boys two-day regional meets are Friday and Saturday. DeLand hosts 3A Region 1 and Osceola hosts 3A Region 2.
In Class 2A, Winter Springs won District 8 with eight individual champions and 295 points.
Boys two-day regional meets are Friday and Saturday. DeLand hosts 3A Region 1 and Osceola hosts 3A Region 2.
In girls wrestling Region 2 at Osceola last Friday, Freedom placed second behind Brooksville Hernando.
Flag football kickoff
The Seminole Athletic Conference celebrated its debut year for girls flag football as a varsity sport on Tuesday with a special announcement on the field followed by four inaugural games at Lake Brantley High School.
The Patriots were joined by teams from Crooms Academy, Hagerty, Lake Howell, Lake Mary, Lyman, Oviedo and Seminole.
“With the introduction of Flag Football into the Olympic Games in 2028, this is a huge step in the history of Title IX while helping to continue to grow interest and participation in women’s sports and give our student athletes more opportunities in Seminole County,” Lake Brantley athletic director Melissa Dallenbach stated in announcing Tuesday’s event.
Extra points
■ The FHSAA staff has recommended the use of 35-second shot clocks to be optional next season and fully implemented starting with the 2025-26 season. That is pending approval by the board of directors, which is likely to vote on the matter during its Monday meeting in Gainesville.
■ Isaiah Newson, a sophomore guard for North Fort Myers, scored 69 points in a 111-81 victory over Ida Baker in a 6A district tournament quarterfinal. He made 27 of 31 shot attempts, according to team stats.
■ Former Seminole High football coach Eric Lodge will return to Central Florida with his South Carolina team, Berkeley, for a Thursday, Aug. 29, game against Winter Park at Showalter Field. The Stags improved to 6-6 in Lodge’s debut season, reaching Round 2 of the 5A playoffs.