South Florida Sun-Sentinel (Sunday)
Jupiter wins 10th straight in dominant playoff opener
PARKLAND — For 28 minutes from early in first quarter until the third quarter, Jupiter kept Stoneman Douglas from scoring once. In that time, the Warriors scored 15 goals.
That dominant stretch vaulted Jupiter to its 10th straight victory and a 22-7 win over Douglas in the Class 2A regional semifinals in Parkland on Friday night.
“I think a lot of that has to do with our faceoff team,” Jupiter coach Nick O’Hara said. “Our faceoff guys have been tremendous all year, and our wings have done a much better job as of late. ... Our defense has been playing great and communicating great, so it’s just a combination. It’s more of a team effort than just the guys on the defensive end.”
Stoneman Douglas got on the board first, scoring in the game’s opening minute. But Jupiter got the best of the Eagles from there, going on a 6-0 run before Stoneman Douglas got its second goal. The Eagles scored again in the seventh minute, but after that, the Warriors dominated.
“Just ball movement, slowing the game down a lot, just moving the ball quickly and finding open guys,” junior Jackson Bashaw said.
Bashaw led Jupiter with six goals, but the Warriors spread the ball around to a deep offense. Tyler Douglass and Trace Hogan had four goals each and Max Sanderson had three.
“We’ve got a pretty well-balanced attack,” O’Hara said. “We’ve got a number of guys that can win their one-on-one matchup and guys are really unselfish.”
Douglas scored five secondhalf goals, but by that point, Jupiter had already built a dominant lead.
Jupiter faces the winner of the St. Thomas Aquinas-Miami Columbus game in the regional finals on April 30.
“They’re hungry,” O’Hara said, “and ready to really prove themselves.”