Aquinas, Oxbridge get off to hot starts as season opens
The two high school state championship girls soccer teams from last season find themselves in transition.
Oxbridge Academy, which won the first state championship in any sport in school history, dismissed its coach — former U.S. Women’s National team member and 1996 Olympic gold medalist Staci Wilson — after the season.
Wilson, who was the Sun Sentinel Palm Beach County Girls Coach of the Year as well as the Florida Dairy Farmers Class 2A Coach of the Year, is coaching club soccer in Palm Beach Gardens.
Senior forward Allison Breed, a Villanova commit, was the Sun Sentinel Girls small-schools Player of the Year last year for Palm Beach County and has eight goals and three assists this season in four games.
“Since last year, this team has faced its fair share of adversity from injuries to illness to coaching changes,” said ThunderWolves coach Steve Obringer, whose team is 3-1, with the lone loss coming to St. Thomas Aquinas in the season opener. “The girls are starting to find their stride as a team, but, like any season, it is a gradual process.”
St. Thomas Aquinas (8-0) graduated 17 players from last year’s team, including three-time Sun Sentinel large-school Player of the Year Bella Dorosy (FSU), but returns senior forward and Villanova commit Chloe O’Neill, who already has 15 goals and 12 assists this season. Senior forward Morgan Armstrong is also back after being injured most of last season and has 11 goals, 6 assists.
Veteran coach Carlos Giron picked up his 800th career victory (800-72-25) on Friday night with a 6-0 win over Cooper City.
American Heritage came up short in its bid for a fifth consecutive girls state soccer title, and 11th overall, when it fell to Merritt Island, 2-0 in the state semifinals last year. The Patriots trail St. Thomas (14) for the most state titles in girls’ soccer.
The Patriots are off to a 6-0 start behind junior forward Marlee Fray (UCF commit) and senior defender Tori Alfredo (Villanova). Fray leads the team with 11 goals.
American Heritage coach Cindy Marcial lost two starters — senior Jeanel Leon and junior Taylor Dobles to torn ACLs, forcing the Patriots to start two eighth-graders. Marcial’s Patriots have outscored the opposition 48-1, however the meat of the schedule is coming up, including some of the top teams in the state in Viera, Oxbridge and Boca Raton.
“I want to be challenged every game,” said Marcial, whose team graduated eight seniors from last year’s squad. “I would rather lose during the regular season and fix it before the playoffs start.”
Class 5A state runner-up Boca Raton (6-1) will have a bumpy road to get back to the final four. Last year’s Sun Sentinel Palm Beach County large-school CoPlayers of the Year Dayana Martin and Kendra Cashion have missed extensive time in their senior year with injuries. The duo combined for 73 goals and 36 assists last season and are among nearly a halfdozen players on the roster with injuries.
Wellington (7-1-1) is off to a strong start under new coach Miguel Torregrosa thanks to the scoring of senior Abigail Bryan (13 goals, one assist). The Wolverines will host Boca Raton in a key district matchup on Dec. 21. Boca handed Wellington its only two losses last year en route to a state runner-up finish.
Archbishop McCarthy (10-0) is hoping this is their year after finishing district runner-up and regional semifinalist for six consecutive years where either American Heritage or St. Thomas Aquinas eliminated the Mavericks each time. Junior midfielders Devyn Encalada and Sofia Mallardi lead the Mavericks.
Douglas (7-1-1) has two returning All-County players to count on — junior forward Jamie Morris and senior defender Madison Ciccone. The Eagles have won five state titles, including four under current coach Laura Rountree, however Spanish River has ended their season in the district semifinals the past two years.
Cypress Bay (8-0-1) has outscored their opposition, 48-2 and has defenders Maya Gordon (Jr.) and Alexi Goffi (So.) back from injuries last year.