Oxbridge seniors aim to join elite
ThunderWolves return nearly all of their state championship team
Last year, Oxbridge Academy coach Tracy Wolfe used her team’s devastating loss in the 2017 state semifinals to motivate her players.
The ThunderWolves exorcised those demons with a excellent season that culminated in another trip to Lakeland and the program’s first state championship.
With nearly all of its key players back for at least one more season, Oxbridge’s enemy now is complacency.
“We’ve struggled with that this year,” Wolfe said. “One of my messages daily in practice is: We can’t be complacent. … Last year, we had that monkey on our back of what happened at states before, and that drove them hard.
“This year, we have had definitely had that message of don’t be complacent. When we’re kind of getting lazy or getting goofy in practice, we have to stop them and bring them down, like: ‘Listen, you did lose to Fort Myers by three last year, and we are playing them.’”
Oxbridge returns a key group of seniors that includes Haley Howarth, Kaylon Smith, Aaliyah Stanley and Alexa Zaph. Smith (a Vanderbilt signee), Stanley (Eastern Michigan) and Zaph (Florida Atlantic) are Fab Five picks. Smith and Stanley were both first-team All-County picks as juniors, while Zaph earned Class 6A-1A player of the year honors.
Those players have all been with the ThunderWolves since they were freshmen, which gives Wolfe stability and allows her to keep the team’s strategy consistent.
“You’re not starting from scratch every single year,” Wolfe said. “We’re able to pick up our offense from where we did last year, and now, instead of re-learning an offense or re-learning how we play defense, we’re able to add different nuggets to it or really fine-tune things.”
In addition to winning another Class 5A title, the ThunderWolves want to be considered among the state’s best, along with perennial powerhouse programs like Fort Myers, Miami and Miami Country Day. All three are on Oxbridge’s schedule this year.
“That’s been kind of our goal,” Wolfe said. “When people talk about Oxbridge and they think about Oxbridge, we’re always kind of like that second tier below those teams. We want to be mentioned in those same names, and we want to just really make a name for ourselves.”
There are two other reigning state champion from Broward and Palm Beach counties: American Heritage and Somerset Prep. The Patriots lost Class 6A-1A player of the year Femi Funeus and firstteam All-County pick Ty Willis. Heritage will have to replace their combined 37 points and 30 rebounds per game. Somerset Prep returns key freshman Michiyah Simmons but has to replace firstteam All-County pick Tyesha Battle.
Deerfield Beach is poised to be the top Broward team in Class 9A, having made it to the state semifinals last year. They return DenAsia Mitchell, a second-team AllCounty pick last year and Next Five selection,
At St. Thomas Aquinas, the Raiders are looking to add a girls basketball title to the extensive list of championship banners hanging in the gym. With junior Bella LaChance and senior transfer Abbey Hsu – both Fab Five selections – St. Thomas should pose a threat in Class 8A. They’ll battle with Ja’Leah Williams and Blanche Ely for a district title.
Nova, fresh off a state runner-up finish last year, will have to replace the production they got from Erin Gutierrez, last year’s Class 9A-7A player of the year. With Next Five pick Gabrielle Gonzalez leading the way, Nova has a good shot at another strong finish.
Fab Five pick Raven White and Next Five selection Genovea Johnson lead the way for Dillard this season after a first-team All-County selection last year. The Panthers reached the state semis last year before falling to eventual state champion Fort Myers.
Among smaller schools in Broward, look for Cardinal Gibbons to make another run at a Lakeland berth.
In Palm Beach, Class 9A is crowded with good teams, including Boca Raton, Palm Beach Gardens, and Santaluces.
The Bobcats won a state title two years ago but are short on the tall forwards now that first-team AllCounty pick – and occasional linebacker – Hannah Pratt has graduated. Still, there’s a talented five in Boca, with Fab Five pick Audrey Ramsey and Next Five pick Kelsi Mingo poised for strong seasons.
Santaluces made it further than any Chiefs girls basketball team ever has, but they lost Class 9A-7A player of the year Whitney Howell and her sister, Brittney. Still, Santaluces retained enough talent to challenge Boca in District 10-9A.
Palm Beach County’s other 9A district, District 9-9A, features Palm Beach Central, Palm Beach Gardens, Seminole Ridge, Wellington and Jupiter, forming maybe the toughest district in the county. Palm Beach Gardens and Wellington duked it out for the district’s two playoff spots, while Jupiter won 21 games, Seminole Ridge won 15 and Palm Beach Central won 10. It’s a tough district with a lot of talent.
Palm Beach Lakes highlights Class 8A in Palm Beach County. The Rams won 23 games and a district title before St. Thomas upset them in the first round. Lakes returns Fab Five pick Ra’shara Simmons, Next Five pick Keishmy Ayuso and talented players like Brittany Wilcox, who should lead them to another district title and playoff run.
Palm Beach County’s 5A teams outside of Oxbridge had a rough go of it once they got to the postseason last year, with Cardinal Newman taking down St. Andrew’s before losing to the ThunderWolves. Oxbridge is still the team to beat in the class and the county.
Among smaller schools, Benjamin lost two of its top players, Da’Mya Preston and Anise Williams. There is still talent on the Buccaneers’ roster, but getting to Lakeland means getting past Miami Country Day.
Grandview Prep seeks its seventh straight trip to Lakeland after losing in the state semifinals last season.