Water polo success for ATM, Belen, Gulliver, MAST. Plus more results and state honors

The MAST Academy girls’ water polo team won the GMAC Tournament at the Miami Dade College Kendall Campus.

The Makos beat Miami Beach 18-8. MAST was led by senior Sara Zampa (2 goals, 2 assists, 5 steals) and freshman Matilda Urcuyo (3 goals, 3 assists, 4 steals).

In the boys’ finals, ATM edged Columbus 13-11. ATM was led by senior Alex Coposov (4 goals, 1 steal) and sophome Omar Madkour (4 goals, 2 steals).

The Top 4 girls’ teams, seeded by Max Preps, made the tournament as did the Top 4 boys’ teams.

In the girls’ semifinals, MAST beat Dr. Krop, and Miami Beach beat Cutler Bay.

In the boys’ semifinals, ATM beat Miami Beach, and Columbus beat MAST.

Of the four GMAC boys’ qualifying teams, ATM was seeded fourth.

Belen water polo

At the Ransom Everglades Invitational, the Belen Jesuit boys’ water polo team went 4-0.

On day one, Belen defeated Westminister Academy 16-8 and Winter Park 11-8. Jack Costello (5 goals) and Lucas Levy (4 goals) led the team against Westminister. Andre de Leon had 6 goals against Winter Park, and Bryan Weglarz made 17 saves.

On day two, Belen edged Ransom Everglades 19-16 in an overtime shootout. JP Sanguino, Nick Costello and goalie Bryan Weglarz sealed the win in the shootout. Sanguino and Costella scored in the shootout, and Weglarz made some big saves in the shootout. Jack Costello had 4 goals, and Juan Franco and Andre de Leon each scored 3.

Also on day two, Belen beat St. Thomas Aquinas, another top ranked team in the state, 14-10. Juan Franco scored 5 times, and Andre de Leon added 3.

Gulliver water polo

The Gulliver girls’ and boys’ water polo teams swept the district tournament.

GIRLS: Gulliver Prep 17, Cutler Bay 3: Sr. Captain Gaby Montalvo 6 goals, 6 steals, 2 assists; Soph. Kathleen Serig 3 goals, 5 steals, 3 assists; Soph. Julia Fogel 3 goals, 3 steals, 1 assist. GP (19-1).

BOYS: Gulliver Prep 22, Cutler Bay 3: Sr. Captain Daniel Preston 5 goals, 2 steals, 3 assists; Sr. Captain Harry Sharma 4 goals, 4 steals, 3 assists; Jr. Victor Gordon 1 goal, 5 assists, 5 steals. GP (20-3-1).

Basketball state honors

Cameron Boozer of Columbus and Koree Cotton of Southridge won Florida Dairy Farmers Boys’ Basketball State Player of the Year honors in their respective classifications and are now eligible to become Florida’s Mr. Basketball.

High school coaches and media reps voted for Player of the Year recognition and will do the same for the Mr. Basketball award.

Cameron Boozer, Sophomore, Forward, Columbus, Class 7A Player of the Year: Led his team to a 26-4 record and the Class 7A state championship game by averaging 21.1 points, 10.4 rebounds, 3.9 assists, 1.9 blocks and 1.3 steals per game.

Koree Cotton, Senior, Guard, Southridge, Class 6A Player of the Year: Led his team to a 21-7 record and a spot in the regional semifinals by averaging 21.8 points, 7.5 rebounds, 2.8 assists, 2.0 steals and 1.4 blocks per game. Signed with Virginia Military Institute.

The seven finalists for Florida Dairy Farmers Boys’ Basketball State Coach of the Year include four locals. Impressive.

Gaston Rodriguez, Belen Jesuit, Class 5A Coach of the Year: Led his squad to a 28-4 record and the Class 5A state championship, the school’s first state title. In seven years, Rodriguez has posted a 128-64 record and is the first coach (since at least 1950) to win titles at three different schools (Champagnat Catholic-2000 and Coral Reef-2009).

Dylan Estock, Mater Lakes Academy, Class 4A Coach of the Year: Led his squad to a 28-3 record and the Class 4A state title, the school’s first state title in any sport. In three years, he has posted a 62-21 record.

Anthony Shahbaz, Riviera Prep, Class 3A Coach of the Year: Led his squad to a 27-6 record and the Class 3A state championship, the first state title in school history. Riviera was the state runner-up in 2022 before winning the championship this season. In five years Shahbaz has posted a 116-46 record.

David Roe, Sagemont, Class 2A Coach of the Year: Led his squad to a 29-4 record and the Class 2A state title while ending Orlando Christian Prep’s three-year state championship streak. In six years, Roe has a 110-50 record at Sagemont, including a state runner-up finish in 2022.

In girls’ hoops, Taliah Scott of St. Johns Country Day School is the 2023 Florida Dairy Farmers Miss Basketball following a final round of voting by high school coaches and media reps.

The senior guard, who has signed to play college basketball at the University of Arkansas, averaged 36.2 points, 9.2 rebounds, 4.7 assists, and 2.9 steals per game. She was named to the McDonald’s All-American team. She was earlier named the Class 2A Player of the Year for the second consecutive season to be eligible for Miss Basketball honors.

Anthony Jones of Dr. Phillips High School is the 2023 Florida Dairy Farmers Girls’ Basketball Coach of the Year. Jones led his squad to a 30-1 record and its second consecutive Class 7A state title.

Class 3A Coach of the Year Ochiel Swaby of Miami Country Day and Class 6A Coach of the Year Oliver Berens of St. Thomas Aquinas finished sixth and seventh, respectively, in the final voting.

Boys’ volleyball

Belen Jesuit boys’ volleyball hosted a tri-match. The Wolverines defeated Archbishop McCarthy 25-13, 25-13 to improve to 13-0, before sustaining their first defeat of the season to Bishop Moore-Orlando 25-22, 22-25, 15-6.

In those two matches for Belen, Marcelo Morales totaled 15 kills and 4 blocks. Morrison Hadad added 14 kills and 3 digs, and Federico Marino had 8 kills and 4 blocks.

It did not take long for the Wolverines to win again.

Belen d. South Broward 25-23, 25-23, 26-24: Joseph Gonzalez 13 kills, 6 digs, 3 aces; Robert Henao 40 assists, 3 aces; Morrison Hadad 9 kills, 2 blocks. Bel (14-1).

Mater Lakes Academy d. Pine Crest 25-16, 25-11, 25-13: Kevin Llerena 10 kills, 7 digs; Jesus Montes 8 kills, 4 aces; Nicholas Aranda 27 assists, 2 aces; Ibrahim Perez 8 kills. MLA (10-0).

Tennis

Stoneman Douglas tennis beat the girls’ and boys’ teams from Flanagan, but the Falcons did celebrate a big victory at No.1 boys’ singles with Santiago Pineda winning in a tiekbreaker.

GIRLS: Douglas 5, Flanagan 2: No.1 Tania Dumke (D) d. Maribel Caraballo 8-1; No.2 Savita Bagirathan (D) d. Luciana Marcano 8-0; No.3 Eesha Kondlapudi (D) d. Nathalia Marcano 8-0; No.4 Danielle Tamim (D) d. Kylie Solorzano 8-1; No.5 Caroline Oliveira (D) d. Abrie Thompson 8-1. Doubles: No.1 L.Marcano/N.Marcano (Fl) won by default; No.2 Solorzano/Thompson (Fl) won by default. Fl (4-3).

BOYS: Douglas 5, Flanagan 2: No.1 Santiago Pineda (Fl) d. Danny Platovsky 8-8 (7-4); No.2 Connor Fox (D) d. Melvin Ayebah 8-1; No.3 Matthew Baron (D) d. Andres Leon 8-0; No.4 C.Alhadeff (D) d. Manuel Ayebah 8-5; No.5 Sidd Harta Ojha (D) d. Sebastian Cordero 8-2. Doubles: No.1 Aidan Tau/Hermann Stelling (D) d. Mel.Ayebah/Leon 8-5; No.2 Pineda/Ma.Ayebah (Fl) won by default. Fl (2-5).

Softball

St. Brendan softball went 3-1 at a very good tournament in Ocala.

Miami Beach 19, Coral Park 2

Palmer Trinity 8, Carrollton 4: WP Emme Fundora (5-1); Dani Mendoza 3-4, 3 RBI; Emmy Cerda 2-3, 3 RBI; Emme Fundora 1-3, RBI. PT (7-4).

Doc4life Tournament in Ocala: St. Brendan 4, University Christian-Jacksonville 3: Brianna Masses-Valera 2-3, RBI; Maisyn Llerandi 1-3; Leah Lorenzo 1-3, 2 R; WP Emily Barrera 6 IP, 1 ER, 4 K. StB (9-4-1).

Doc4life Tournament in Ocala: Charlotte-Punta Gorda 8, St. Brendan 7: StB: Brianna Masses-Valera 3-4, RBI; Maisyn Llerandi 3-4, 2 R; Rachel Rodriguez 1-2, HR, 2 RBI; Marley Nielson 1-3, R. StB (9-5-1).

Doc4life Tournament in Ocala: St. Brendan 5, Bishop Kenny-Jacksonville 4: Emily Barrera 2-4; Emilia Cruz 2-3, 2 RBI; Kristin Stoia 2-3, Marley Nielson 1-3, R; WP Kristin Stoia 2 IP. StB (10-5-1).

Doc4life Tournament in Ocala: St. Brendan 6, Yulee 4: Rachel Rodriguez 3-3, HR, 3 RBI; Emily Barrera 2-3, 2 RBI; Marley Nielson 1-2, BB, RBI; Leah Lorenzo 1-3; WP Emily Barrera 3.2 IP, 4 K. StB (11-5-1).

Baseball

Palmetto 5, South Dade 3 (8 inn.): WP Max Sotolongo; Christian Dixon 1-2, 2 R, RBI; Jack Gordon 1-3, R, 2 RBI. Plm (6-5).

Badminton

Strong wins for Palmetto badminton versus Braddock in No.1 Boys’ Singles (Michael Morgado), No.1 Girls’ Singles (Katarina Slazas) and No.1 Girls’ Doubles (Penelope Murray/Isabella Reale).

Palmetto 10, Braddock 0: No. 1 Boys’ Singles: Michael Morgado (Plm) won 21-6, 21-11; No.1 Girls’ Singles: Katarina Slazas (Plm) won 21-6, 21-4 ; No.1 Boys’ Doubles: Brian Shirley/Kristopher Menendez (Plm) won 22-20, 21-12; No.1 Girls’ Doubles: Penelope Murray/Isabella Reale) (Plm) won 21-8, 21-6; No.1 Mixed Doubles: Raafay Khan/Nicole Paz (Plm) won 21-14, 21-7 ; No.2 Boys’ Singles: Jack Diemar (Plm) won 21-10, 21-6; No.2 Girls’ Singles: Siriwarin Preedee (Plm) won 21-12, 21-4 ; No.2 Boys’ Doubles: Tong Jing/Ryan Lin (Plm) won 21-11, 21-11; No.2 Girls’ Doubles: Sara Paredes/Sydney Lambert (Plm) won 12-21, 21-17, 21-15.

Strongs wins for Palmetto badminton versus TERRA in No.1 Girls’ Singles (Salazas) and No.1 Mixed Doubles (Raafay Khan/Nicole Paz).

Palmetto 6, TERRA 4: No.1 Girls’ Singles: Katarina Slazas (Plm) won 21-4, 21-2; No.1 Girls’ Doubles: Sara Paredes/Lexi Morgado (Plm) won 19-21, 21-13, 21-19 ; No.1 Mixed Doubles: Raafay Khan/Nicole Paz (Plm) won 21-8, 21-4; No.2 Mixed Doubles: Brandon Jagers/Khanh Duong (Plm) won 21-13, 21-6; No.2 Boys’ Doubles: Tong Jing/Ryan Lin (Plm) won 21-16, 21-11, 21-16.

Submit sports results

For high schools in Broward and Miami-Dade, if you have varsity results along with top performers and their stats for this column, email hssports@miamiherald.com.

Badminton, baseball, flag football, lacrosse, sailing, softball, tennis, track & field, volleyball, water polo and more spring sports.

They will run in the newspaper and online. Photos accepted, too. No deadline. Send after the game, the next day or weekly. You will be alerted when it will appear in the newspaper and online.

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Roundup compiled by Jim Varsallone

jvarsallone@miamiherald.com