Maybe the rare Wednesday night game or the earlier-than-usual 6:30 start threw off Columbus’ timing in the first quarter. Or, more likely, the wind, which was blowing at about 18 mph, was a strong factor.

Either way, after failing to get a first down in the opening quarter, the Explorers scored three touchdowns before halftime and cruised to a 35-0 win over South Miami at Tropical Stadium.

Columbus (6-3, 4-0) claimed its sixth consecutive district title and its 10th in the past 12 years. The District 14-8A champs also earned their second consecutive shutout and third of the season.

However, South Miami (4-4, 1-2) had the better of the play early, when it had the wind at its back. But once the teams switched sides for the second quarter, Columbus scored on a pair of 10-yard touchdown passes from Tucker Beirne to Sasha Kelsey and a 5-yard run by Oshton Armstrong.

The last touchdown of the first half — a Beirne-to-Kelsey connection — was set up by Adrian Campbell’s blocked punt. That gave Columbus possession at the South Miami 10 with 39.6 seconds left.

Lorenzo Woodley added a pair of touchdown runs in the fourth quarter to account for the final score. Teammate Daryl Chestnut rushed nine times for a game-high 105 yards.

COLUMBUS 35,

SOUTH MIAMI 0

SCORING SUMMARY

COL – Kelsey 10 pass from Beirne (Freixa kick)

COL – Armstrong 5 run (Freixa kick)

COL – Kelsey 10 pass from Beirne (Freixa kick)

COL – Woodley 3 run (Freixa kick)

COL – Woodley 2 run (Freixa kick)

Individual Statistics

Rushing (att-yds) – SM: Brown 2-1, Roberts 2-5, Simmons 10-30, Lorenzo 19-39. COL: Beirne 1-(-3), Wilson 1-3, Herraiz 1-21, Armstrong 5-22, Woodley III 16-80, Chestnut 9-105.

Passing (comp-att-int, yds)– SM: Lorenzo 4-9-0, 33. COL: Beirne 12-15-0, 115.

Receiving (rec-yds-TD) – SM: Roberts 1-1, Simmons 2-12, Brown 1-20. COL: Guerra 1-8, Trujillo 1-8, Henric 1-9, Herraiz 1-30, Kelsey 2-30, Wilson 6-40.

VOLLEYBALL

•  District 16-8A final — Coral Reef d. Palmetto 25-20, 25-21, 25-14: Daniella Leal 16 assists, 9 kills, 13 digs. Kristine Rios 10 assists, 5 kills, 2 aces, 13 digs. Baylee Waterman 16 kills, 5 digs. CR 22-5.

• District 16-7A final — St. Thomas d. South Broward 25-9, 25-9, 25-13: Mackenzie Zielinski 21 assists, 8 digs, 5 aces. Paris Aubin 12 assists, 3 digs. STA 19-3, SB 11-9.

• District 16-6A — Mater Acedemy d. Hialeah-Miami Lakes 25-17, 27-25, 25-19: Krystal Canellas 7 kills, 3 digs. Kourtney Lesperance 6 kills, 3 aces. Amanda Canellas 6 kills, 11 digs.

•  District 16-5A semifinals — Mourning d. American Heritage 25-19, 25-10, 25-11: Mary Shelow 8 kills, 3 aces, assist, 9 digs. Sarah Donahue 9 kills. Alyssa Rey 8 kills, 5 assists, 22 digs. ATM 17-7.

• District 15-4A semifinal — Carrollton d. La Salle 20-25, 25-15, 25-23, 25-19: Christy Beauparty 18 kills, 3 blocks. Paola Perez 12 kills, 9 digs. Manuela Fernandez 41 digs, 31 assists.