Throughout the season, Goleman baseball players heard the doubts about whether they were as good as their regular-season record indicated.
Few high school coaches ever get a chance to win a state championship or coach an NFL player. Nigel Dunn has done both. But what he has done more than any other coach of late -- possibly in the entire country -- is the latter.
Throughout the season, Goleman baseball players heard the doubts as to whether they were as good as their regular season record indicated.
Southwest coach Mauricio Diaz got one more taste of victory Tuesday night as the South defeated the North 25-22, 25-12, 25-20 in the Senior All-Star Game at Florida Christian.
HIGH SCHOOLS ROUNDUP
Northwestern's Jacory Harris, Booker T. Washington's Brandon Harris, Monsignor Pace's Greg Shaw and Dade Christian's Shawn Abuhoff were honored Monday by the South Florida Touchdown Club at a ceremony at the Miami Springs Country Club.
SOFTBALL CLASS 6A FINAL | PALMETTO 2, PALM BEACH GARDENS 1 (12)
Palmetto pitcher Kelly Saco sent a sharp grounder toward Palm Beach Gardens shortstop Bootsie Roesch. The senior dropped to field the oncoming ball, but it squirted under her glove. Roesch turned and watched as the ball rolled into the outfield while Courtney Ray rounded third.
BOYS' VOLLEYBALL
Six years of Southwest boys' volleyball tradition reunited Saturday afternoon at the Douglas High School gym, fittingly nicknamed the 'Eagles' Nest.''
BASEBALL ROUNDUP
Goleman found itself in an unfamiliar position Saturday afternoon, celebrating a state semifinal berth. The Gators clinched their first trip to the 6A baseball state semifinals by sweeping the Southridge Spartans in back-to-back games in the Region 4-6A championship series at the Monsignor Pace baseball complex.
SOFTBALL
Lauren Guzman jumped up and down at second base, her arms flailing about in celebration. Seconds earlier, Guzman had laced a double to right-center to score two runs, including the game-winner, to give Miami Palmetto a 5-4 victory over Jacksonville Mandarin in Friday's Class 6A FHSAA state semifinals at Plant City Stadium.
HIGH SCHOOL BASEBALL
s to state Brito senior David Vidal, a career second baseman, told his coach Pedro Guerra twice this season to trust him to deliver a victory from the pitching mound.
BOYS' VOLLEYBALL
Since boys' volleyball began in Florida in 2003, Southwest always has been a team that was feared and revered. After an undefeated regular season, the Eagles swept all three of their opponents in the inaugural state championship. Since then, the Eagles have been unable to reach the finals.
BASEBALL
Miami Christian's baseball players often have been called a track-and-field team this year by their fellow students. With a roster of just 12 players, the Victors ran for nearly two hours a day last summer to get in condition for the season.
ROUNDUP
Michael Stevens, an outside hitter for Columbus, was a sophomore when the Explorers made the trip to the state tournament in 2006. Facing Spanish River in the opener, the Explorers lost in straight sets, and Spanish River went on to win the title.
Monsignor Pace has traditionally been a hot spot in South Florida for college recruiters in search of speed in the secondary. The University of Miami got plenty of production from Maurice Sikes earlier this decade. But in the past five years alone, Pace has upped its output, churning out six speedsters from its defensive backfield that have found their way onto College Football Bowl Subdivision (formerly Division I-A) rosters.
SOFTBALL
For the fourth consecutive year, Palmetto's softball team will pack its collective bags and head north to represent Miami-Dade in the state semifinals against Jacksonville Mandarin.
ROUNDUP
The Brito baseball team will take on Lake Worth Trinity Christian on Friday afternoon in the first game of a best-of-three series to determine who will advance to the state tournament.
BASEBALL | REGIONALS
Several Miami-Dade County baseball teams have made it to the state final four on the strength of one solid pitcher. But with the Florida High School Athletic Association instituting a best-of-3 format for this weekend's regional final round, Dade's remaining teams know it will take much more depth to advance to next week's championships in Sarasota.
ROUNDUP
The Columbus boys' volleyball team struggled to jell early Tuesday night, but when it was win or go home, the Explorers came together and defeated host Hialeah in four games.
HIGH SCHOOL FOOTBALL
One of the duties I enjoyed most when I was the high school writer in Miami-Dade from 2000-2006 was making my way around the county to visit coaches and players during spring practice. It gave me an opportunity to meet the future college and pro stars of tomorrow and get an idea of whom to key-in on throughout the recruiting process later in the fall.
VOLLEYBALL
The names may change from season to season, but Southwest remains a regular at the state boys' volleyball tournament.
