Columbus rolls over Miami High in a Region 4-8A semifinal in football playoffs
Three third-quarter touchdowns helped propel Columbus (8-4) past Miami High (8-4) 35-2 in a Region 4-8A semifinal Thursday night at Tropical Park. Columbus will advance to face Western in the final next Thursday.
“It was a good game,” Columbus coach Dave Dunn said. “We are a young team, but we played hard no matter what the score was.”
Henry Parrish Jr. scored on Columbus’ first offensive play on a 54-yard run. With four minutes left in the quarter, Branden Coleman scored on a 58-yard interception return.
Late in the first quarter Miami High recorded a safety on a high snap to the Columbus punter that went out of the end zone.
In the first quarter, Miami High quarterback Makai Lovett was ejected from the game for throwing a punch. The second quarter was scoreless.
Parrish added a second touchdown on a 1-yard run in the third quarter. Jahvar McSween and Xzavier Henderson each caught a touchdown pass from Brandon McDuffey to help extend the lead in the third quarter. The fourth quarter was scoreless.
Columbus and Miami High also met this season on Sept. 26. The Explorers won the matchup 45-18 but were only up 24-18 entering the fourth quarter.
The Explorers in the playoffs with hopes of making it back to the state championship game. In 2018, Columbus lost a close game to Jacksonville Mandarin 37-35.
“I felt like my overall game was good and we played as a team,” Parrish said. “We just had to take advantage of the chances we got and we did.”
Parrish, Miami-Dade County’s leading rusher with 2,110 yards, led the Explorers with 160 rushing yards on 12 carries and two touchdowns. McDuffey passed for 97 yards and two touchdowns. Ghana Oboh led the Stingarees with 90 rushing yards.
GIRLS’ BASKETBALL
▪ Miami Christian 66, Chaminade-Madonna 20: MC – Bendeck 14, Vales 12, Morera 11, Gonzalez 10, Solis 10, Ramirez 6. 3-pointers: Bendeck 2, Vales 2, Gonzalez 1, Solis 1. CM – Mercado 6, Plunkett 4, Bradley 4.
▪ Miami High Preseason Classic: Lourdes 58, SLAM 42: LOU – Porras 32. SLAM – Harrington 13; Miami High 84, Doral 43: MHS – Bucknor 24; DOR – Torres 13. Rebounds: Bucknor 10.
▪ Palmer Trinity 50, St. Brendan 42: PT – Martinez 15, Leon 14, Montes 11, Lindsay 8, Kaplan 2. Half: PT 29-26. 3-pointers: Martinez 3, Leon 2. Rebounds: Brand 10; Steals: Montes 7; Assists: Montes 5. PT: 2-0.
▪ Gulliver Prep. 67, Ferguson 22: Haymore 21, Kaitlyn Sanders 11, Doctor 11, Aguilera 7, Kaplan 6, Delgado 4, Santoro 3, Krysten Sanders 2, Barras 2. Half: GP 47-12
BOYS’ SOCCER
▪ Braddock 1, Coral Park 1: Jonathan Ortiz goal; Vicente Lopez assist.
▪ TERRA 2, Ferguson 1: Sebastian Inigo and Luis Fernandez one goal each. TER: 2-0.
▪ Palmer Trinity 2, Jackson 0: Luis Sosa and Dylan Lopez one goal each.
▪ University School 3, Naples Barron Collier 1: Joel Castellanos, Ethan Subachan and Moises Shaferman one goal each. Sebastian “Nino” Smith 2 assists. US: 2-0.
GIRLS’ SOCCER
▪ St. Brendan 7, Riviera Prep. 0: Emiliana Rincon 5 goals, Paulina Llorens and Emily Regalado one goal each. STB: 1-0.
▪ Lourdes 3 Gulliver 2: Scoring for Lourdes -Mia Atrio, Emma Diaz and Sophia McMillan 1 goal each . Lourdes is 1-0.
This story was originally published November 14, 2019 at 10:34 PM.