Aquinas’ Zielinski, Pine Crest’s Rivera are Broward Girls’ Volleyball Coaches of the Year
Lisa Zielinski has been at the heart of St. Thomas Aquinas’ volleyball success for nearly four decades.
Among her many accomplishments, Zielinski has guided the Raiders to seven state championships.
But few have ended as gratifying as title No. 7.
Zielinski helped Aquinas end a five-year state championship drought this past season, completing a rise back to the top for its program that began with the 2020 COVID-shortened season.
Meanwhile at Pine Crest, coach Eric Rivera is planting the seeds for another potential return to glory for a program that once experienced similar success. This past season, Rivera guided the Panthers to their first regional final appearance since the last time they made it to the state tournament in 2017.
For those efforts, Zielinski and Rivera are the Miami Herald’s Broward County Girls’ Volleyball Coaches of the Year.
Zielinski, who earned the Classes 7A-5A honors, completed her 36th season at the helm of the Raiders’ program. She is one of the winningest coaches in the nation with 894 career wins to go along with seven state championships, 15 regional titles and 32 district championships.
“After COVID it was hard getting back into things, but I knew I had a team with energy, drive and talent,” Zielinski said after the Raiders beat Viera in the state final. “We had a lot of injuries and a lot to overcome.”
Zielinski’s 2023 squad went 27-3 and was one of the most dominant in the state. The Raiders earned a measure of payback against Viera with a hard-fought, four-set victory.
“They have this cohesiveness, and they play so well together,” Zielinski said. “They just have a real passion for the game they share.”
Rivera has a young core led by sophomore and 4A-2A Player of the Year Mia Gold, which could achieve great things in the coming years for a program that won three consecutive state titles from 2001-2003.
This season, Pine Crest showed signs of improvement by compiling a 19-10 record and prevailing in the decisive match of a competitive season series with rival Cardinal Gibbons when they beat the Chiefs in the Class 4A regional semifinals.
The Panthers were then eliminated by eventual state champion Miami Gulliver Prep. But Pine Crest’s players left the match feeling confident in what they had established for their future.
“That’s a great team over there (Gulliver) with a great coaching staff that was able to make the right adjustments,” Rivera said after Pine Crest’s regional final loss. “I just told my girls, we didn’t play bad, Gulliver just played a little bit better.”
