Somerset Silver Palms’ Rebhan and Doral’s Viruet are Dade Softball Coaches of the Year
Establishing winning programs takes time and maintaining them isn’t easy.
But both Willie Viruet and Gator Rebhan have done this well at their respective programs.
For over five years, Viruet has seen Doral Academy’s softball team rise to become a state champion and one of the top squads in the country.
Meanwhile, Rebhan’s program at Somerset Silver Palms took another step in that direction this season.
Viruet and Rebhan each led their teams to return trips to the state final four in their respective classes and are the Miami Herald’s Softball Coaches of the Year for Miami-Dade County.
Viruet wins the Class 7A-6A Coach of the Year honor after guiding Doral Academy to its fifth consecutive state final four.
The Firebirds went 26-2 and ascended to a No. 10 national ranking by MaxPreps. But they were the No. 4 seed in a stacked Class 6A final four bracket that included three other nationally-ranked teams including Bartow, which handed Doral its only two losses this season including a 7-6 defeat in the state semifinals.
Still, Doral’s fifth trip in a row to the state final four matches Gulliver Prep (2010-2014) for the second-most consecutive advancements to the state semifinals by a Dade team. Westminster Christian holds the county record, advancing seven seasons in a row from 2014-2021.
Rebhan had experience building a softball powerhouse from his years coaching at Miami Palmetto where he helped the Panthers win a pair of state titles in 2000 and 2003.
He’s done it again at Somerset Silver Palms, turning a fledgling program into one of the state’s best.
A true test of the Stallions’ status came this season as they were considered underdogs going up against Coral Springs Charter despite being the team that advanced to the Class 3A state semifinals the prior season. Somerset upended the favored Panthers to make a second consecutive trip to state.
And the Stallions, which lost to Montverde Academy in the state semifinals, will return the majority of a young and talented roster poised to make another run at its first state crown next season.
This story was originally published June 12, 2024 at 7:00 AM.
