Gulliver, Doral win Dade All-Sports awards. Columbus, Norland also recognized
Doral Academy and Gulliver Prep once again showcased the depth of their athletic departments this season.
The two schools combined for four state titles and had another seven make it to the state semifinals or further.
As a result, Doral and Gulliver are the Miami Herald’s All-Sports Awards winners for Miami-Dade County for the 2023-2024 athletic season. Doral Academy won in the big schools category, which consists of teams that primarily compete in Classes 7A and 6A. Gulliver is the winner for the small schools category, which includes teams that primarily play in Classes 5A and below.
Both schools also claim the Girls’ Major Sports Award for their classification. This honor looks at how schools fared across five sports (indoor volleyball, basketball, soccer, track and field, and softball).
The Boys’ Major Sports Award, which recognizes success across six sports (football, basketball, soccer, baseball, track and field, and wrestling), goes to Columbus for the big schools and Norland for the small schools.
Doral Academy’s depth
The Doral Firebirds only won one state title this year — boys’ tennis — but they had numerous teams make deep playoff runs to hoist them to the winner of the Dade All-Sports Award.
Among their successes:
▪ Girls golf and cheerleading state runner-up
▪ State semifinal appearances for boys’ soccer, girls’ basketball, softball and girls’ volleyball — the latter three of which pushed them over the top for the Girls’ Major Sports Award
▪ A regional final appearance for the girls’ tennis team
▪ And regional semifinal appearances for girls’ soccer and boys’ lacrosse.
Gulliver again wins multiple state titles
The Gulliver Prep Raiders won three state titles this year: Boys’ soccer, girls’ volleyball and boys’ water polo.
In addition, the girls’ swimming team was state runner-up in Class 2A, the girls’ water polo team advanced to the state semifinals and the boys’ basketball team advanced to the regional semifinals.
Columbus runs away with Big School Boys’ Major Award
The Columbus Explorers dominated in the sports contested for the Boys’ Major Award, carried by state titles in football and basketball in addition to being a co-state champion in track and field.
The football championship was their third in five years under coach Dave Dunn. The basketball team, fueled by twins Cameron and Cayden Boozer, won their third consecutive state title. And the track championship is their third.
In addition, Columbus’ baseball team reached the regional semifinals, the soccer team had a regional playoff berth and the wrestling team was a district championship
Norland wins Small School Boys’ Major Award
Miami Norland staked claim to the Class 5A-1A Boys’ Major Award in large part due to its success on the gridiron and the basketball court.
The Vikings won the Class 5A boys’ basketball title — their seventh under coach Lawton Williams III — and made an unexpected run to the Class 2M football state championship, where they ultimately fell to Jacksonville Bolles to come one game short of a perfect season.
Norland also finished 12th at the Class 3A track and field state meet.
Others to note (in alphabetical order)
▪ Belen Jesuit: The Wolverines’ cross-country dynasty continued with its seventh consecutive state championship and 15th overall. The track and field team finished third at state and the boys’ volleyball team was also a regional finalist.
▪ Braddock: The Bulldogs’ boys’ swimming team was state runner-up for a second consecutive season.
▪ Homestead: The Broncos were state runners-up in football for a second consecutive season. Their flag football team also advanced to the regional final.
▪ MAST Academy: The Makos were state runners-up in both boys’ and girls’ tennis, while their boys’ water polo team reached the regional final.
▪ Miami Christian: The Victors were state runners-up in baseball, state semifinalists in girls’ basketball and regional finalists in softball.
▪ Miami Country Day: The Spartans girls’ basketball team won its ninth state title in 11 years, the girls’ water polo team reached the state semifinals and the boys’ water polo team advanced to the regional final.
▪ Northwestern: Both of Northwestern’ s track and field teams finished as state runner-up.
▪ Palmetto: The Panthers became the first Miami-Dade County team to win a flag football state championship. The girls’ tennis team was also a state semifinalist.
▪ Riviera Prep: The Bulldogs won a state title in boys’ basketball.
▪ South Dade: The Bucs’ wrestling dynasty continued by winning both the duals and IBT state titles. The football team also reached the regional semifinals.
▪ Southwest: The Eagles’ boys’ volleyball team finished as state runner-up while the wrestling team placed third at state.
▪ True North: The Titans’ girls’ tennis team won a state title and boys’ tennis team was state runner-up. Meanwhile, the True North girls’ soccer team reached the state semifinals, beach volleyball team made it to the state play-in rounds and both the football and boys’ basketball teams made it to the regional final.
▪ Westminster Christian: Both the baseball and girls’ volleyball teams finished as state runner-up.
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