St. Thomas Aquinas’ Lyle, Dillard’s Coleman are Broward 7A-5A Athletes of the Year
St. Thomas Aquinas’ Jordan Lyle and Dillard’s Christiana Coleman didn’t just win state championships this past season.
They each helped the programs they compete for achieve notable milestones.
Lyle, one of the most dominant running backs in the country, helped the Raiders secure a fifth consecutive state championship which set a record for the longest title streak in state history.
And Coleman won individual state titles in both cross-country and track and field while leading each of those squads to team state championships.
Lyle and Coleman are the Miami Herald’s Broward County Overall Athletes of the Year for Classes 7A-5A.
Coleman, a University of Florida signee, is the girls’ winner after helping Dillard’s girls’ cross-country team win its first ever state championship last fall. Almost six months later, Coleman was at the forefront of the Panthers’ girls’ track team’s efforts to win their first state championship since 1978.
After winning her first individual state cross-country state title in the fall, Coleman won two individual state track titles and was part of a state-record relay team that helped Dillard snap the state’s longest state championship streak held by Miami Northwestern (14 in a row).
Coleman won the 1,600-meter run with a time of 4:53.58, which was nearly a second faster than the state runner-up, while her time of 10:50.88 in the 3,200 cleared the rest of the Class 3A field by nearly five seconds.
She also led off Dillard’s 3,200 relay that set the state record with a time of 8:49.73 — a half-second shy of the national record.
Lyle, a University of Miami signee who was also a track and field sprinter earlier in his high school career, amassed over 1,500 yards from scrimmage to help Aquinas bounce back from a season-opening loss to nationally-ranked St. John Bosco to win 14 consecutive games.
Lyle, a finalist for CBS’ Nat Moore Trophy, ran for 1,376 yards and 21 touchdowns on 130 carries, and added 13 catches for 177 yards and another touchdown. He was ranked the top running back in South Florida by 247Sports.com.
OTHER BOYS’ FINALISTS
▪ Shamar Henry, Flanagan (cross-country, track): Henry, a senior, ran the fastest time (15:35.4) in Broward County to finish fourth in Class 4A. He was also the county’s top runner in track in the 1,600 and 3,200 meters.
▪ Brandon Rabasco, South Broward (football, soccer): Rabasco, a senior who is headed to the University of Florida, was a key defender and first team All-Broward selection on the Bulldogs’ state championship soccer team. He was also a first team All-Broward selection in football as South Broward’s kicker.
▪ Joshua Gammage, Dillard (cross-country, track): Gammage, a junior, was a first team All-Broward cross-country selection and one of the top distance runners overall in Broward in track and field as well.
▪ Demetri Stephenson, Miramar (football, track and field): Stephenson, a senior, was the top 110-meter hurdler in Broward earning first team honors in track. He was also a key contributor on a Patriots football team that advanced to the Class 3M regional finals.
OTHER GIRLS’ FINALISTS
▪ Kamryn Corporan, St. Thomas Aquinas (flag football, basketball): Corporan, a senior, averaged 10.6 points, four steals and 3.9 assists per game to lead the Raiders to their fourth consecutive state basketball title. She then earned first team All-Broward honors in flag football after catching 65 passes for 743 yards and 12 touchdowns.
▪ Gabriela Caro, Stoneman Douglas (wrestling): Caro won back-to-back state titles after becoming the first girls’ wrestler in Broward history to win a state championship. She finished her season on a 39-match winning streak.
▪ Lauren Holschauer, Western (soccer, volleyball, flag football): Holschauer, a senior, was one of the top defenders in soccer in Broward County, earning All-Broward first team honors. She also was a key contributor for the Wildcats’ flag football team.
▪ Tamara Elliott, Western (basketball, flag football): A senior, Elliott totaled over 2,400 yards and 39 total touchdowns on the powerhouse Wildcats’ flag football team and also earned third team All-Broward honors in basketball.
