Aquinas’ Emma Bear and Alexa Raymond are the Broward Beach Volleyball Players of the Year
St. Thomas Aquinas has long been a powerhouse in girls’ indoor volleyball.
Just this past year, the Raiders secured their eight state championship in the sport.
Aquinas has yet to hoist such a trophy in beach volleyball, though.
But sophomores Emma Bear and Alexa Raymond have the potential to be part of the first teams to change that.
Bear and Raymond formed a dynamic tandem on the sand this past spring, leading Aquinas to its fourth consecutive trip to the state tournament and second consecutive appearance at the state semifinals in Tallahassee.
For their efforts, Bear and Raymond are the Miami Herald’s Broward County Beach Volleyball Players of the Year.
The duo was at the top of Aquinas’ lineup and led the Raiders through the Class 3A state playoffs, going 19-5 against a challenging schedule and securing another district championship along the way.
Since the sport became sanctioned by the FHSAA in 2022, Aquinas has made it to the state round when it took 16 teams or when it consisted of just the final four in an expanded three-classification system as it did for the first time this season.
Bear and Raymond follow in the footsteps of other Aquinas’ Player of the Year recipients such as LSU signee Zoe Taylor and others who have kept the program among the best in the state in recent years.
Aquinas won its first 12 matches this season before hitting a rough patch in April where it lost four of five, including three in a row against three of the best teams in the state in Miami Westminster Christian, West Palm Beach Kings Academy and Vero Beach.
Raymond and Bear were instrumental in turning things around for the Raiders, who then won six in a row once the postseason began, culminating with a tough 3-2 regional championship victory over previously unbeaten Weston Cypress Bay.
St. Thomas Aquinas then lost to eventual Class 3A state champion Jupiter, 3-0, in the state semifinals.
But the foundation is there for the Raiders to possibly take the next step in 2026 with Raymond and Bear possibly at the forefront.
