The girls’ soccer regional tournament is about to begin. These area teams are competing
From this point on, it’s win or go home.
Thirty Miami-Dade and Broward girls soccer teams have advanced to the regional round of the state series playoffs with the goal of making it to DeLand for the state championship.
The regional quarterfinal schedule is below. All matches are at 7 p.m. Tuesday unless otherwise noted. Regional semifinals will take place on Friday, with regional finals set for Feb. 12.
Region 4-5A
▪ Krop at Cypress Bay (5 p.m.): Cypress Bay is 15-0-1 this year and is coming off its fourth consecutive district championship after defeating Western 3-0. The Lightning has given up just three goals this year and the lone blemish on its record is a 0-0 draw against Cardinal Gibbons on Jan. 17.
Krop (9-1-1), meanwhile, dropped its first match of the year in its district championship game against Cooper City and has allowed just six goals in 11 matches.
▪ Western at Cooper City: Cooper City brings a near perfect 19-1 record into its regional quarterfinal. Junior Kimberly Slinkoski and senior Olivia Lewis lead the team with 24 and 21 goals, respectively, while Kylie Doherty (14) and Abbi Gilchrist (11) have also contributed double-digit goals.
Western (8-5-3) has had an up-and-down season, never stringing together more than three consecutive wins at any point this year.
▪ Coral Gables at Coral Reef (4 p.m.): Nine seniors from last year’s team are gone, but the Coral Reef Barracudas (18-1-2) are still legitimate contenders to make a playoff run. Junior Tianna Rivera has led the way all year offensively and that should continue into postseason play.
▪ Palmetto vs Lourdes at Columbus High School: Lourdes won its first state title last year and the Bobcats (16-1-1) are coming on strong once again this year. Mia Atrio and Mia Briones provide a formidable one-two punch on a team that has a host of scoring threats.
Region 4-4A
▪ TERRA at Archbishop McCarthy: Archbishop McCarthy is on the verge of something special this year. The Lady Mavericks are a perfect 21-0-0 heading into regionals with the hopes of winning their first state title. Archbishop McCarthy has outscored its opponents 87-8. Six players have at least eight goals this year, with freshman Sophia Goetz and sophomore Adriana Duque leading the way with 14 each. The Lady Mavericks rattled off eight consecutive shutouts before Aquinas scored a second-half goal in the district championship on Thursday.
▪ St. Thomas Aquinas at Doral Academy: Aquinas’ streak of 33 consecutive district titles might be over, but this team is still dangerous enough to make a playoff run. The Lady Raiders (13-6-3) were riding a season-long six match unbeaten streak before losing 2-1 in the district championship to Archbishop McCarthy. Shay Miedema and Isabella Piso are tied for the team lead with 10 goals each.
Doral Academy won its second consecutive district title but is still looking for its first win in the regional round of the state series.
Region 4-3A
▪ Miami Springs at Plantation American Heritage: The Patriots made quick work of their district tournament, defeating Coconut Creek 9-0 in the semifinals on Wednesday and then claiming the district crown with a 1-0 win over Pembroke Pines Charter on Friday. The Patriots have conceded just four goals all season.
Miami Springs has won five of its last eight matches but failed to secure a seventh consecutive district title after losing 1-0 to Mourning in the district title game.
▪ Pembroke Pines Charter vs. Mourning at Ives Estate Park: Mourning is already having a season to remember. The Sharks (12-2) claimed the first district title in program history last week with a 1-0 win over Miami Springs and now eyes a chance to win its first-ever regional quarterfinal.
But Pines Charter is no easy foe. The Jaguars (14-5-1) have won seven of their last nine matches, with the lone losses coming against Heritage and Cypress Bay. Alai Araujo, Gabby Lindo and Zoe Griffith are all scoring threats.
Region 4-2A
▪ North Broward Prep at Oxbridge Academy: North Broward Prep (12-5-2) started the season strong but has dropped three of its past five matches. They’ll face a Palm Beach Oxbridge team that was the state runner-up last year, has gone 4-1-1 over its last six with its lone blemishes being a 0-0 tie against St. Thomas Aquinas and a 3-0 loss to unbeaten Archbishop McCarthy.
Morgan Newman and Carolina Ameglio are North Broward Prep’s top goal scorers.
▪ Delray American Heritage at Cardinal Gibbons: Outside of a 2-1 loss to Archbishop McCarthy back on Nov. 20, Cardinal Gibbons has been virtually unstoppable. The Chiefs have given up just 11 goals all season and look poised to make a run in Class 2A if they can make it past Delray American Heritage and then potentially Oxbridge Academy in the regional semis. Gibbons is a senior-heavy team, with Alyssa Vazquez, Maya Alicea and Jennifer Mire serving as the team’s top three scoring threats.
▪ Westminster Christian at LaSalle: LaSalle won its first district title in seven years and will now get to host its regional quarterfinal. The Royal Lions (14-3-4) have won seven of their last eight and will host a Westminster Christian (12-3-3) that’s back in the regional round after a one-year hiatus.
▪ Ransom Everglades at Carrollton: Carrollton is coming off its fourth consecutive district championship and, at 12-0-4, has yet to drop a match this year. Ransom Everglades, meanwhile, is coming off a stunning 2-1 double-overtime loss to LaSalle in the district championships and is looking to win its first match in the regional round since 2016.
Region 4-1A
▪ Scheck Hillel at Westminster Academy: Both teams have struggled this year, but quality performances in their district tournaments allowed these two teams to advance to the regional round.
▪ South Florida HEAT at Miami Country Day: Miami Country Day finished as state runner-up last year and is having another quality season in 2019.. The Spartans (11-5-2) dominated the competition at their level during the regular season and took some chances by player tougher teams in higher classes such as Archbishop McCarthy, both American Heritages (they beat the Delray team 4-2), Miami Springs (winning 6-1) and St. Thomas Aquinas.
▪ Somerset Academy Silver Palms vs. Archimedean at Kendall Soccer Park (2 p.m.): Archimedean (14-2-2) has won four of its last five and is unbeaten at home and in neutral site games this year (a combined 10-0-1). Sophomore Alexa Krochmal leads the way with 25 goals, while freshman Nicole Richani (17 goals) and junior Isabella Garcia (15 goals, 12 assists) are also having quality years.
Somerset (9-3-2) went 7-0-2 over a nine-game stretch before losing the district championship to Palmer Trinity. Freshman Solina Ramos (22 goals, 11 assists) and eighth grader Brettany Rivera (14 goals, 11 assists) are the team’s top offensive threats.
▪ SLAM Academy vs. Palmer Trinity (3:30 p.m.): This will be a rematch of last year’s regional quarterfinal, which Palmer easily won 8-1.
Palmer reached the state semis in 2017 and could make another run if they keep putting up goals like they have recently. In their last four games (3-0-1 record), the Falcons have outscored opponents 21-5.
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