Jordyn Pitter, Kelly Hastings & Liliana Katz power Archbishop McCarthy girls’ soccer
It doesn’t matter who dominates, who takes more shots or who bounces more balls off the post. In the end, it’s about who scores more goals.
And that honor went the Archbishop McCarthy girls soccer team on Thursday night when the nationally ranked Mavericks hosted district rival Pines Charter in a Region 4-5A semifinal at McCarthy High School.
Despite being outshot, McCarthy managed to knock three goals past Pines Charter goalkeeper Meagan Teeling and came away with a 3-2 before a noisy crowd at McCarthy High School.
It came just one week after the two teams had to go to penalty kicks to determine a winner in their district final that McCarthy managed to pull out.
“It was definitely a real battle out there and to be honest nothing we didn’t expect because last week came down to PKs with them,” said senior forward and UCF commit Jordyn Pitter, who scored her team’s second goal to put McCarthy up 2-0 11 minutes before halftime.
“We know that their midfield is a target and you just have to try and mark them up. Everybody wants to beat you and go on to the next round but it’s who wants it more. In the end it’s not about how many shots but how many go in the net and fortunately tonight we had one more than them.”
The Mavericks (20-1-2) and ranked No. 9 in the nation (Max Preps) move on to the regional finals where they will host either Palm Bay Bayside or Riviera Beach Suncoast on Tuesday at 7 p.m.
A win will put them in the state final four for the third consecutive season. A year ago, they dropped a 1-0 heartbreaker to Montverde Academy in the state championship game.
The Jaguars (14-4-2) were a picture of frustration all night as they wound up winning the shots-on-goal battle 18-7 and even bounced not one but two shots off the left post and crossbar.
After Kelly Hastings and Pitter scored to put AM up 2-0, Francesca Brito sliced the deficit in half with a rocket shot just under the crossbar 10 minutes before halftime.
PC continued to pepper freshman goalkeeper Paloma Pena throughout the second half but the freshman managed to make some nice saves.
When Liliana Katz scored on a counter attack with 16:45 left to put McCarthy up 3-1, it appeared to be over. But the Jaguars were relentless and when Eleana Salama scored with 8:57 left, it was 3-2. McCarthy defenders then did a good job of clearing balls out from that point on before the final whistle blew.
“They’re a very offensive attacking team and they’re very good at it,” said McCarthy coach Mike Sica. “We thought we would be able to get them on the counter which we did when we were able to do it weren’t able to do it nearly as much as we wanted to but every time we had the opportunity we got something out of it including the game winning goal.’’
“Obviously this is a big win because Pines Charter is one of the best teams in the state in our classification and it’s unfortunately we’re both in the same district. I haven’t see a lot of other teams play but I’m sure this is going to be one of the best teams we’ll face all year.”
Wyche sisters lead Heritage in rout
There was no doubt who the winner would be, just the final score.
Led by American Heritage’s junior 6-3 twin towers Taliyah and Tatyana Wyche, the Patriots cruised 50-18 in a Class 5A regional quarterfinal on Thursday.
The Patriots (21-4) will attempt to extend their six-game winning streak when they host the Miami Killian/Miami Central winner in a regional semifinal on Tuesday. Heritage will enter that game as the top-ranked team in the state in Class 5A.
Tatyana Wyche scored 12 points and sister Taliyah added nine points to lead Heritage.
“The key from them is this is their third year with us [and] they have improved from the time they came here,” said Patriots coach Greg Farias. “The common denominator is they are super athletic, which you can’t teach.”
With the sisters protecting the paint, Boyd Anderson (13-15) was limited in its shot selection.
By halftime the winner had been decided as the Patriots had a commanding 37-9 lead.
“We have worked hard the last two years developing their game,” said Farias. “Scoring has been the big part as they’ve been able to rebound and block shots. They run the court and guard at all positions.”
The Wyche sisters aren’t alone in the Patriots’ drive for a third consecutive title. Daniella Aronsky is a proven outside shooter. Her time on the court was limited Thursday, but she converted two three-pointers.
BOYS’ BASKETBALL
▪ Braddock 75, Ferguson 61: BRAD – Chavez 21, Santos 17, Paz 14, Perez 8, Torres 8. FER – Azocar 17, Arkaga 16. Half: BRAD 35-24. 3-pointers: Chavez 3, Paz 2, Perez 2; Rebounds: Santos 12. Assists: Paz 6. Steals: Chavez 2. BR: 15-7.
BOYS’ SOCCER
▪ Region 4-3A quarterfinal: University School 8, SLAM 0: Joel Castellanos and Ethan Subachan each scored 2 goals. GK Simon Mertnoff recorded 12th shutout of the season as the Sharks improve to 17-0-2.
▪ Region 4-3A quarterfinal: LaSalle 4, Westminster Christian 1: Santiago Sanchez, Nicholas Podolla, Samuel Rodriguez, Marcelo Aedo 1 goal each.
▪ Region 4-6A quarterfinal: Miami Beach 4, Boca Raton Olympic Heights 1: Daniel Granda and James Lewis 2 goals each.
BOYS’ TENNIS
▪ Plantation American Heritage d. University School 6-1: Singles 1. Elliot Starkman (AH) d. Enzo Martellezzo (US) 8-5. 2. Luca Benaibbouche (AH) d. Nicolas Mchedlishvili (US) 8-2. 3. Daniel Naylor (AH) d. Craig Zager (US) 8-1. 4. Alex Marzban (AH) d. Mathew Gothin (US) 8-6. 5. Mateo Coles (AH) d. Aryan Shah (US) 8-0. Doubles: 1. Enzo Martellezzo & Nicolas Mchedlishvili (US) d. Elliot Starkman & Luca Benaibbouche (AH) 8-6.
▪ Ransom Everglades d. Riviera Prep. 5-0: David Green, Sam Gelber, Xander Lake, Dylan Kaufmann and Ian Barnett all won singles 8-0.
GIRLS’ TENNIS
▪ Ransom Everglades d. Riviera Prep. 5-2: Pearl Navratik (8-5), Victoria Miranda (8-2), Blythe Heller (8-0) and Dylan Miner (8-2) all singles winners.
Plantation American Heritage d. University School 5-2. Singles: 1. Daniela Porges (US) d. Natalie Block (AH) 8-4. 2. Katelyn Gramanzini (AH) d. Arielle Benayoun 8-2. 3. Emily Stouch (AH) d. Lucia Bahamonde (US) 8-0. 4. Grace Odom Montbran (AH) d. Arina Zhirkova (US) 8-0. 5. Livia Kaufman (AH) d. Lauren Paris (US) 8-1. Doubles: 1. Daniela Porges & Ava Grnja (US) d. Daniela Porges & Ava Grnja (US) 8-6. 2. Emily Stouch & Grace Odom Montbran (AH) d. Arielle Benayoun & Lucia Bahamonde (US) 8-1.
PRESEASON BASEBALL
▪ Southwest 14, Somerset Silver Palms 0: Matt Fernandez, Eddie Sierra and Lorenzo Hernandez each had 2 hits and 2 RBIs for the Eagles. Dairon Veliz, Amaury Villalba and Joel Rodriguez combined for a no-hitter.
FRIDAY’s SCHEDULE
BOYS’ SOCCER
Region 4-7A semifinal: Coral Reef vs. Reagan, 2 p.m. at Doral Legacy Park
GIRLS’ SOCCER
Region 4-7A semifinals: West Broward vs. Coral Reef, 4 p.m. at Tropical Park; Western at Cypress Bay, 5 p.m.
Region 4-6A semifinals: St. Thomas Aquinas vs. Lourdes, 7 p.m. at Tropical Park
Region 4-4A semifinals: Plantation American Heritage at Cardinal Gibbons, 7 p.m.; Gulliver Prep. vs. Miami Springs, 7 p.m. at Stafford Park
Region 4-3A semifinals: Ransom Everglades at Carrollton, 3 p.m.; Palmer Trinity at Miami Country Day, 7 p.m.
Region 4-2A semifinals: South Florida HEAT at Westminster Academy, 5 p.m.