Results are in. Lourdes soccer star voted Miami Herald High School Athlete of the Week
Miami Lourdes girls' soccer player Gianna Gray is the Miami Herald's High School Athlete of the Week, as voted on by readers in our weekly poll.
The freshman scored the winner four minutes into the first 10-minute overtime as the Bobcats (15-1-3) won the Region 4-5A title with a 1-0 victory over Southwest Ranches Archbishop McCarthy.
Yva Cao, Miami Lourdes cheerleading; Connor Bonney, Miami Palmetto wrestling; Willie White, Homestead South Dade wrestling; Abigail Moyer, Coral Springs wrestling; Mya Bethel, North Miami wrestling; Savanna Nicholson, Fort Lauderdale Cardinal Gibbons basketball; Alex Morejon, Miami Mater Lakes Academy soccer; Diego Medina-Pagan, Pembroke Pines Charter soccer; Michael Mocco, Fort Lauderdale Cardinal Gibbons wrestling rounded out the nominees.
The Miami Herald Athlete of the Week poll opens Sunday every week and closes around 10 p.m. Thursday.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Miami Herald
18 hours ago
- Miami Herald
Berent, Bertorelli, Wahlbrink are the 4A-1A Broward Softball Players of the Year
A dominant pitcher has always been the biggest building block for a successful softball team. Coral Springs Charter had two this season in senior Sophia Bertorelli and sophomore Courtney Wahlbrink. And over at Cardinal Gibbons, junior Lydia Berent is becoming one of the most dominant pitchers and players overall in recent memory in Broward County, which earned her a scholarship offer at one of the country's most prestigious programs. After dominant performances once again this past season, Bertorelli and Wahlbrink are this year's Broward Co-Pitchers of the Year for Classes 4A-1A. And Berent is the Class 4A-1A Player of the Year. Berent could have been named either award winner after going 20-6 this season, striking out a county-high 243 batters, and compiling a 1.11 ERA. She also hit .500 with three home runs, 11 doubles and scored 39 runs. Her efforts led Gibbons to its first 20-win season in over two decades, and she has been the centerpiece in the Chiefs' emergence as one of the county's best teams over the past three seasons. 'I just matured a whole lot mentally and physically from last year, and really learned how to lead,' Berent said. 'We had a young team so it was important to have some of us with extra experience. It's just trusting the amount of time I work and preparation I put in. We've never been as good as we are right now.' Berent said she chose to attend Gibbons as her older brother did for academics as well as softball. She has attracted the interest of multiple Division-I schools over the past couple of years. But when Stanford University came calling, Berent jumped at the chance and committed during a visit last winter. Berent has one more season to try to lead Gibbons to a state title. But after that, she hopes to study something in the engineering field while following in the footsteps of other South Florida softball greats such as former Southwest Miami star Missy Penna. 'I knew in my heart that's where I belong,' Berent said. 'It's an amazing program and a chance for an amazing education.' Bertorelli is also heading to a college with a strong combination of academics and athletics this fall as she will pitch at Boston College. She heads there after a resilient return from a shoulder injury her junior year. This season, Bertorelli went 11-2 with 122 strikeouts and a 1.23 ERA in 74 innings. Bertorelli said she worked on keeping her pitching mechanics consistent to avoid any further injury and felt like herself in the circle by midseason. Bertorelli credited having Wahlbrink's support both on and off the field as a key reason for her success this season. 'It was difficult to come back, but having Courtney and our coaches supporting me helped,' Bertorelli said. 'I felt like I didn't have all the pressure on my shoulders.' Meanwhile, Wahlbrink complemented her perfectly in the circle for Coral Springs Charter as she went 13-1 with 117 strikeouts and a 1.02 ERA in 75 1/3 innings. Bertorelli's presence on the team again was a boost for Wahlbrink as well as she improved as a hitter, going .389 with 19 RBI. The two led the Panthers back to the Class 3A regional finals and kept Coral Springs Charter as one of the most dominant teams in the state. 'I was able to focus more on the hitting side and I think I was able to drive balls better to the opposite field than I did before,' Wahlbrink said. 'Me and Soph are really close and she's been like a role model to me forever. We both help each other on and off the field. 'The adversity she's faced and coming back from injury is tough. She came back with a strong mentality and became an even stronger pitcher.'
Miami Herald
2 days ago
- Miami Herald
Doral Academy's Viruet, Somerset's Rebhan are Miami-Dade Softball Coaches of the Year
Doral Academy's Willie Viruet and Somerset Silver Palms' Gator Rebhan direct what have been the two most successful softball programs in Miami-Dade County in recent years. But a state championship eluded both programs over the past three seasons. In Rebhan's case, the Stallions had never hoisted a state championship trophy. In Viruet's case, the Firebirds had in 2021, but had come heartbreakingly short more than once of recapturing that feeling again. It all changed this season as both Doral Academy and Somerset Silver Palms overcame that final roadblock and were each state champions. And so, Viruet and Rebhan are once again, the Miami Herald's Miami-Dade County Softball Coaches of the Year. Viruet is the winner for Class 7A-4A after leading Doral to its second state title in school history. The Firebirds have been regulars at the state final four under his watch, advancing to at least the state semifinals every season since 2019 - the longest active streak for any Dade team. This season, Doral took things up a notch, however. The Firebirds finished the season 31-1, ranked No. 3 in the nation and higher than any other Florida team. Doral capped the season with a dramatic 5-4 comeback win in eight innings over Valrico Bloomingdale in the Class 6A state semifinals before beating Pace 1-0 in the final. Miami Herald 7A-4A Pitcher of the Year Meagan Villazon, an FIU signee, was the main reason for the team's success in the pitching circle. Junior shortstop Anabela Abdullah, a Texas commit and the Herald's 7A-4A Player of the Year, and senior third baseman Sarah Breaux, the Herald's Player of the Year in 2024 and a Clemson signee, drove the Firebirds' offense. For Somerset Silver Palms, the state championship was a brand new feeling. And it was something Rebhan hadn't experienced for over two decades since leading Miami Palmetto to a pair of state titles in 2000 and 2003. Rebhan left high school coaching for a few years while coaching at the collegiate level at FIU and later solely travel ball. But he returned to the high school scene and began building Silver Palms into a state powerhouse in 2021. After two consecutive years reaching state, the Stallions finally secured that elusive first title with convincing wins over Dunedin and Eustis. Rebhan's daughter Taylor Rebhan, a junior shortstop and Louisville commit, and sophomore pitcher Ava Stevens, who are the Miami Herald's 3A-1A Player and Pitcher of the Year respectively, led the Stallions throughout the season.
Miami Herald
5 days ago
- Miami Herald
Finals Fever: Fans at home support Panthers in Stanley Cup Finals opening game
Dana Ross danced in line with her friends at the Amerant Bank Arena concession stand, wearing a custom 'Ross' Florida Panthers jersey autographed by players in Sharpie across the large '44' on her back. She's been a fan of the Panthers for 31 years, she said, and her family were original season ticket holders back when the team first played in Miami in 1993. 'Ever since I was a little girl, I loved going to the games,' she told the Miami Herald before the first game of the Stanley Cup Finals' opening game between the Florida Panthers and the Edmonton Oilers. 'I cried like a baby last year when we won. So, anything now is just a bonus!' The story among many of the Panthers' long term fans, wearing sombreros lined with stuffed rats and Stanley Cup silver chains, is the same. They lined up in 'Barkov' and 'Ekblad' jerseys outside of the arena before 7 p.m., eagerly waiting to enter despite the fact that the first game of the playoffs would take place over 2,500 miles away in Edmonton, Alberta. Before puck drop, they cheered as each of the starting Panthers flashed on the jumbo-tron. Screams erupted for goalie Sergei Barbovsky, while the boos were deafening for Oilers star Connor McDavid. After the first period with the Panthers up 2-1, the energy on the concourse skyrocketed. A DJ played hit pop and rock songs in the 21+ Jameson Bar, the line for a Mister Softee sundae in a Barkov helmet stretched for three sections, and 'go, cats!' echoed all the way into the bathrooms. 'This is my first time at a watch party, my first time in this kind of atmosphere,' lifetime fan Mike Whitt told the Miami Herald. 'It's so much fun watching the game this way, such a great time. With playoff tickets being so expensive, this is a great way to do it. Now I definitely want to come again.'
