District and region champs ready for state tennis. Plus baseball and boys' volleyball

Miami Herald

28-04-2025

It was a South Florida showdown between two consistently strong programs in tennis in Class 4A.
Miami Doral Academy vs. Miami Palmetto in boys' and girls' team tennis in the Region 8-4A finals.
Doral's boys, the defending state champs coached by Justin Puppo, took care of business, winning 4-1, and the Palmetto girls, coached by Kelly Gibson, did the same, winning 4-2.
For the Firebirds, No.1 singles player Romain Azais clinched the team title. In the girls' competition, Palmetto's No.2 doubles team (Lucia Siddens and Madeleine Chellas) sealed the region crown.
Each region championship team qualified for state, which is this week in Central Florida.
Classes 4A and 2A are April 30-May 2. Classes 3A and 1A run through April 30. The matches will occur across three parks in Seminole County in the Orlando area. Sanlando Park (for all matches in 3A and 4A), Red Bug Lake Park (for only team competition in 1A and 2A) and Sylvan Lake Park (for only individual competition in 1A and 2A).
Doral Academy's boys' team has won two state championships (2024, 2021) and six regional tournaments, since under the direction of Coach Puppo in 2014. The Lightning are ranked No.10 nationally according to the UTR High School Power Team Rankings. Entering the region finals, Palmetto was undefeated and ranked No.6 nationally.
The Palmetto girls' team is a two-time state champ (2018, 2023) and have won 14 region titles.
BOYS: Region 8-4A Championship: Doral Academy 4, Palmetto 1:
No.1 Singles: Romain Azais (Dor) d. Stefan Correa (Plm) 3-6, 6-4, 10-6 (clinching match).
No.2 Singles: Samuel Rosales (Dor) d. Austin Siddens (Plm) 6-1, 6-3.
No.3 Singles: Beau Gibson (Plm) d. Gabriel Cottone (Dor) 6-2, 6-3.
No.4 Singles: Andres Matos (Dor) d. Ben Montana (Plm) 6-4, 6-1.
No.5 Singles: Juan Benito (Dor) d. Danny Mazer (Plm) 6-0, 6-1.
GIRLS: Region 8-4A Championship: Palmetto 4, Doral Academy 2:
No.1 Singles: Cathy Cardona-Carballosa (Plm) d. Payton Seidle-Lubowitz (Dor) 7-6 (8-6), 7-5.
No.2 Singles: Stefany Zamora (Dor) d. Lucia Siddens (Plm) 6-2, 6-1.
No.3 Singles: Camille Chellas (Plm) d. Natalia Benito (Dor) 6-4, 6-7 (4-6), 11-9.
No.4 Singles: Madeleine Chellas (Plm) d. Samantha Ruiz-Delarbol (Dor) 6-2, 6-4.
No.5 Singles: Barbara Grimaldi (Dor) d. Sophia Jarauta (Plm) 6-3, 6-1.
No.2 Doubles: Siddens/M.Chellas (Plm) d. Benito/Grimaldi (Dor) 4-1, 4-1 (clinching match).
▪ Not to be outdone, Weston Cypress Bay, coached by Michael Brunt, went head-to-head with Parkland Stoneman Douglas in region finals in 4A, and both Lightning teams advanced to the state quarterfinals.
The Cypress Bay boys' team beat Stoneman Douglas 5-0 for the Region 7-4A title. In the girls' competition, Cypress Bay took the region championship with a close victory over Stoneman Douglas 4-3.
BOYS: Region 7-4A Championship: Cypress Bay 5, Stoneman Douglas 0:
No.1 Singles: Pablo Alunni Cobo (CB) d. Dennis Oliveria (SD) 6-1, 6-1.
No.2 Singles Rolando Torrellas (CB) d. Daniel Platovsky (SD) 6-4, 6-4.
No.3 Singles: 3 Sebastian Elias (CB) d. Hermann Stelling (SD) 6-0, 6-0.
No.4 Singles: Andres Gerdel (CB) d. Jared Russinoff (SD) 6-0, 6-0.
No.5 Singles: Aarav Bansal (CB) d. Coby Alhadeff (SD) 6-0, 6-2.
GIRLS: Region 7-4A Championship: Cypress Bay 4, Stoneman Douglas 3:
No.1 Singles: Savita Bagirathan (SD) d. Laila Wassef (CB) 6-3, 6-0.
No 2 Singles. Dhea Bagirathan (SD) d. Laura Wassef (CB) 6-1, 6-1.
No.3 Singles: Carolina Munoz (CB) d. Allison Kehler (SD) 6-1, 6-1.
No.4 Singles: Anika Ravi (CB) d. Zara Risavy (SD) 6-4, 2-6, 10-4.
No.5 Singles. Allesandra Shchekin (CB) d. Dylainey Risavy (SD) 6-4, 6-1.
No.1 Doubles: S.Bagirathan/D.Bagirathan (SD) d. Laila Wassef/Laura Wassef (CB) 4-2, 4-5, 10-8.
No.2 Doubles: Munoz/Ravi (CB) d. Kehler/Risavy (SD) 4-2, 4-1.
▪ In 2A girls, District 14-2A runner-up Plantation American Heritage, coached by Toby Croke, beat District 13-2A Champ Delray American Heritage 4-0 and District 14-2A Champ Fort Lauderdale Pine Crest 4-3 to reach the state quarterfinals.
Plantation American Heritage received key wins against Pine Crest from Tina Liu, who defeated Bridget Chalich 6-1, 6-4 at No.1 singles; Ava Zikria, who defeated Katrin Gulia Janovskaia 6-1, 6-0 at No.4 singles; Liu/Angelina Lin, who defeated Chalich/Sofia Ead 4-2, 4-0 at No.1 doubles; and the match clincher Emily Huang/Zikria defeating Brynn Edwards/Harper Frank 5-3, 4-1 at No.2 doubles. Pine Crest's three wins were from Ead over Huang 6-1, 6-4 at No.2 singles; Edwards over Lin 7-6 (7-1), 6-0 at No.3 singles; and Frank over Ellie Bill 6-3, 6-3, at No. 5 singles.
Note: Last season Plantation American Heritage lost a close battle to Delray American Heritage in the postseason, and the Stallions advanced, eventually winning the state title. This season Plantation American Heritage eliminated Delray American Heritage and Pine Crest from the team competition. Prior, Pine Crest finished first at districts, ahead of runner-up Plantation American Heritage.
▪ District 16-2A Champ Miami Gulliver Prep, coached by Kelly Mulligan, is also going to state, after defeating District 15-2A runner-up ATM and District 16-2A runner-up MAST.
On the boys' side, Gulliver Prep, coached by John Bradley, won Region 8-2A, too, beating ATM 4-0 and MAST 5-0, to advance to state. Pine Crest was eliminated in the Region 7-2A finals by Delray American Heritage.
BOYS: Region 8-2A champs: Gulliver Prep: Tomas Orrego; Maximo Lopina; Alexander Zelenov; Lorenzo Martinez; Jack O'Brien.
GIRLS: Region 8-2A champs: Gulliver Prep: Alex Leal; Valentina Donoso; Sophia Harari; Kayla Carey; Maya Quintero; Mika Ringel; Siena Ringel; Valentina Gonzalez; Hanna Matuk.
More region tennis
Fort Lauderdale St. Thomas Aquinas boys' and girls' tennis teams, coached by Carol Deopsomer, won Region 8-3A championships, qualifying for state in 3A.
The Raiders' boys beat Miami Belen Jesuit 4-1, and the girls defeated Miami Lourdes 4-1.
In the region semifinals, the boys defeated Miami Beach 6-0, and the girls beat Miami TERRA 5-1. Also in region semifinal action, Belen's boys beat Southwest Ranches Archbishop McCarthy 5-0, and Lourdes girls beat Archbishop McCarthy 7-0.
The district and region champion boys' team features No.1 singles Conor Reeser, who won a three-hour, three-set battle (7-6 (8-6), 5-7, 10-7) over Miami Beach in the region semifinals; No.2 singles Lucca Freitas; No.3 Caio Lira; No.4 Anthony Nikolov; No.5 Philip Paun; No.1 doubles Reeser/Nikolov; No.2 doubles Freitas/Lira.
Reeser advanced to state as an individual, too, winning No.1 singles at districts and also No.1 doubles, winning districts with Nikolov.
The district and region champion girls' team features No.1 singles Sophia Pacheco; No.2 Rowan Cicero; No.3 Annika Hahn; No.4 Lisi Sinkoe; No.5 Anna Pitino; No.1 doubles Pecheco/Cicero; No.2 doubles Hahn/Sinkoe.
Pacheco and Cicero also reached state at No.1 doubles by winning districts.
St. Thomas Aquinas has won 16 district titles, reaching state 16 times.
For Lourdes, sophomore Grace Leon was outstanding this season, becoming the first player in school history to win a region final match in the team's lone win against St. Thomas Aquinas.
She went undefeated in the postseason, winning No.3 singles and No.2 doubles at districts. She also won singles and doubles matches in the team's regional semifinal victory over Archbishop McCarthy.
St. Thomas Aquinas was the state champion in girls' tennis last season. The Raiders' boys were state runners-up.
▪ In Class 1A, the defending state champion Miami True North girls' tennis team won the Region 8-1A Championship, beating Miami Riviera Prep. The champs are No.1 singles Dani Chica; No.2 Alba Martinez; No.3 Isa Porto; No.4 Luciana Chica; No.5 Andrea Palacios; No.1 doubles D.Chica/Martinez; No.2 Porto/L.Chica.
In the region semifinals, the Titans beat Miami Divine Savior, while Riviera Prep defeated Miami Country Day.
On the boys' side, True North also won the region title, beating Miami Country Day 4-0. The champs are No.1 singles Gabriel Valdes; No.2 Caleb Chow; No.3 Krishang Badwal; No.4 Thomas Rheault; No.5 Zander Guevara; No.1 doubles Valdes/Chow; No.2 Badwal/Rheault.
The state-bound Titans are coached by Andre Chow.
More postseason tennis
The Miami Country Day boys' tennis team eliminated Miami Ransom Everglades 4-1 in a 1A region semifinal.
True North did the same to Miami Divine Savior 4-0.
Prior to regionals, the Miami Country Day boys' and girls' teams swept team titles in District 15-1A.
The boys' team won districts in each event (No.1-No.5 singles and No.1-2 doubles). It marked the 27th consecutive district championship for the boys' tennis program.
The girls edged Miami Divine Savior by one point with Sivila Gonzalez Abadi and Natalia Marquez winning the last match at No.2 doubles to clinch the victory.
BOYS: District Champs Miami Country Day: Lorenzo Lopez, Lucas Bacardi Shriftman, Niko Skokna, Oscar Bergier, Antonio Moura, Coach Matthew Randall.
No.1 Singles Champ Lorenzo Lopez (MCD).
No.1 Doubles Champs Lorenzo Lopez/Oscar Bergier (MCD).
GIRLS: District Champs Miami Country Day: Gabrielle Bassette, Sivila Gonzalez Abadi, Marquez, Cayenne Petit, Gracie Schinman, Rebecca Apfelbaum, Coach Anthony Haderer.
▪ In a 1A girls' region semifinal, Miami Riviera Prep, coached by Mark Elman, beat Miami Country Day 5-0.
No.1 singles Leyla Kilgour won 6-1, 6-1; No.3 singles Maria De La O won 6-1, 6-1; No.4 singles Isabella Paradisi won 6-0, 6-0; No.1 doubles Leyla Kilgour/Isabella Paradisi won 4-0, 4-2.
▪ Miami True North also won a region semifinal, beating Divine Savior 4-0, to set-up a showdown with Riviera Prep for the region title.
True North swept the District 16-1A Championships, winning girls and boys. Riviera Prep placed second in girls, and Ransom Everglades was runner-up in boys.
BOYS: No.1 Singles Champ: Gabriel Valdes (TN) d. Sam Schulman (RE) 6-0, 6-1.
No.1 Doubles Champs: Gabriel Valdes/Caleb Chow (TN).
GIRLS: No.1 Singles Champ: Daniela Chica (TN) d. Leyla Kilgour (RP) 6-4, 6-0.
No.1 Doubles Champs: Daniela Chica/Alba Martinez (TN).
▪ Divine Savior boys' and girls' tennis teams, coached by Nic Liu and Jenny Sotomayor, were District 15-1A runners-up. The girls' team beat Miami Country Day in the regular season but was second to the Spartans at districts by one point. Divine Savior senior Lauren Kettlewell, who will play college tennis for NCAA Division I Boston University, won the district title at No.1 singles to qualify for state. She teamed with senior Anabella Parente for the No.1 doubles title at district, advancing to state.
▪ Also in 1A, the Fort Lauderdale Westminster Academy girls' tennis team, coached by Leah Barbar, won the District 14-1A title. Boca Raton St. Andrew's eliminated the Lions in a region semifinal. Westminster Academy's Lexie Bursa won districts at No.1 singles and teamed with Lilly Aguiar to win districts at No.1 doubles, qualifying for state in both.
▪ In 3A, Lourdes, coached by Stephen Hernandez, won districts again, winning back-to-back titles for the first time in program history. The champion Bobcats are No.1 Regina Arrangoiz (sophomore); No.2 Paloma Diaz (junior) district runner-up; No.3 Angelina Codeso (sophomore) district champ; No.4 Grace Leon (sophomore) district champ; No.5 Natalia Rodriguez (senior) district champ; No.1 doubles Arrangoiz/Codeso district runner-up; No.2 doubles Diaz/Leon district champs.
▪ The Coconut Creek North Broward Prep boys' tennis team, coached by Jaro Pivarci, was District 13-2A runner-up. They lost to District 14-2A Champ Pine Crest 5-0 in a region semifinal, but last year's individual state champ Max Freedman was the district champ at No.1 singles, which qualifies him for state in Orlando in an effort to defend his title.
Region baseball
Gabriel Milano set a school record with eight RBI as Doral Academy defeated Flanagan 13-0 in a 6A region quarterfinal.
Region 4-6A Quarterfinals: Doral Academy 13, Flanagan 0: Gabriel Milano 3-4, HR (10th), 2 2B, 8 RBI; Leandro Hernandez 1-2, RBI; Kobe Carrion 1-1, 3 R; Winning Pitcher Aaron Elissalt 4 IP, 0 R, 1 H, 5 K. Dor 23-5-1.
Boys' volleyball
The Miami Doral Reagan boys' volleyball team ended the regular season with its 20th victory by beating JC Bermudez.
Columbus also won before the postseason, improving to 23-2.
Columbus d. TERRA 25-17, 28-26, 26-24: Lucas Riva 12 kills, 2 blocks, 4 digs; Dante Muñecas 10 kills, 2 aces, 1 block, 3 digs; Diego Claure 8 kills, 1 ace, 1 block, 2 digs; Matias Claure 7 kills, 1 ace, 1 assist, 1 block, 1 dig; Alex Studenski 3 kills, 3 blocks, 2 digs; Charlie Friguls 37 assists, 4 blocks, 3 digs. Col 23-2.
Reagan d. JC Bermudez 25-13, 25-22, 25-18: Yeison Gonzalez 11 kills, 10 serve received, 3 aces; Jaeden Cabrera 24 assists, 3 aces, 3 blocks, 7 digs; Diego Cobena 8 kills, 14 serve received, 9 digs; Zhayed Lacruz 5 kills, 2 blocks, 1 ace; William Camacho 3 kills, 3 blocks; Fabrizio Aranibar 10 serve received, 11 digs. Rea 20-3.
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Roundup compiled by Jim Varsallone
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