The week in review — Feb. 14-19

Buzzer beaters

Four of last week’s boys region quarterfinal games were not decided until the final minute, three of which were won with shots as time expired. 

The most thrilling – and improbable – rally came from King, which won its first district title in 12 years the week before. 

Trailing Auburndale by one point with 6.1 seconds left, the Lions got a steal, then called a timeout.That set up the game-winning heroics by Tony Livingston, a Florida football signee who hit a layup as time expired to lift King to a 63-62 victory in the 5A quarterfinals. 

Livingston, who wants to play football and basketball at the next level with the Gators, finished with 42 points and 12 rebounds.  

There were other wins that came with last-second panache. 

Northside Christian’s Tobias Gunter, who had 37 points and 15 points, hit the winning layup with one second left in overtime to lead the Mustangs to a 78-76 win over Sarasota Cardinal Mooney in the 3A playoffs. 

Gibbs’ freshman guard Jacob Daniels scored nine points, including a layup in the final 3.9 seconds to lead his team to a 56-55 victory over South Sumter in 4A. 

Canterbury’s Jordan Naylor stepped back and hit a 3-pointer in the final minute that put the Crusaders up for good in a 58-55 win over Cambridge Christian in the first round of the 3A postseason. 

For the scores from all 23 of the area quarterfinal games click here

Year of the Bull

After three rounds of regional action, only one area basketball team still is alive in the playoffs – Bloomingdale. 

The Bulls’ dream season continued thanks to wins over Braden River in the region semifinals and Land O’ Lakes in the region final of the 6A tournament. 

It is the first Bloomingdale has ever made the state semifinals in girls basketball. 

Aissatou Diallo, Ava Knauer and Joline Raposo each averaged double figures in scoring in both wins. 

Check out the area scores from the region semifinals and region finals by clicking on the links. 

Tampa Prep is nation’s top boys soccer team

After going through the regular season and district tournament undefeated, Tampa Prep’s boys soccer team moved up to No. 1 in MaxPreps national rankings. For MaxPreps full national rankings click here

The Terrapins unbeaten streak continued through the playoffs with wins over Lakeland Christian, Clearwater Central Catholic and Winter Park Trinity Prep in regional play and a shutout over West Palm Beach Benjamin in the 3A state semifinals. Check out the area scores from last week’s region finals and state semifinals by clicking on the links.

Santiago Castenada, Drew Hileman and Asher Jones all played key roles on offense and JB Montague has been stellar all season as a keeper.    

On Thursday, Tampa Prep plays Miami Ransom Everglades in the 3A state championship match in Deland’s Spec Martin Stadium. 

Plant returns to state final in boys soccer

For Plant, the painful memories of a 1-0 overtime loss to Naples Gulf Coast in last year’s state championship match served as a powerful motivator. 

The Panthers vowed to make it back and did so by beating Orlando Dr. Phillips, East Lake and Lakewood Ranch in the regionals and getting past Jacksonville Mandarin in the 7A state semifinals. 

Joe Anderson, Adan McGlynn and Otis Wildman have led the offense while Mikey Keane continued to come up with crucial saves as the keeper. 

On Saturday, Plant plays Cypress Bay in the 7A state championship match at Deland’s Spec Martin Stadium. 

Shorecrest lone area team left in girls soccer

Last season, Shorecrest played with a roster that included five freshmen and two eighth graders, The Chargers, who lost in the state finals in 2020 were unable to return to the title match last season. 

But the benefits of playing with such a young lineup paid off with a more experienced group that reached the state final – again. 

The Chargers are the only area girls soccer team that will be playing for a title this week at Spec Martin Stadium in Deland.   

Shorecrest got there by beating Naples St. John Neumann, Indian Rocks Christian and Naples First Baptist Academy in regionals and shutting out Winter Park Geneva in the state semifinals. Check out the area scores from last week’s region finals and state semifinals by clicking on the links. 

On offense, the Chargers have a balanced lineup led by Kaja Dionne, Gabby Marshall, Adelaide Oman and Jessie Rosenblum. The top keeper is Sonoma Kasica. 

On Wednesday, Shorecrest will play St. Johns County Day in the 2A final. It is a rematch from the 2020 title match.

Boys and girls lacrosse begins

The boys and girls lacrosse seasons started this past week. Here is a list of scores and top performers from the opening week.

Boys

Feb. 14: Click here.

Feb. 15: Click here.

Feb. 16: Click here.

Feb. 17-19: Click here.

Girls

Feb. 14: Click here.

Feb. 15: Click here.

Feb. 16: Click here.

Feb. 17-19: Click here.