South Florida Regional Roundup: Miami Central responds late
The “Drive for Five” remains alive for Class 2M Miami Central and Class 3M St. Thomas Aquinas.
The two perennial powers have each won four straight state titles, and both advanced on Friday in their respective regional quarterfinals match-ups.
Also winning big were Class 2M American Heritage Plantation and Class 3M Homestead – which both lost in the state championship game last year.
Friday also featured a major upset in Class 3M with seventh-seed West Boca knocking off second seed Atlantic Delray Beach, 23-22.
SBLive Sports Florida has your South Florida regional quarterfinals roundup for Friday and Thursday night games.
CLASS 2M-Region 4: MIAMI CENTRAL 31, MIAMI EDISON 13: Jayden Ford had touchdown runs of 34 and 45 yards in the first quarter, and Central held on after Edison closed the gap to 21-13 in the second half. Amari Wallace’s 34-yard interception return for a touchdown in the fourth quarter helped put the game away. The Rockets will face Booker T. Washington in the regional semifinals. Central won the first meeting, 38-28, on Sept. 8.
CLASS 2M- REGION 3: AMERICAN HERITAGE 63, NORTH BROWARD PREP 13: American Heritage jumped out to a huge lead early on Deandre Desinor’s 20-yard touchdown run and a short TD run by Byron Louis. Malachi Toney, a sophomore who has already committed to Miami, had a 60-yard punt return for a touchdown.
CLASS 3M-REGION 3: ST. THOMAS AQUINAS 63, PLANTATION 6: The Raiders took their first step towards winning their fifth straight state title with a dominating victory over Plantation. Early on, Andrew Indorf hooked up with Chance Robinson on a touchdown pass, and Jordan Lyle had a rushing touchdown. Travares Daniels returned a fumble for a score, and St. Thomas built a 21-0 first-quarter lead. St. Thomas now will face Blanche Ely, 35-12 winners over Dillard.
CLASS 3M-REGION 3: WEST BOCA 23, ATLANTIC 22: The upset of the night. West Boca knocked off Atlantic on a last-second Hail Mary pass. Receiver Kyle Andrews was able to snare a batted ball in the end zone before it hit the ground for the decisive touchdown.
CLASS 3M-REGION 3: COCONUT CREEK 42, PIPER 6: Coconut Creek, the third seed, took care of business against Piper, and next will face West Boca.
CLASS 3M-REGION 4: SOUTHRIDGE 48, HIALEAH 23: James Perrone threw three touchdown passes, and Southridge will move on to face Homestead. Mehki Bethel added a 10-yard TD run early in the game for Southridge. Hialeah had an 88-yard touchdown pass from Travis Delaney Jr. to Jermain Beersingh in the second quarter.
CLASS 4M-REGION 4: HOMESTEAD 52, MCARTHUR 27: Homestead, which reached the state championship game a year ago, is advancing after holding off McArthur, 52-27. Southridge is next for the Broncos.
CLASS 2M-REGION 3: CARDINAL GIBBONS 42, STRANAHAN 12: The Chiefs were in control from the start, and next will face Calvary Christian Academy, which beat Saint Andrew’s Scots, 20-13.
From Thursday night:
CLASS 2M-REGION 4: BOOKER T. WASHINGTON 34, NORTH MIAMI BEACH 8: Watch out for the Tornadoes. Booker T. Washington is perhaps the biggest sleeper school in South Florida. Anthony McQueen threw for 141 yards and two touchdowns. Cornerback Ben Hanks Jr., a 4-star defender, returned a blocked field goal 94 yards for a touchdown. Next week, Booker T. has a showdown with Central.
CLASS 2M-REGION 4: MIAMI NORLAND 55, MIAMI ST. BRENDAN 0: Quarterback Ennio Yapoor led the Vikings to another lopsided win. Norland (11-0) next faces Monsignor Pace, which beat Gulliver Prep, 41-14.
CLASS 3M-REGION 4: MIRAMAR 23, AMERICAN 0: Defense set the tone for the Patriots (7-4) when Jivari Milton sacked American quarterback Santiago Villaman for a safety. American was limited to negative three yards rushing and 163 passing. Miramar quarterback Kael Alexander threw for 174 yards and two touchdowns. Tyler Godfrey Jr. had a 25-yard TD reception and Cenard Bennett scored on a 21-yard pass play. Jordan Jones rushed for 52 yards and a touchdown. Miramar, the third seed in the region, will face Miami Belen Jesuit next Friday. Jesuit upset second-seed, South Broward, 20-13.
CLASS 3M-Region 4: MIAMI BELEN JESUIT 20, SOUTH BROWARD 13: Going with its old school, Wing T offense, Jesuit rushed its way into the regional semifinals next week. Khamani Alexander rushed for more than 200 yards and two touchdowns for the Wolverines.
CLASS 4M-Region 4: COLUMBUS 49, GOLEMAN 6: For the second time in a couple of weeks, the Explorers enjoyed a comfortable win over Goleman. These teams met on Oct. 26, with Columbus coming out on the winning end, 24-6. The outcome was more lopsided in the playoffs, as the defending Class 4M state champions enjoyed a 43-points margin of victory.
CLASS 4M-REGION 4: WESTERN 51, CYPRESS BAY 0: When receiver Koby Howard scored on a punt return, the Wildcats were off to the races. Western (8-3) has won five straight since losing a hard-fought 28-14 decision to American Heritage. On Oct. 13, Western routed Cypress Bay, 56-0. Western next goes on the road to face Palmetto (9-1), which knocked off Doral Academy, 21-7. Jacory Barney Jr. had a 99-yard kickoff return in the win for the Panthers.
CLASS 4M-REGION 3: MONARCH 40, MARJORY STONEMAN DOUGLAS 7: Freshman quarterback Jake Spaeder had a 55-yard scramble in a four-play, 70-yard touchdown drive, and Monarch rolled to an easy first-round victory. On the defensive side, Jaleel Walters had five tackles and an interception.
