By Gary Curreri

The numbers were so sparse that Highlands Christian Academy had one player attending off-season workouts and the school had to cancel its spring football game.

This Friday, the Knights (4-3) will travel to Palmer Trinity (5-0-1) to play for the Florida Independent Football Conference (FIFC) championship at 3:30 p.m.

Highlands Christian, which knocked off Palm Glades Prep Academy, 26-14, in the semifinal game, avenged a 25-22 loss earlier in the season to Palm Glades.

“There is always the outside thought that it was possible if everything went well, but, realistically, no,” said Highlands coach Josh Harris, 36, of Boca Raton.

Harris, who is in his first year as head coach after assistant coaching stints at Miami Northwestern, Doral Academy and Somerset Academy started to believe that his team could make a run at a championship when the team played Palmer Trinity in the regular season. The Knights led the host Falcons, 14-13, with five minutes remaining in the game and was halted because of darkness.

“I saw that we could compete with the best teams in the conference,” Harris said. The game was never finished because it wouldn’t have affected the standings. The FIFC consists of five teams: Highlands Christian, Palmer Trinity, Palm Glades Prep Academy, Scheck Hillel, and Pinecrest Prep (Miami).

“One of the things I had to work with on them was having pride in themselves and pride in the program,” Harris said. “They have something to play for and a chance to leave a legacy where they can come back 40 years from now to the school and see a banner up there for football. Right now, there is nothing up there related to football, but a lot of other sports are there. That’s what they have come out and done. Winning Friday would be huge!”

The Knights, with just 23 players on the roster and seven players going both ways on offense and defense, have been led by 8th grader Christian Opalsky (RB/DB), seniors Carl Schuberth (QB), Noah Camanini (OL/LB), Josiah Ritzer (OL/DL) and sophomore Titus Baggs (TE/DE). Opalsky has rushed for more than 1,000 yards this season in just seven games.

Highlands Christian Academy hasn’t had a winning season since 2011 when the team finished 6-4.

Bucks win district title

While Deerfield Beach head football coach Jevon Glenn was disappointed with his team’s play in a 35-0 victory over host Piper on Friday night, the effort was still good enough to clinch the District 11-8A championship for a second straight year.

“I am disappointed as you can be with a 35 point win,” said Bucks coach Jevon Glenn, whose Bucks improved to 8-1 overall and 5-0 in the district. The team’s lone loss this season came against Grayson (Logansville, GA) on the road, 39-14.

“We came out in the first half and got on them,” Glenn said. “With (Nick) Holm going down, that kind of hurt and we could have brought him back but we felt we could do this to this team.”

Nick Holm threw for two touchdowns before leaving with 10:04 remaining in the first half with an injury to his throwing shoulder as the Bucks knocked Piper from the ranks of the unbeaten for the second straight season. Last year Piper entered the game undefeated at 9-0, only to lose 38-0 on the road to the Bucks.

Holm threw TD passes to Daewood Davis for 7 yards and a 29-yarder to Alton Allen to stake the Bucks to a 14-0 lead. Ashtan Pierre returned an interception 41 yards with 5:46 remaining in the first half to extend the lead to 21-0.

Deerfield put the game away late in the fourth quarter when Taletrious Bradley scored on a 67-yard TD run in the fourth quarter and Alec Brown hit Jerry Jeudy for a 28-yard TD to seal the game. Piper fell to 8-1 overall and 4-1 in the district.

Deerfield Beach plays host to Cardinal Gibbons Friday at 7 p.m. in a non-district game.

By Gary Curreri

With 13 athletes competing at the recent Florida High School Athletic Association Class 1A state track and field championships at IMG Academy in Bradenton, Highlands Christian Academy coach Jared Ebenhack couldn’t have been more pleased with the outcome.

Junior Sara Carroll, who is also a standout soccer player for the school and has already committed to play soccer at FIT, won the Class 1A girls high jump, clearing 5.40 ft. She captured six total medals at the state meet this year as she placed fourth in the 100-meter hurdles (15.74); 7th in the 300-meter hurdles; and third in the triple jump (35-7.50). She scored 32 of her team’s 40 points in the meet.

Other top 10 finishes for Highlands included 8th grader Sydney Blackburn, who took ninth in the shot put (32-04), senior Christopher Julien placed 7th in the 100-meter dash, while sophomore Ryan Szklany was 8th in the 1,600 meters (4:41.11) and fourth in the 3,200 (9:47.04).

It was also a bittersweet moment for Ebenhack, who will be relocating his family to Lancaster, CA, on June 3. [He just was honored at Rotary Club, See Pg. 12 of the printed Observer newspaper].

“I loved it at Highlands, and parting is bittersweet,” Ebenhack said. “It is very difficult. I know that it is the best thing to do for my family; but I’m definitely torn.”

“Considering what an awesome team our girls will have for years to come,” added Ebenhack, who coached most of the middle school runners as elementary students for the past three years, “and considering all the great times I’ve with Ryan Szklany, especially these past four years – especially our Saturday morning long runs down A1A – it is very difficult.”

Ebenhack credited coaches Marc Veynovich and Brenda Montgomery-King for their efforts in the team’s success, especially given the fact the team doesn’t have a permanent track at the school.

“Marc was the head coach for the past three years, and I was his assistant, and was in charge of the designing and executing of the distance and sprint programs. This year, he had a lot on his plate and could only come to practice once a week, but he focused a lot on the pole vaulters and high jumpers during that time. Brenda was our throws coach, and two of her athletes qualified for state in the shot and discus, one girl and one boy,” said Ebenhack.

Ely High School senior Thomas Geddis, of Pompano Beach, placed fourth in the Class 3A state finals in the 200-meter dash (22.13) and was a member of the fourth place 4×100 relay with Pierre Dupuy, Arthur Forrest and Rodger Wright (41.95) and the sixth place 4×400 relay (3:21.85) with Tremaine Brown, Roderic Wilson, and Devonte Findlay.

Geddis, 19, is headed to the University of Cincinnati on a football scholarship. Geddis, along with some other standout athletes, helped the Tigers to district and regional titles this season and a fourth place in the state competition. He said he can’t wait to start his new chapter at Cincinnati.

“The pressure was tough this year with my being a senior,” Geddis said. “I had a lot of freshmen and underclassmen looking up to me that I had to carry as a team. I was the leader of the 4×100 and the 4×400 and just a captain period, so I had to push them to be comfortable and go out there, have fun, give everything and leave it all on the track.

“These four years have been wonderful and meant everything to me,” Geddis added. “It was one of the best track programs I could have come to. We have outstanding coaches and it is a brotherhood and a sisterhood. We come together as one big family.”

Findlay, 18, also a Pompano Beach senior, said he is still searching for a school and hopes his track performance will help earn him a scholarship to college.

“I love the sport a lot and I am just keeping busy now,” said Findlay, who overcame an injury this season to reach state. “It was frustrating to sit out, but I did all of my therapy and it was great to make it to states.”

The Tigers’ Roderic Wilson was fifth in the 800 meters (1:58.25), while junior Donnell Grant was eighth in the 110-meter hurdles. Findlay was fifth in the 300-meter hurdles (39.31). Senior Robert Williams was 10th in the discus with a 140-08 throw, while fellow Tigers’ senior Jamie Kennedy took 9th in both the long jump (21-10.50) and the triple jump (44-00.50). Blanche Ely finished fourth in the state competition.

By Gary Curreri

Blanche Ely and Highlands Christian Academy raced to their respective regional track championships last week.

For Highlands Christian, it was the first regional track championship in school history, and, defeated defending state champion Westminster Academy. The Knights boys and girls teams will send 15 state qualifiers in 20 events.

Highlands Christian’s Ryan Szklany was a double winner as he captured the 1,600 (4:31.23) and 3,200-meter runs (10:04.18) in the Region 4-1A meet. Highlands Boys placed first with 113 points over defending state champs Westminster Academy, who finished at 88.

Highlands Christian runners that placed second included Hunter Walton (800), Delimar Martina (high jump), Scott Bush (pole vault), Chris Julien (100). Placing third for Highlands was Kenny Armstrong (shot put and discus) and Jake Petersen (110 and 300 hurdles).

On the girls’ side, Sara Carroll won four events (high jump, triple jump, 100 and 300 hurdles). Abby Simpson placed third in the 300 hurdles, while Sydney Blackburn placed third in both the shot and the discus. Highlands girls placed third (72 points) behind South Florida Heat (133 points) and Westminster Christian School (Miami) (98.5 points).

“I am very proud of both the boys and the girls,” said Highlands Christian coach Jarod Ebenhack. “We knew at the end of last year that our boys would be as strong if not stronger than Westminster coming into the season, but we also knew that the athletes at Westminster are seasoned competitors and champions who would not be easy to beat.

“We conditioned hard all year long to make this a reality and we faced some adversity,” added Ebenhack, who lost their top 400-meter runner, Steven Ludwig, to a collapsed lung, and then Elijah Kerr to a broken foot the weekend before regionals. “Those two represented a large amount of points to our team. The team took on the challenge of filling the holes left by the loss of these two senior leaders. Our field events, in particular, rose to the challenge, and scored more points than I was expecting.”

Host Blanche Ely ran away with the boys’ crown in the Region 4-3A meet as it finished with 118-1/2 points. The Tigers’ boys’ 4×800-meter relay set the tone early, as Sueil Foucha, James Walker, Syvenson Noel and Roderic Wilson ran an 8:02.11.

“I’ve got a lot of 12th-graders that really worked hard to get to this point,” said Blanche Ely coach Anthony Jordan. “Last year a few that got to state, they got to state and didn’t do anything. This year they are focused on winning it.”

Blanche Ely senior Jacee Simon won the high jump with a leap of 6 ft., 6 in., while University of Cincinnati football signee, senior Thomas Geddis, won the 200 in 21.54. Ely senior Arthur Forrest placed second in the 100 with a time of 10.88, while Wilson also took second in the 800 (1:56.57).

The top four competitors in each event qualified for the state meet, set for May 6-7 at IMG Academy in Bradenton.

By Gary Curreri

Highlands Christian Academy head track coach Jarod Ebenhack laughs at the notion that the school should invest in a track.

With the success the boys and girls varsity teams have had the past several years, at the very least, it makes for some lighthearted discussion.

“It’s a matter of funding,” said Ebenhack, who has been at the school the past four years and guided the team to three boys district championships in the past four years (2014 they were second) and district titles for the girls in 2013 and 2015. The team was runner-up in 2014 and this year. The girls’ squad this year is composed mostly of middle schoolers, while the boys are made up of mostly upper classmen. “To build a basic track would cost around $300,000.

“If we wanted a really good track, it would run about $700,000,” Ebenhack added. “We have everything else – shot put, pole vault and high jump pits, along with long jump and triple jump pits. We practice on various fields around campus and I actually paint a 400-meter track with all of the marks for hurdles and exchange zones around the football field. I think it makes it easier for us because we train in the grass and on the sand, that we go even faster on a track because we are running on a faster surface.”

The boys’ team suffered a tough blow this weekend as soccer standout Elijah Kerr, who runs the leadoff leg for the region’s second ranked 4×100 relay and is the anchor leg for the top-ranked 4×800 relay, broke his foot playing soccer and is out.

“We have good replacements, but it definitely affects the certainty of our performance when you are putting two guys in there who haven’t practiced it regularly,” Ebenhack said. Until 2013, the boys had never won a district championship in track before.

Sophomore Ryan Szklany is the school’s top distance runner with school records in both the 1,600-meter run (4:28) and the 3,200-meter run (9:44). Senior Hunter Walton just eclipsed the school record in the 800-meter dash (2:03).

Senior Chris Julien, the school record holder in the 100-meter dash (11.07) who finished seventh at state last year after winning the regional title in the 100, could win both the 100 and 200-meter dashes at the regional meet.

Junior Justin Ebenhack is on three relays that have school records and is the district champion in the 400-meter dash; Senior Kenny Armstrong won the district titles in both shot put and discus.

Junior Sara Carroll qualified in four events for states the past two years and is hoping to do the same this year. She is also the school record holder in those events – 100-meter hurdles (15.9), 300-meter hurdles (47.99), triple jump (35-10) and high jump (5-4).

“I think the future is really bright for the girls and they can really be dominant for years to come if they stick together,” said Ebenhack, who had started an elementary school track program a couple of years ago. “The majority of our girls team is middle schoolers.

We have a lot of really good young athletes. We are just going to get better.”

The boys were the top-ranked team headed in the regional. The other teams expected to contend for a regional title are Westminster Academy and the South Florida Heat. The girls were expected to finish in the top 5.

“It’s awesome to see them perform,” said Ebenhack, whose boys cross country team has won four consecutive district titles. “They have caught the vision of what kind of work ethic it takes to do it.

“Originally, I really had to push them,” Ebenhack said. “In the past I really had to push them. I am at the point now where I just give them a workout for the day and they will push each other. They will be cheering on each other. It is exciting to see.”

The team has about 70 athletes in the overall program, including middle school and high schools. They are taking 26 to the regionals. Last year the team took 14 to state, which represented about 10 percent of the student body. There are about 160 students at the school this year.

“I’d like to take most everybody to state this year,” Ebenhack said. “Everything will have to fall into place.”

By Gary Curreri

At 81 years of age, Pompano Beach’s Bob Johnson finally got it right.

Johnson recently used a pitching wedge on the Par-3, 115-yard seventh hole on the Greg Norman Signature Pines Course at the City of Pompano Golf Course to pick up his first ever hole-in-one.

“Was I lucky or what?” asked Johnson, who was playing in the weekly Pompano Beach Men’s Golf Association tournament. “Fifty years I have been playing and I never came close.”

“I just hit it right,” Johnson laughed. “It is pretty amazing for an old bastard like me. The only thing I thought of was that I had good contact. I never thought it was going to be a hole-in-one. It was a thrill. It was a nice feeling, especially after playing all of those years.”

When he returned to the clubhouse, he had to buy drinks for his fellow golfers, as is tradition for someone getting a hole-in-one.

“Of course everybody busted me, I had to buy the drinks for everyone,” Johnson said. “The first thing they said was, ‘buy a drink.’ Thankfully, they don’t drink much. If that happened 50 years ago, I’d probably still be there.”

How does he describe his game?

“Not good,” he chuckled. “I am average player. I play three times a week – Monday, Wednesday and Friday.”

“I haven’t come close since,” Johnson said. “I am lucky if I hit the green.”

Johnson did have one regret.

“I should have said I was on a limited income,” Johnson added. His tab was helped out by a $100 check he received from a hole-in-one fund by the association.

Johnson still loves the camaraderie that the sport brings.

“When you get to a certain age and you don’t work anymore, it is nice to go out and meet friends,” Johnson said. “That’s the fun part about it. I played sports all my life and I enjoy that part.”

Johnson said it was also fun for the family.

“It was fun for my grandkids (Guy, Nick and Patricia) who came down to visit a week later,” Johnson said. “They got a thrill out of it. They are triplets and are 16 years old.”

Harris hired as Highlands gridiron coach

Highlands Christian Academy has hired Josh Harris as its new varsity football coach.

Knight, who is currently teaching at Somerset Canyons in Boynton Beach and attends Boca Glades Baptist Church, played college football at the University of Miami a freshman before he transferred to Tennessee State University.

Harris was the assistant JV football coach at Miami Northwestern Senior High School in 2011; the assistant varsity football/defensive line coach at Doral Academy in 2012. In 2013, Harris was the assistant varsity football/defensive Coordinator for Somerset Academy in Pembroke Pines.

“We are thrilled with Coach Harris accepting the position of Head Football Coach,” said Highlands Christian Academy Athletic Director Jim Good. Harris takes over a Knights program that went 2-7 last fall under interim coaches Sam Oge and Max Fisch. “It’s obvious Coach Harris has a love for the game, but his priorities are in order with God being at the top of the list and then his family.”

Highlands Christian will be competing in a spring jamboree on Thursday, May 19 with Jupiter Christian and Somerset Canyons. Currently, HCA is a member of the Florida Independent Football Conference.

Simply Soccer Camp starts soon

Simply Soccer Camp, which has boys and girls, ages 5-14 of all skill levels, and has attracted children from throughout Broward County, will host its Spring Break Camp at Mullins Park in Coral Springs.

The camp will be held from March 21-25.

There are three sessions ranging from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m.; from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. and a Tiny Tot program from 9 a.m. to noon. Players will be taught a variety of soccer skills from dribbling to shooting.

It is the longest running soccer camp offered by the city. Campers must bring a soccer ball, swimsuit, shin guards, water bottle and lunch. For information on the Coral Springs camp, call 954-345-2200.

By Gary Curreri

After starting off the season 0-3, the Highlands Christian Academy boys basketball team has started to hit its stride.

“Each game we were improving and still trying to establish our identity,” said Knights coach Jim Good, who is in his 19th year at the school and also serves as the school’s athletic director. The team recently won its own, 38th annual Holiday Classic with a dramatic, double overtime, 89-81 victory over King’s Academy. “Early on, I tried to stay positive and encourage the guys. Looking back, we didn’t play a complete game and it was usually one quarter where we would break down.”

“The boys are really starting to buy into the system and it all came together in that championship game,” said Good, whose team last reached the title game when, in 2010, it defeated St. Andrew’s School. “It was by far, our best win of the season!”

The Knights team has now won six of its past seven games and has improved to 6-4 on the season. Reg Cook, former AD and boys varsity basketball coach at Highlands Christian started the Holiday Classic in 1978 in which Highlands won the first of its nine championships.

Knights’ junior point guard Herman Robinson was named the tournament’s MVP as he recorded his first triple-double of his career with 25 points, 11 assists, and 10 rebounds in the championship game.

Robinson also hit the game-tying 3-pointer with 0.8 seconds in regulation to send the game to its first OT.

HCA junior forward Kyle Lassen was named to the All-Tournament team as he scored 24 points and pulled down 10 rebounds, while sophomore shooting guard Matt Veynovich chipped in with 18 points going 5 for 6 from the 3-point line. He had a total of 12 three pointers in the 3-day tournament.

Beating King’s Academy in double overtime was a special moment for Good and the team.

“I’m extremely proud of the guys and their commitment to work, learn and improve,” Good said. “We have a special group this year. Once a week, we have been meeting for team devotions and emphasizing: being unselfish, love your teammate, display self-control, persevere, have a positive attitude. It’s very rewarding to see the guys ‘buy in.’”

Good started coaching the elementary school team in 1997 and is now in his eleventh year with the varsity squad. Robinson and Steven Ludwig are the team’s two captains and have provided excellent leadership, according to Good.

“Herman is leading the team in scoring with 15 points per game, and 6.9 assists,” Good said. “He started playing varsity in the 7th grade. Kyle Lassen has been doing a great job for us in the post and is averaging right around 12 points per game. Sophomore Matt Veynovich, who moved up from JV, has added some much needed scoring to our offense and leads the team in 3s made with a total 22.”

“It’s been very rewarding as a coach to watch our team these past few weeks,” Good added. “During the beginning of the year, we were still trying to find our identity and I think we’ve done that now.”

By Gary Curreri

Former Highlands Christian Academy basketball coach and athletic director Reg Cook first staged a summer basketball camp at the school 30 years ago.

It was attended by 19 athletes and not only is it still ongoing, but it is still going strong. The two weeks brought in 60 campers in the first week (7th-12th graders) and 50 in the second week (2nd-6th grade).

“It was one of our most successful camps in the past 10 years,” said current Highlands Academy basketball coach and athletic director Jim Good. “We had a great group of coaches who provided energy, enthusiasm and quality instruction.”

The high school student/ athletes attended the first week of camp and then acted as assistant coaches for the second week of camp with the elementary school campers and earned community service hours.

There were also two guest speakers – Andrew Smith, a 2011 HCA alum, and Casey Wohleb, who is the head coach at North Broward Prep and also the founder of Ball by Design.

Smith attended both the elementary and high school camp sessions while he attended Highlands Christian, and recently graduated from Liberty University (Big South) where he played for the past years.

Smith is currently in China playing with an All-Star team and will then be traveling to Europe in July to pursue playing professionally in Latvia.

“Andrew’s a great role model for our athletes and did a great job explaining the importance of hard work and sacrifice while trying to achieve your goals,” Good said. “Andrew uses basketball as his platform to proclaim the name of Christ.”

Good was also impressed with Wohleb, who played locally at Westminster Academy where he helped the team win a state title in 2002 as a junior and then transferred to North Broward Prep for his senior year. He went on to play at Florida Gulf Coast University and also professionally overseas.

“Casey was able to come in the afternoon,” Good said. “He provided and led several quality and productive shooting drills.”

A typical morning always started off with a devotion in which several of the coaches were able to provide a spiritual thought and Scripture for the day.

The basketball activities included warm-up runs, stretching, ball handling, dribbling, and speed and agility stations.

The campers were then broken up into specific age groups to work on layups, “cone” drills and shooting. Several Gatorade contests were done throughout the day.

The trophy contests included a 1-on-1 tournament, 2-on-2 tourney, free throw shooting and a Hot Shots Competition.

Campers enjoyed lunch at Chick-Fil-A and CiCi’s Pizza. The day concluded with 5-on-5 full court games in the afternoon.

The coaches included John Wilson (boys elementary head coach/girls varsity assistant), Jim Good (Athletic Director/Boys Varsity Head Coach), Kyle Lassen (11th grade), Josh Good (boys JH head coach), Luke Still (Boys JV head coach), Matt Veynovich (10th grade), Herman Robinson (11th grade), Caris Everette (HCA alumnus 2014) and Danielle Domino (11th grade).

By Gary Curreri

Highlands Christian Academy’s (HCA) sports programs are proving that the future is now as three of its lower school sports team won South Atlantic Coast Conference (SACC) championships recently.

The girls elementary and junior high girls basketball teams were joined by the junior high boys soccer teams as titlists this year.

The girls’ elementary basketball team had an outstanding season finishing 5-1. The Knights squad is composed of 4th and 5th graders, and its lone loss of the season was to Abundant Life, who plays 6th graders on its team.

Brooke Vaccarro led the Knights in scoring and received the Outstanding Contribution Award as she scored 6 of the team’s 8 points in an 8-6 victory over Sheridan Hills in the SACC championship game. It was almost a repeat of the regular season where Highlands, with just four returning players from last season, defeated the Sharks, 7-6.

“I am so proud of my Lady Knights,” said Leslie Shein, who is an alumnus of the school and in her second year as coach. “These girls worked hard, encouraged one another, had great sportsmanship, and finished strong. They practiced hard throughout the season and it paid off!”

The school’s junior high girls basketball program needed to work overtime; however, it also brought home a title.

After dispatching Zion Lutheran, 28-19, in its opening game of the SACC tournament, the Knights were pushed to overtime; however, it prevailed with a 26-23 victory over Sheridan Hills.

“It was a very successful year for our team as we were able to achieve our goal of winning the SACC tournament,” said 5th year coach Scott Lassen, also an HCA graduate. “We had five returning 8th graders who were determined to win it all their final season.”

Seventh grader Raphael Menezes scored the lone goal of the game and fellow 7th grader Jason Thomfhorde recorded his fifth shutout of the season as Highlands Christian Academy blanked Coral Springs Christian, 1-0, for the boys’ junior high SACC title.

It was Menezes’ fourth goal of the season for the Knights, which went from third place in the league to first this year. The team finished the year 10-2.

“I’ve seen a good amount of improvement in the quality of soccer,” said second year coach Daniel Mauro, whose father Darryl is the boys’ varsity coach. “I am very proud of my squad and the boys should be very proud of their achievements, but not satisfied; there is more to come from these guys.”

Kyle Coulson was named the team’s MVP and led the Knights with 10 goals and 6 assists. The Knights were the top seed going into the SACC Tournament and defeated Westminster Academy 4-2 to advance to the championship game.

By Gary Curreri

Sixth-year Highlands Christian Academy girls soccer coach Shelly Wik knew there was no way to go but up after last year’s 2-15 campaign.

“I knew we were going to have a little bit better of a team this year than last year because I have 10 seniors on the team and most of them had played before,” said Wik, whose team is 8-5-2, having quadrupled last year’s win total, and looks forward to playing in the District 13-1A tournament on Jan. 13.

“Our underclassmen are all new,” Wik said. “Of the remaining seven players, I have six of them who had never played before. It is definitely more promising. I have won districts in the past; my second year coaching, and this year’s team is just as good as that team.”

The Knights will face tough district opposition in Westminster Academy, Coral Springs Christian and South Florida Heat.

Wik’s fortunes this year at the school have come from the addition of senior Keisha Nahr and sophomore Sara Carroll.

“To win districts,” Wik said. “We will have to play so much better as a team. Our seniors and some of our key players are going to have to step up. We are getting there. We are getting better and better.”

Wik’s daughter, Kealey, is a senior captain on the squad despite limited experience. She is an outstanding volleyball player.

“We definitely have more heart, said Wik, 17, of Lighthouse Point. “As a team, we have more skill and that always helps. We have gotten a lot better. We had new people who came and they are amazing and that always helps. From the first practice, we were always playing with the team and everyone was trying their best.”

She said transitioning from volleyball to soccer took an adjustment.

“It is very different going from hands all of the time to just playing with my feet,” Wik said, “but I kick the ball pretty far so that is always good.”

Sophomore Sara Carroll, 15, of Coral Springs, said there is a big difference between high school soccer and club soccer.

“In high school, you have a lot more kicking and running,” Carroll said. “It is fun to represent your school. There is pride. We definitely play more as a team the girls who are still here and we have a few new ones that help out a lot.”

Carroll said there is work to do; however, her teammates are willing to learn.

“We have a lot of girls on the team who have never played before, so they take any advice,” Carroll said. “We have a pretty hard district, but I think we can get through if we put our minds to it. It is going to take hard work, people showing up on time to practice and fewer injuries.”

Senior newcomer Keisha Nahr, 18, of Boca Raton, has also provided a lift since moving to Florida in August. She played for the Curacao U20 National team when she was 15.

“I love it,” Nahr said. “The players are great. Everyone works well on the field and, at the end, we all enjoy it. I think we have a pretty good team here. Every team has something they have to work on. At this point in the season, we have done some wins that were pretty much impossible last year, and I think this year we have a good chance to win districts and maybe regionals.”

Local diver wins state title

Pompano Beach High School sophomore Carly Ehrlich overcame a nearly 30-point deficit on her final three dives to capture the Class 2A girls’ 1-meter diving competition at the Sailfish Splashpark Aquatic Athletics Center in Stuart recently.

The 15-year-old Ehrlich scored 432.20 points to win the girls’ 1-meter diving competition as she overtook Megan Galbreath, a junior from Cape Coral High School, who placed second with 425.80 points.

“There are just no words to describe it,” said Ehrlich, who finished fourth at the state meet as a freshman. “I was going into one of the last rounds behind one of my good friends Megan (Galbreath) and, to come out with the win, I have never been so happy in my life. It was amazing.”

Ehrlich, who lives in Ft. Lauderdale, has trained with the Pine Crest Diving team for the past five years. She entered the state competition confident of winning a medal.

“I did think I had a chance to win due to the fact that the girls who beat me last year (Stanton High School’s Carol Gerhardt and Elizabeth Tillo) were seniors, but I knew I really had to be on my game that day to win.”

Ehrlich has won two district titles and a regional crown previously; however, this was her best finish ever. She also became the school’s first state champion in any sport since 1974.

“A win like this is definitely a boost to my confidence,” Ehrlich said. “It also makes me determined to win the next two years.”

By Gary Curreri

Highlands Christian Academy (HCA) showed there is reason to be optimistic as two elementary school and two junior high programs finished on top in their respective leagues.

Daniel Copeland Del Toro and David Jesus each scored a goal as the Knights Elementary School soccer team defeated defending league champion St. Paul Lutheran, 2-0, in the Elementary Soccer League (ESL) championship game to finish the season at 7-1-1. Cameron Brooks earned the shutout.

The 2014 Elementary Soccer League consisted of Abundant Life, Highlands Christian, Sagemont, St. Paul and Trinity.

The Knights of Highlands Christian defeated all the schools during the season except their long-time rival, the Falcons of St. Paul. The first meeting between the two teams ended in an exciting 4-4 tie. The second meeting was for the League Shield and for home field advantage in the playoffs. The two teams battled throughout the regular time with a score of 1-1. After the overtime play, the result was the same, and St. Paul eventually prevailed in penalty kicks.

The Knights defeated the Falcons with a score of 2-0 earning the Champions for the second time of the Elementary Soccer League.

The Junior High School volleyball team ended the year at 11-5 and swept Westminster Academy (WA), 25-20; 25-20 in the finals to take the South Atlantic Coast Conference (SACC) title.

“The Junior High volleyball team of Highlands Christian Academy had a great season,” said Coach Shannon Ratzlaff. “With some big wins over Boca Christian and The King’s Academy, the girls improved significantly throughout the course of the season. It was nice to play WA in the championship game this year as they defeated us for last year’s SACC Championship.”

Knights’ eighth-grader Aiyana Garcia had 12 service points in the second game of the championship to seal the win.

The Junior High School football team completed a perfect season by winning all six of its games, while the HCA Elementary School volleyball team downed Sheridan Hills to win the SACC Championship. The team finished 6-2.