By Gary Curreri

Blanche Ely first year head football coach Nakia Jenkins hopes he has the perfect recipe for success this season.

The first ingredient was discipline. The other things added into the mix will come from the players – hard work and determination.

Jenkins, 38, who was named interim coach for the spring workouts, hopes that label will be gone by the first week of the season.

Jenkins, originally from Belle Glade where he played with former NFLers Fred Taylor and Reidel Anthony at Glades Central High School, started as the offensive coordinator in 2004 at Blanche Ely and returned to the school last year in the same capacity after the team started 0-4. He was the offensive coordinator at his alma mater in 2006-2007 when the team won the Class 3A state championship.

Blanche Ely has made it to the state championship game twice when it finished second in 1987 losing to Tallahassee Godby, 31-3, in the Class 4A game before winning in 2002 in the Class 5A game when it defeated Wharton, 22-10.

This is where I have been off and on.

“This is like being home in Belle Glade,” Jenkins said. “This is like home to me. I like the community. I like what I see. I like the environment. I love it. They want what is best for the kids and I do too.

“We went on a run last year and ended up being district champs,” said Jenkins, who succeeds Charles Hafley as head coach. The team defeated West Boca, 44-20, in the first round of the Class 7A playoffs last year before falling in the regional semifinals to the eventual state champion Dwyer, 49-7.

“We wound up 6-6 and the job just kind of fell in my hands,” Jenkins said. “Coach (Malcolm) Spence (the school’s assistant principal) and Mr. (Karlton) Johnson (the school’s principal) are great friends of mine and I respect those guys to the fullest. They are doing an incredible job here trying to get everything going in the right direction. I got a phone call from them and they said, ‘Coach, we want you to take over the team on an interim basis,’ and, of course, I said, ‘Yes.’ I don’t have to prove myself. They know what I bring to the table. They know I bring discipline first and foremost. I treat the players like they are my own kids.”

Jenkins is relying on several key players this upcoming season, including Therrell Gosier, a 6ft., 7in., 210lb. receiver, who is being highly recruited; Kevin Williams (CB/FS), already committed to West Virginia; wide receivers Laderrick Smith, Thomas Geddis and Terrance Henley, a senior CB. The Tigers also added cornerback George Heck, a transfer from Northeast. They will all be seniors in the fall. (CB).

Junior quarterback Teddrick Moffet will be the key, however.

“He is a three-year starter,” Jenkins said. “He is the anchor of our offense. He is not that tall (5-10), but plays like he is 6-5. He has a great arm.”

Jenkins said the team would have won more games last season if it were disciplined so that has been his focus since he took over. He also brought back long-time Broward County coach Carl Wilburn to be his assistant head coach and defensive coordinator.

“He has been coaching in Broward County for 30 years and, like me, he’s a disciplinarian,” Jenkins said. “Carl is a guy I look up to. We lost some kids from last year, but the coaches I brought in know these kids and have a good relationship with them. I think that was really big for us.”

Jenkins said he also realizes there are expectations from the community. Blanche Ely has produced 12 players – third most in Florida, who has been drafted by the National Football League, including this year’s selection of Jabari Price by the Minnesota Vikings in the seventh round.

“There is no pressure,” Jenkins said. “My motto has always been getting the most out of the kids. Ely has never been a football school. They have won some ball games, but for us to get in the playoffs and win a state championship would be huge. That would be the exclamation point.”

“A lot of people know me in the community and they want to see what I have done and what changes I have made,” Jenkins added. “We have great support. We have a booster club now that we haven’t had in a number of years. The support from the community has been great to this point, and I couldn’t ask for anything better, so my return to them is win some ball games. They are going to put the time in for the kids, and it is a good situation, and the best I can do is win some games.”

By Gary Curreri

Zion Lutheran first-year coach Ray Ayala said his baseball team exceeded expectations this season.

The Lions (16-10-1) recently completed their season with a hardfought, 10-4 loss in 11- innings against visiting Miami Brito last week.

Miami Brito Miami scored six runs in the top of the 11th inning to snap a 4-4 tie as the Panthers won the Region 4-2A final and denied the Lions their first trip to the state semifinals in school history for the second consecutive season.

Zion Lutheran lost 11-0 to the eventual state champion, Westwood Christian, in the Class 2A regional finals last season. Jose Rodriguez pitched six innings in relief of Lions’ starter Blayne Baker to keep Zion Lutheran in the game. The team rallied from a 4-1 deficit to force extra innings with three runs in the bottom of the sixth. Ivan Ortiz’s RBI single tied the game at 4-4.

“We were very fortunate to get it tied,” said first year Lions coach Ray Ayala, who came over from Somerset Academy this season. “We had some opportunities, but we didn’t get it done.”

There were only two players back from last year’s team (Baker and Manny Rojas). Baker finished the season 6-4 on the mound, while Rojas batted .509 for the season and led the team with 35 RBI.

“We played in two early season tournaments and went 0-6-1 in them,” Ayala said. “Honestly, if you go back to February, you will see we had a whole bunch of individuals. I put them in over their heads. It took us three months to become a family and we had won nine in a row since then. We had to find a way to have them come together.”

“When I first took a look at it, I thought there was something to build there,” Ayala said. “There was nothing there. The cupboard was bare so to speak. I figured two to three years we could build something. As you can see, we moved at a little bit faster pace.”

Ortiz, who was a catcher at Olympic Heights last season, joined the team this season along with shortstop Jose Rodriguez and outfielder Joseph Renovales, who came over from Coral Glades High School.

“They all know each other from playing summer ball together,” Ayala said. “We inherited five other kids from other schools.”

Ayala said the slow start showed the team there was work to do.

“It made us realize that one through nine we weren’t better than anybody,” Ayala said. “If we played as a team, we could beat anybody. That’s where all of our losses came from and that was the turning point going through those tournaments learning that we could not win individually; we could only win collectively; once we stopped worrying about stats and worrying about who plays, our practices became more geared toward team drills and we were successful as a team and turned the corner.”

Ayala believes the program has a bright future. Ayala said parents who are interested in bringing their sons to the program are already contacting him.

“I am already getting calls of interest,” Ayala said. “Parents are getting calls from other parents and telling them they want to switch schools, so that is definitely getting us on the map. We are getting a reputation that we play hard and I am fair to the kids.

By Gary Curreri

Three was the lucky number for the Pompano Beach Bengals girls track team at the Broward County Middle School Track and Field meet recently at South Plantation High School.

Three members of the girls track team won their respective events and helped the Bengals take third in the meet with 48 points. Lauderdale Lakes was first with 73 points, while William Dandy was second with 66 points. The Pompano Middle School boys also took third in the meet with 27 points. Lauderdale Lakes (70.50) and William Dandy (49) were first and second, respectively, as well.

Carshaylah Harrison (high jump) and sisters Dominique Spann (1,600-meter run) and Daishon Spann (800-meter run) each won their events to pace the team.

Harrison, 14, of Pompano Beach, successfully defended her title in the high jump with a personal best jump of 5-ft.

“I’ve been doing track since the first grade,” Harrison said. “I like that you have to be dedicated. It’s a fun sport and you make a lot of friends. Fivefeet was my goal coming into the meet and clearing it gives me confidence. Even though I didn’t win the 400, I am still happy with what I got.

Dominique Spann, 11, a sixth grader at the school, won the 1,600-meter run with a time of 5:41.85. Her older sister, Daishon, a seventh grader, repeated in winning the 800- meter run with a personal best time of 2:20.80.

“It is important to carry on the family tradition,” said Dominique, who is the third youngest of six siblings. She laughed when she said they take her phone away from her when she doesn’t run well. “I have a lot of pressure on me. I just have to try my hardest and get a better time.”

Daishon Spann said it was important to repeat the 800- meter champion.

“I had to show people that it wasn’t just luck,” said Daishon Spann, who trimmed five seconds off her personalbest time this year of 2:25.33 with a 2:20.80. “I have a good rivalry with my siblings. It’s good. We go back and forth with, ‘I can beat you.’ We support each other a lot. It was good to know that I sort of had an impact on (Dominique) winning and, when she won, it gave me motivation to win because I knew she would give it back to me at home.”

Pompano Beach Middle’s girls also had Takiyah Johnson (400-meter dash, 4th and 200- meter dash, 8th), Harrison (400-meter dash, 5th) and Dominique Spann (discus, 4th) make the finals.

Pompano’s girls’ relays teams took second in the 4×400-meter relay and seventh in the 4×100-meter relay. Pompano’s boys were led by Marquis Williams (100- meter dash, 4th), Giovanni Campbell (200-meter dash, 4th), Allen Escuage (800- meter run, 2nd), Rayan Miller (1,600-meter run, 6th) reach the finals.

Pompano’s boys’ relays teams took second in the 4×200-meter relay; fifth in the 4×100-meter relay and eighth in the 4×400-meter relay.

TEJADA NAMED ALL-STATE

Blanche Ely point guard Lance Tejada II was recently named first-team all-state in Class 7A by the Florida Association of Basketball Coaches (FABC) and Source Hoops.

Tejada, who was a starter on Ely’s 2012-13 state championship team, averaged 23.3 points per game as a senior, which was nearly double his scoring average from his junior season. Tejada, who signed with East Carolina, also averaged five assists and three rebounds in leading the Tigers to the regional semifinals.

By Gary Curreri

Deerfield Beach’s Jackson McKenna’s life was nearly over before it started. At 5- months old, he was diagnosed with biliary (tract) ectasia and needed a life-saving liver transplant.

“He got his liver on Feb. 17, 2001 and he’s been healthy ever since, and, every two years, he competes in the Transplant Games of America,” said McKenna’s father, Brian. “It is Olympic style events for any person who has received an organ transplant. This summer, it is being held in Texas.”

McKenna, 13, who has competed in the Transplant Games of America since 2002, said it is fun meeting other athletes from around the country. He has also been quite successful. Two years ago, he competed in Michigan and won six gold medals – in biking, relay race, basketball, softball throw, long jump and the 100-meter dash.

“It’s pretty amazing to be where I am,” said McKenna, a Deerfield Beach Middle School seventh grader. He has played in the Deerfield Beach Little League since he was 6 and is currently a member of the Indians’ 50/70 team. “I’m not allowed to play contact sports now. I would like to someday compete against (able-bodied) athletes.”

The Transplant Games of America include track and field, swimming, table tennis, cycling, long jump and the softball throw.

McKenna takes medications daily and goes for blood work every three months. He competes against athletes in his own (13-15 year-old) age group this year.

Brian McKenna said they did blood matches and he was a match for his son.

“If they did not find a donor where he could receive a transplant, I would have been able to donate a partial liver to him,” Brian said. “We were fortunate enough to find a partial donor.”

Team Florida typically has between 40 and 50 athletes from throughout the state. There is a South Florida chapter.

“It’s really cool to meet other people every two years,” said McKenna, who is part of Team Florida and has met others from around the state who also compete. He enjoys going to different places and meeting everybody. So far, he has competed in Michigan, Texas, Wisconsin, Orlando, Minnesota, Kentucky and Pittsburgh in the Transplant Games.

McKenna has also fared well on the baseball diamond as they finished second in the Major Division last year after winning the District 10 title two years ago in the Majors Division.

He’s won a couple of dozen medals and said his last trip to the National Games netted his biggest cache of medals.

“Winning a gold medal is better than winning a baseball title,” said McKenna, who was the youngest participant in his first Transplant Games in Orlando in 2002 at 18 months as he competed in the softball throw. “It is really cool and I am very proud of my accomplishments because I can help other people by raising awareness.”

The Transplant Games showcase the success of transplantation and call attention to the life saving importance of organ donation, and honors organ donors and their families.

“We are so thankful each and every day for the gift of life that our son was given,” said Jackson’s mother, Jina McKenna. “Our donor and donor family are always in our hearts.”

If anyone is interested in making donations to Team Florida and Jackson for the 2014 Games, they can make a tax-deductible donation to: Tiger Transplant Fund, 934 N. University Dr., #251, Coral Springs, FL, 33071. In the memo section of the check, please write “Games/Jackson McKenna.”

By Gary Curreri

James Forbes was looking to get his wrestlers some valuable experience at the recent Irish Fair Wrestling Tournament at Chaminade Madonna High School in Hollywood.

Forbes, who along with Bob Burns has coached the Deerfield Beach BSO-PAL wrestling team for the past 11 years, brought four grapplers to the tournament and came away pleased.

“The biggest thing was to get them mat time and more experienced,” said Forbes, who won the tournament as a heavyweight in 1970 when he was a kid. “The more they wrestle, the more accomplished they are. We also wanted to keep the tradition going.”

Forbes wrestled then for tournament director Ron Schulz. There are currently 21 wrestlers in the PAL wrestling program, ranging from seventh grader to 12th graders.

“He had the only wrestling club in the county back then, and he was the head coach at BCC (Broward Community College),” Forbes said. “What I like about this tournament is that it levels the playing field.”

“It is really nice because they can gauge how they are doing against kids who are relatively the same experience,” Forbes added. “We have a kid who was academically ineligible for the high school season, so he only got in four matches last year. Now, he gets some more.”

Deerfield Beach’s Andrew Torres, 16, fell in the 220-lb. final to Seahorse Wrestling Club’s Carlos Osterling, a sophomore at Cypress Bay High School. It was a solid performance for Torres, who has been wrestling for two years.

“It is not like any other sport,” Torres said. “It’s just different. It requires a lot more of you and the payoff is a lot better than most sports. People think you are not on the mat that long because it is only six minutes, but it is the hardest six minutes you will ever have in your life … This is six minutes straight, nonstop. This is my first time wrestling this tournament so I was happy with how I did.”

Deerfield Beach’s Ryan Sills, 16, lost his semifinal match to Seahorse Wrestling Club’s Grant Bussenbarrick, a junior at Cypress Bay; however, he was happy with the experience.

“It was my first tournament since regionals and I fell short of state,” said Sills, a sophomore at Deerfield Beach High School. “My success has been quantified at a level that I don’t think could have been reached without Coach James Forbes and Coach Bob Burns. You get what you put in and I have gotten out a lot. I am definitely qualifying for state next year in high school. It is not even a goal … It’s a necessity.”

For more information on the program, contact BSO Deputy Butch Santy at 954- 778-0174.

By Gary Curreri

Pompano Beach High School’s Erin Sundook said the five seniors on the softball team are hoping to go out with a bang.

Sundook, 18, of Pompano Beach, along with fellow seniors Sabrina Akrouk, Marissa Lamberti, Noelle McGuire and Stephanie Obando have started and played for the Tornadoes since their freshman season.

“This is our last year and we want to leave with a bang,” said Sundook, the team’s leading hitter and star catcher. “We always hit that roadblock in American Heritage-Plantation in the regional semifinals. Our ultimate goal is to knock that roadblock down. We have been doing really good and have just four losses on the season and that is amazing.”

Sundook, who is committed to attend Miami Dade College next season, has played softball since she was 8 and said it has always been her goal to play in college. For now, she will settle on taking out American Heritage- Plantation in the playoffs.

Sundook said this could be the best team they have had since she’s been at the school. “The senior class is huge,” Sundook said. “We have five seniors who have started all four years on varsity and we have been so close and we all know how to play together. I think we are molding well and fitting together and I think our pitcher (Jessica Abramson), who is only a junior, has stepped up great this year. She didn’t get much playing time last year and, this year, she has just proven herself tremendously.”

“There is one thing about this team that we do not give up,” Sundook said. “Sometimes, things don’t go our way, but if you don’t stop fighting, you won’t find success. Our offense has to be on to beat Heritage.”

Pompano High coach John McGuire took over the head coaching job last month and has guided the Tornadoes (14- 5) to a 7-1 record. The team was 7-4 when he took over. McGuire has been with the program for four years and his daughter, Noelle, is the starting second baseman for the team.

“The girls all get along,” McGuire said. “There is no animosity. I keep it a little light and they have fun, but they work hard. They go to the baseball team’s games together. There is good team unity.”

There are six travel programs represented on the team and McGuire said there are probably 4 or 5 girls that have played rec softball together since they were young. The team opens District 15-5A play on April 14 at Archbishop McCarthy. Pompano Beach lost earlier in the season to American Heritage- Plantation, 9-0, and said they are still searching for not only their first win over the team, but its first run.

Since 2010, the Tornadoes are 0-10 against American Heritage-Plantation and have been outscored 81-4. The last time Pompano Beach scored against the Patriots was Feb. 22, 2010 in a 7-4 loss. It scored four runs in the sixth inning in that contest, but, since that time, the Tornadoes have been blanked 74-0. “It is going to take an error free, whole team effort,” McGuire said. “We are going to sock the giant sooner or later. They all want to do it. In four years, it has always been a battle and they are getting closer and closer every year. I tell them we are going to get there.”

“We haven’t crossed the plate against them in four years,” added McGuire, who is 7-0 since taking over as head coach a month ago. “I think they are sensing urgency, especially the seniors. Last year, we lost two seniors in our pitcher (Danielle Conboy) and shortstop (Gina Daigle). That was the best core we’ve had. Some of our girls this year have really stepped up.” McGuire said Abramson is one of them going 8-4 on the mound this season for the Tornadoes. McGuire’s daughter, Noelle, is headed to Lake Sumter State College in Florida, while first baseman Sabrina Akrouk is also still being looked at by several colleges.

By Gary Curreri

Junior pitcher Mitchell Carroll pitched a complete game, no-hitter, as Highlands Christian Academy’s baseball team topped host Calvary Christian, 6-0, in the championship game of the 4Him Classic during Spring Break.

“I don’t remember if I have thrown a no-hitter before,” said Carroll, 17, of Coral Springs, who received the tournament’s Outstanding Pitcher award. “I just compete against the execution of the pitch and control the things I can control. It is always nice to win a championship.”

Carroll ran his season record to 4-1 as he finished with 11 strikeouts in the contest in which he faced just three batters over the minimum. The victory avenged a 5-3 loss to the Eagles earlier in the season.

Senior second baseman Quinsley Balentine, 18, of Deerfield Beach, was awarded the MVP Award as he batted .500 for the tourney. Balentine went 3 for 4 with 2 RBIs to lead the eight hit attack in the championship game.

“We became more disciplined mid-game at the plate and more patient,” said Highlands Christian Academy coach Bruce Charlebois, who is in his eighth year at the school. “We laid off the breaking ball out of the zone and let the game come to us.”

Charlebois said the bottom of his lineup also came through in the clutch, which was key to the title. Aryton Barbolina, James McGrath and Kyle Bombardier all had solid production in the tournament from the 7, 8 and 9 spots in the lineup.

Highlands Christian got the only run it needed in the top of the sixth when Drexler Macaay and Balentine reached on an error. After Macaay was caught stealing, Saul Velez doubled to left to score Balentine for a 1-0 lead.

The Knights put the game away with five runs with one out in the top of the seventh. Bombardier reached on a third strike passed ball and Kirvin Moesquit had a RBI double to score Bombardier for a 2- 0.

Moesquit stole third and both Bernedley Martina and Macaay both walked.

Balentine followed with a single to center to score Moesquit and Martina, and Macaay moved to third on the hit. Macaay scored and Balentine advanced to second on a wild pitch. Balentine stole third and scored on a groundout.

Highlands Christian opened the tournament with a 13-1 victory over Dade Christian and followed that up with a 6-1 win over Northeast in the second contest.

“We are exactly where we need to be at this point of the season, sitting 11-5 and gaining ground on our character, conditioning and chemistry,” Charlebois said. “It was the first goal of four goals we set for a championship season. We wanted to win the Spring Break tournament and the next three are districts, regionals and states. I am confident that we will make our annual strong run at the end.”

Highlands Christian Academy is currently 11-5 overall and 4-2 in the highly competitive District 14-3A, which includes Coral Springs Christian, Jupiter Christian, Lake Worth Christian, Oxbridge Academy, Trinity Christian and Westminster Academy.

“This is by far the toughest district that we have faced and I have to believe one of the strongest divisions in the state,” said Charlebois, whose team lost in the Class 1A regional finals in 2010 to state runnerup Miami Brito and in 2008 to the eventual state Class 2A champion, Westminster Christian, also in the regional final.

Coral Springs Christian will host the district tournament beginning on April 24.

“If we win this (district) and get home field advantage,” Charlebois added, “I like our chances to take care of the unfinished business from 2008 and 2010.”

Highlands Christian will travel to play Pope John Paul II on Saturday at 4 p.m. in a rematch of last year’s regional quarterfinal.

By Gary Curreri

Mattheus Santos has been swimming since he was 4 years old and loves everything about it. It could be because he is very good at it as well.

The 12-year-old Santos recently finished 7th in the Boys 11-12 Division for high point with 48 points in the Florida Gold Coast 14 and Under Junior Olympics at the Michael Lohberg Pool of Champions in Coral Springs.

His performance helped his Pompano Beach Piranhas Swim Team take 13th overall with a combined total of 216 points. The boys finished 11th with 101 points, while the girls took 10th overall with 115 points.

“It’s fun racing and it depends how much effort you put into it,” said Santos, a Sunrise Middle School 7th grader. “My goal coming into the meet was to go as fast as I could and I hoped to make finals.”

Mission accomplished. Santos made finals in six events and finished in the top four in most of them.

“I want to go as far as swimming will take me … college and maybe the Olympics,” Santos said. “I have to put in a lot of effort in training and lots of pain.”

Santos estimated he would do 8,000 to 10,000 yards of swimming during a normal week of practice. It certainly paid off.

“I’m really happy with how I did in the meet,” Santos said. “On a scale from 1-10, I’d have to say a 9.”

Another Piranhas swim team member, Victoria Miyamoto, had a solid meet, as she also placed in the top five in the high points in her division. Miyamoto, 14, took fifth in the Girls 13-14 Division with 49 points.

South Florida Aquatic Club (SOFLO) won its fourth consecutive combined team championship. SOFLO dominated the three-day meet at the Michael Lohberg Pool of Champions in Coral Springs with 1,165.50 points as the only team to break the 1,000- point barrier. Their closest rival was Metro Aquatics (617.50 points).

Pine Crest (608.50) was third, while Azura Florida Aquatic (584.50) and Coral Springs Swim Club (324) rounded out the top 10 for Broward programs in the combined race with a fourth and eighth place finish, respectively. The 14 and Under Junior Olympics followed up another event that the local swim team hosted weeks earlier. The Pompano Piranhas held its annual Friendship Invitational, which attracted more than 300 swimmers from 10 swim clubs in the tri-county area.

Pompano Piranhas head coach Jesse Vassallo, a former Olympian and multi-world record holder in the sport, said the meet serves as a showcase for swimming skills and the cultural diversity of the swimmers.

“Here in South Florida,” Vassallo noted, “we have swimmers from every culture imaginable, and everyone gets along no matter where they’re from. This sport helps you make friends from everywhere.”

“We want to see the event grow to around 700 swimmers and become a real international swim meet,” Vassallo said. “This is a threeday event, and it takes a whole team to pull this off.”

Miyamoto and Santos were also high point winners in that meet. Miyamoto won the Girls 13-14 Division with 133 points, while Santos topped the Boys 11-12 Division with 132 points.

Metro Aquatic Club of Miami took top honors in the combined team scoring with 5,166 points, while the Piranhas were runner-up with 2,613.50. Swim Fort Lauderdale (1,381.50) was third, while St. Andrew’s Swim Club (1,077.50) and the Miami Beach Seahawks (543.- 50) finished fourth and fifth, respectively.

By Gary Curreri

Cam Thomas hopes to build on the history his flag football team made last season.

The fourth-year Deerfield Beach flag football coach led the Bucks to its first-ever district championship before it fell 14-12 to Atlantic in the first round play-in game of the post season. Thomas, who returns 10 of 14 players from last year’s team, is gunning for another trip to the postseason.

“My main thing is making it to the district playoffs,” said Thomas, whose team is 1-2 following Tuesday’s 21-20 overtime loss to host Monarch. The Bucks needed four overtimes to defeat Monarch 12-6 in last year’s district championship.

Deerfield Beach opened the season with a 36-6 victory over Coral Springs and lost another heartbreaker, 13-6, to Hollywood Hills.

The team is in a totally different district this season. Monarch and North Broward Prep, two perennial county powers, remain in the district; however, Coconut Creek, Pompano and Blanche Ely have been added. The top four teams make the district playoffs.

Thomas is counting on big seasons from junior Stefaterra Boykins, seniors Courtney Lee, Darrion Cowart, Justice Thomas (no relation).

“Teams prepare for one person, but they might get a different person who’s hot,” Thomas said. “We have athletes who can all play quarterback or different positions on the field.”

“One of the things we have to fix is the intensity,” Thomas said. “Some of the girls are a little too relaxed when we play. Last year, I had a ‘blue collar’ team that would grind, get bloody, dirty, and this team is a little too relaxed. We make plays, but they are too relaxed at times.”

Thomas was pleased with his team’s effort against Monarch as it rallied from a 14-6 deficit heading into the fourth quarter to force overtime. Lee, Cowart and Boykins all scored in the game.

With three games down in the 11-game regular season, Thomas gives his team a grade of C-plus.

“Today, they didn’t give up and, against Hollywood Hills, they didn’t give up,” Thomas said. “They’ve got fight, which is good. If you add in a little more intensity, they’ll be fine.”

Thomas said the early season losses would help his team get better.

“They don’t like the feeling now,” Thomas said. “They know they are much better than what they are showing on the field. We just have to put it together.”

“This whole team is athletic, and I wouldn’t be taking them to Orlando if they weren’t good,” Thomas said of his team’s upcoming April 4 game against state powerhouse, Dr. Phillips. “They are one of the top teams in the state. We want to get exposure for the girls. We want everybody in Florida to know that South Florida has good teams behind the Seminole Ridge’s and the Miramar’s.”

Bucks take second

The Deerfield Beach High School softball team finished second in last Saturday’s consolation finals at the Gulliver Prep Slamfest in Pinecrest. The Bucks advanced to the finals by beating Lourdes High 13-12 in a come-from-behind thriller during which the lead changed 10 times. The Lady Bucks racked up 13 hits including a bases-loaded double by Coral Galpine in the fourth inning.

Sarah Strothman, Karli Shoop, Vika Chursina, Coral Galpine and Annalissa Silva all hit over .500 in the tournament.

By Gary Curreri

Jordan Murphy loves fighting.

The Deerfield Beach teenager recently won his third national Silver Gloves boxing championship and said he plans to join the military when he turns 18 and fight for his country.

Murphy, a 14-year-old eighth grader at Lyons Creek Middle School in Coconut Creek, and a member of the Broward Sheriff’s Office’s Police Athletic League (PAL) boxing program, recently won top honors as in the 80-lb., 14/ 15 age division at the National Silver Gloves boxing tournament in Independence, Missouri when he defeated Patrick Fair (Ohio) by unanimous decision.

Murphy has three national titles (2010 National Junior Golden Gloves, 2013 Ringside World and now 2014 National Silver Gloves), in addition to four state and four regional titles just for the silver gloves tournaments. He has also accumulated several Junior Olympic state titles and Police Athletic League titles.

“I absolutely believed I would win the championship,” said Murphy, who will compete in the upcoming State Golden Gloves competition on March 27-29 in West Palm Beach and the State Junior Olympics competition in Boca Raton on April 12.

“I knew that I worked hard and that I worked hard for a reason and that was to win,” said Murphy, who has been boxing in the PAL program in Deerfield Beach for the past six years. “Boxing has taught me to behave in school and not to let anything get to you. It has also taught me to work hard to achieve what you want.”

Murphy trains three days a week (Monday, Wednesday, Friday) for 1-1/2 hours each day. He said the rigorous training gives him confidence when he is about to go one-on-one with his opponent.

“When I walk in the ring I am a little nervous at first,” said Murphy, who has compiled a 52-8 record. “As soon as the bell rings, I know that I have confidence in myself that I am going to win the fight most of the time.”

It was redemption of sorts for Murphy who fought a close fight last year in the finals of the 75-lb., 12/13 age division, but dropped a split decision to Malik Nelson (New Jersey).

Murphy competed in a series of national boxing competitions and came out as the national champ for his class. Murphy trained extensively with his coach, Steve Collazo, and had to win several local and regional boxing matches in order to make it to the nationals.

“Jordan has worked long and hard to achieve one goal, to be the best,” said his coach, Collazo. “He was very determined to win this year, especially after falling short in the finals last year.”

In order to reach the nationals, Murphy captured the Silver Gloves State Tournament in early December 2013 in Ft. Pierce, making him the Florida State Silver Glove 80 lb., 14- 15 years-of-age champ. Murphy then won the Regional Silver Gloves competition in early January in Maryland, making him the Region 3 champ to advance to the Silver Gloves Nationals held in Independence, Missouri.

When he turns 18, Murphy is going to be fighting a bigger cause.

“I am going to join the military and box in the military before I go pro,” Murphy said. “I want to help our country out and fight for freedom and our rights. I kind of think about that when I go into the ring now.”

Murphy also plays baseball in the Junior Division of the Deerfield Beach Little League. He is a pitcher and shortstop for the White Sox and has been on the diamond for the past seven years.

“I like boxing more,” Murphy said.

Collazo said BSO’s Police Athletic League provides youths an opportunity to stay out of trouble by participating in sports and other activities after school or during the summer.

The activities are structured to attract all youths regardless of their previous athletic abilities. PAL’s goal is to provide them with activities that build character and self-esteem, foster positive relationships, enhance self-awareness and promote good citizenship.

All PAL programs are free of charge. All participants must be currently in a school or home schooled. For more information, contact BSO Deputy Butch Santy at 954-778-0174.