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

With 20 returning seniors from last season, it wasn’t the season that Blanche Ely High School football coach Nakia Jenkins had hoped for; so, after careful thought, he told his players and administrators last week that he was resigning.

Jenkins, who finished 2-9 this season and 8-14 in two seasons as the Tigers head coach, did manage to reach the playoffs in both seasons. The Tigers lost to Atlantic, 21-13, in the first round of the Class 7A playoffs last year and Dwyer, 16-14, this season.

“I think it’s best for myself and the community that I move in another direction,” Jenkins said. “I think it’s best for my family and health to step away from the game of football.”

Ridley decides

Cavin Ridley is going from being a Buck to a Bulldog.

The Deerfield Beach High School senior receiver decided on the University of Georgia, surprising many who thought he would go to the University of Alabama, where he would join his older brother, Calvin, a freshman receiver and major contributor on the national championship squad.

“This was by far the hardest decision I’ve had to make in my life,” Ridley wrote on Twitter. “As you all have seen, I have really struggled to choose between some amazing universities with outstanding football programs. I took a step back to go over my recruiting options and take an in-depth second look at all the schools on my final list.”

The four-star recruit is regarded as one of the top skilled players in the country and briefly committed to South Carolina before switching to Georgia two days later. Ridley helped the Bucks win the District 11-8A title this past season. Deerfield Beach fell to the eventual state champion, Flanagan, 17-0, in the Class 8A Regional championship contest.

Local cheer teams qualify for state

Several local high school cheerleading teams are headed to the Florida High School Athletic Association state finals following their recent performances in the Region 4 tournament at Dillard High School.

Blanche Ely had the highest finish of the local teams as it placed 6th in the Large Non-Tumbling Division, while Pompano Beach and Deerfield Beach placed 12th and 13th , respectively, in the Small Non-Tumbling Division at the competition. The three teams all scored at least 60 points and are headed to the state semifinals.

The Small Non-Tumbling, Small Varsity, Medium Varsity competitions will be held on Friday, Jan. 29, while the Large Non-Tumbling, Large Varsity, Extra Large Varsity, Small Co-Ed and Large Co-Ed competitions are on Saturday, Jan 30.

Beach soccer tourney slated

The South Florida United Youth Soccer League will host its inaugural SFUYSA Beach Soccer Tourney on March 12-13 on Pompano Beach.

The tournament, which is coordinated by Pro-Am Beach Soccer, will feature all divisions and age groups from youth to men, women and co-ed.

The tournament format will consist of Micro Soccer, 4v4 (4 field players, no goalie and small goals will be used); the Under-9 division plays 6v6 (5 field players, one goalie), while all other divisions play 5v5 (4 field players, one goalie).

The first place will receive a team trophy and player medals, while second place teams will receive player medals.

For more information, call 415-308-0603.

By Gary Curreri

With 20 senior players returning from last year’s squad, Blanche Ely football coach Nakia Jenkins believes that his team will fix last year’s late-game woes.

Jenkins, in his second season at the helm of the Tigers football team, said his team has a wealth of experience.

“Last year, we had a lot of talent, but we were young,” said Jenkins, whose team finished 6-4 with three losses in the closing moments of games. “We are returning about 20 seniors this year that played last year so we are really senior heavy this year with a lot of experience. That should be our plus this year. We should know how to finish ball games.”

The Tigers reached the first round of the FHSAA Class 7A state playoffs where it fell to visiting Atlantic, 21-13, in the closing moments, much like two other losses during the season to Miami Northwestern (23-20) and Plantation (31-23).

“Last year, we lost three games in the last minute and a half that we were winning,” Jenkins said. “We should have easily been 9-1 last year instead of 6-4.”

“It still stings,” Jenkins added. “It is going to sting probably until our first regular season game. We have about 15-20 players who contributed last year and helped us out.”

Jenkins will need to get some rapid growth from an inexperienced offensive line; however, they will have three strong running backs to run behind them, including Arthur Forest, Demeterice Bellamy and Robert Williams. Quarterback Zackery Purdue also returns and has talented wide out Thomas Geddis to throw to.

“The offense is going to be loaded,” Jenkins said. “A couple of other wide receivers who are going to help us are Jeremy Taylor and Leonard Williams.”

Defensively, look for senior David Francis to lead the way.

“He’s a leader, captain and three-year starter,” Jenkins said. “He knows where everybody should be.”

Purdue is looking forward to the season.

“This year, I am more confident,” he said. “Last year, I didn’t really read my coverages and go through my progressions. This year, we are loaded with seniors and we are going to be a better team.”

Bellamy, 17, a senior in his fourth year at the school, said he’s excited for the season.

“I have to prove a lot of people wrong,” said the 5-ft., 6-in., 165 lb. running back. “They underestimate me. They say I am too small and not fast enough, and not strong enough. I have been doing two-a-days, and sometimes three times on weekends.”

The 18-year-old Geddis agreed and said the seniors could make the difference.

“We have a lot of guys who are going to go out there and compete and go hard, and are very experienced,” Geddis said. “Being seniors, it makes you want to go harder. Our coach says you only got one game and you have to take every game like it is your last high school game.”

Geddis, who received 18 college offers during the spring, said last year’s tight losses were frustrating and they will look to change that this season.

“You don’t have the time to come back and redo the mistakes you made,” Geddis said. “You have to go 110 (percent) on every play and just know that you are putting everything on the line.”

Jenkins said the team would have to fight through adversity.

“What I am teaching my guys now is football in four quarters,” Jenkins said. “It is not three quarters and we have to finish until the last whistle blows. That is the one thing that we are teaching day in and day out. It is fighting to the last whistle. If we do that this year, we should be in the thick of things this year.”

By Gary Curreri

So much for déjà vu. For the first half of Tuesday night’s regional semifinal game against Dwyer, it looked like history was going to repeat itself as the visiting Panthers took a 35-26 halftime advantage against the host Blanche Ely boys basketball team.

That was until Ely, ranked No. 7 in the nation in the USA Today Super 25 Expert Rankings, outscored the visitors 49-21 in the second half, including 26-11 in the fourth quarter, and roared to a 75-56 win in the Class 7A regional semifinal and advance to the regional final on Saturday against Miami Central.

The Tigers ran off 27 consecutive wins in the 2009- 2010 season before Dwyer ended the Tigers’ season with a 70-57 victory in the regional semifinal. It was something that Blanche Ely coach Melvin Randall didn’t let his team forget.

“This was a personal game, very personal,” said Randall, whose team improved to 25-0 with the win. “I briefly mentioned it to them, but I didn’t have to use it as a motivational tool.”

Therrell Gosier led the way with a game-high 17 points, while LaQuincy Rideau and Diandre Wilson each had 16 points, and Javon Heastie added 12 points in the win for the Tigers, who are hoping to win its third state championship in four years.

“The pressure feels like the Coach K situation of trying to win that 1,000th game,” said Randall, referring to Duke University coach Mike Krzyzewski, who recently became the first D-1 college coach to win 1,000 career games. Randall has compiled a 499-141 career coaching record and is in his 14th year at the school and 21st overall. “Knowing where we are and how high we are ranked … with a target on your back, you know it is going to get harder and harder, especially during the playoffs.”

“My thing is I have to keep my kids very humble and focused, and also hungry,” Randall said. “With the exception of Cardinal Gibbons, we have been winning our games by double digits and we just have to take it gameby- game.”

Randall won state titles in 1997 with Deerfield (Class 5A) and his win in 1999 (Class 6A) came at the expense of his current school Ely, 77-69. After moving over to Ely, Randall won state titles in 2007 (Class 6A), 2012 (Class 7A) and 2013 (Class 7A).

“We have to have a sense of urgency and also increase the level of intensity,” Randall said. “We’ll be fine.”

The Tigers finished 21-5 last season, including four losses to Boyd Anderson and once to Cardinal Gibbons in the Big 8. Blanche Ely lost in regional semifinal to Boyd Anderson last season, 61-54. Randall said it would be special to run the table for the school’s first undefeated season and a state title.

“It is all these kids,” Randall said. “They are working hard and they are training. They are hungry and, as a result, they are getting these little benefits from these games that we are playing.

“We can run the table,” he added. “I don’t think they realize they have already made history in being ranked as high as they are and I believe that is the highest ranking in the history of Broward County, if I am not mistaken. We still want to get to Lakeland, and we want to go undefeated. We can’t turn back.”

By Gary Curreri

Blanche Ely High School senior Therell Gosier is headed to the University of Miami next year to play football. He still has a few items to cross off his bucket list before he graduates.

Gosier, 19, of Pompano Beach, is hoping to keep the Tigers boys’ basketball team on track for an undefeated season. Blanche Ely entered this week’s action at 15-0.

“I knew we would be this good, but I didn’t think we’d be this good early,” said the 6-7, 210-lb. center. “We still have a couple of kinks we still have to work out.

“We are trying to do something special,” added Gosier, who averages 14.6 points and 8.5 rebounds a game. “We have a chance to be the first Blanche Ely team to go undefeated and win state this year so mainly that’s our goal to go to state and try to be undefeated. That’s our little edge going into every game.”

Gosier, a two-sport athlete at the school, welcomes the pressure of being undefeated.

“It helps us a lot having a target on our back because we know we have to bring it every night,” Gosier said. “Everyone wants to be that first team to knock us off and give us that first ‘L’. So we bring it every game to make sure that no team gives us that first loss.”

Blanche Ely coach Melvin Randall is in his 21st year, including the past 14 at Ely. Randall won state titles in 1997 with Deerfield (Class 5A) and his win in 1999 (Class 6A) came at the expense of his current school Ely, 77-69. After moving over to Ely, Randall won state titles in 2007 (Class 6A), 2012 (Class 7A) and 2013 (Class 7A).

Randall, who has compiled a 489-141 record at the school during that 14-year span, believes this year’s team could be one of the best ever.

“This is a special team,” Randall said. “Definitely at the guard play, I haven’t had a team with strong guard play in a while. I have had some good guards, but, with this team, you are talking about four or five that I can put out there. I have the flexibility to do that with this team.”

Randall said the team has played well since the summer when they showed promise during AAU play.

“They played on the AAU teams and they did great on the AAU circuit,” Randall said. “Now we have come together and we are keeping it family based.”

Even though the team graduated Lance Tejada (East Carolina) and Josh Floyd (Florida State College at Jacksonville) and Richard Lee went back to Northeast High School, the Tigers have still found a way to win. The team benefited from senior guard senior LaQuincy Rideau, a transfer from Palm Beach Lakes, who lives with his aunt in Pompano Beach.

Senior Javon Heastie, along with juniors Mark Houston and Trevor Goodrum, have all stepped up their games, according to Randall.

The Tigers finished 21-5 last season, i n c l u d i n g four losses to Boyd Anderson and once to Cardinal Gibbons in the Big 8. The team has been undefeated during the season before as it ran off 27 consecutive wins until it lost to Dwyer 70-57 in the regional semifinal in the 2009-2010 season.

“We are all coming together,” Randall said. “From the outside looking in, the fans and the spectators, we know we are not there yet. We still have a ways to go. We are better off now than we were a couple of weeks ago. We are still having problems with the rotation. I think they have been rotating well. These people have to understand to see those hard traps and to shift and rotate players. I think, once we get that down pat, it is going to prove that it will be pretty hard for a team to score easily.”

Gosier hopes the team finishes the year the way they started.

“ I t would be great,” Gosier said. “We would go down in history as probably the best basketball team ever to play at Blanche Ely. Going undefeated and winning states would be a great feeling.”

By Gary Curreri

For the third time this season, host Blanche Ely had a bad taste of déjà vu.

It was the first home game for the Tigers after spending the first five weeks on the road. It also marked the debut of a new, state-of-the-art scoreboard that was donated by 2008 Ely grad Patrick Peterson, now with the Arizona Cardinals, former head coach William Facteau and other community leaders.

The product on the field was competitive, but, for the third time this season, Blanche Ely let a late lead slip away and lost in the closing minute of the contest.

Maurquice Flowers rushed for 114 yards and two touchdowns, including a 2-yard run, with 57 seconds remaining, to propel Plantation to a 31-23 victory over Blanche Ely in a non-district game last Friday night that also marked the return of former Tigers coach Steve Davis.

Davis, who spent 10 years at Blanche Ely and won the Class 5A state title at the school in 2002, won for the second consecutive season at his former school. He is 2-2 in regular season games, not including a kickoff classic win during that span. Plantation won 32-26 last season.

Flowers’ second score capped an 8-play, 93-yard drive to hand the Tigers its third loss in the closing minute this season. It also dropped games to Deerfield Beach and Miami Northwestern in the waning seconds earlier this year. Flowers and Antwuan Haynes each broke the century mark on the ground for the Colonels (4-2). Haynes finished with 101 yards on 14 carries.

“That’s really cool,” Davis said of the scoreboard. “I am a big time Ely guy. I spent a lot of years here. I really think the new scoreboard and all of the other stuff is well deserved. Hopefully, it was a little distraction for them. This was a real important game. It is not a district game, but ,when you look at the power rankings for Broward County, it lets you know where you stand.”

Blanche Ely (2-4) christened its new $100,000 scoreboard on a 38-yard field goal by Carmeley Charite with 3 minutes left in the first quarter to take a 3-0 lead.

Plantation took the ensuing kickoff and marched 80 yards in nine plays to take a 7-3 lead on a 4-yard scoring toss from Archie Banton to Yvon St. Louis with 22 seconds remaining in the first quarter.

Blanche Ely, which also debuted new uniforms, capitalized on an interception by Terrance Henley to grab a 10-7 lead on a 5-yard scoring run by Demeterice Bellamy with 2:54 remaining in the first half. The Colonels took the lead shortly before halftime when Banton broke three tackles and bulled in from 10-yards out on a quarterback keeper.

The Tigers capitalized on another turnover deep in Plantation territory and converted it into another score. Zackery Purdue found Therrell Gosier for a 13-yard scoring play with 2:30 left in the third quarter for a 17-14 lead.

Plantation took the ensuing kickoff and moved 80 yards in 11 plays capped by a 7-yard scoring run by Flowers for a 21-17 lead. The Tigers answered on a 33-yard scoring toss from Perdue to Thomas Geddis to seize a 23-21 lead before the visiting Colonels battled back.

“I think we had to eliminate the big play because Ely is a big play team,” Davis added. “We were able to control the ground game and the corner backs played well. I think a win over a good team like Ely will really catapult our season tonight. We have to keep moving forward.”

Blanche Ely coach Nakia Jenkins admitted his team is young, but needs to play four quarters of football.

“We need to learn to finish,” said Jenkins, who is in his first year at the school as head coach. “We should be easily 5-1 right now. We have to put teams away early. It is definitely motivation. I tell these guys all of the time they don’t know how good they can be. We are going to be really good once we put it all together.”

If he were doling out mid-season grades, Jenkins said he would give his team a C-plus.

“We are very young,” Jenkins said. “We are about 80 percent of our JV team from last year. We are get- ting better. Hopefully, at the back end of the season, we can put a lot of things together … We have to keep building and stay healthy. We have to get them together, rally, work on technique and we are at the back end of the season … and get district champs. We just have to take it one game at a time.”

Blanche Ely Athletic Director Andrea Johnson was thrilled with the new scoreboard.

“It is really cool,” Johnson said. “It really goes with the state-of-the-art field that we have here. The community fought really hard to get it. They just beat the ground getting the donations so we could have this for our school, for our kids and for our community.

“Patrick Peterson and Bill Facteau were the major donors,” Johnson added. “The installation took a week. It’s amazing. The capabilities it has, the clarity of the screen … it is a wonderful addition to the stadium. We are still working out the kinks and figuring out all of the wonderful technology, but we will be able to show replays, advertisements and a lot of other cool stuff. We have cameras and all of that.”

By Gary Curreri

After starting the season 0-4 and being outscored in those games by a combined 147-58, Blanche Ely football coach Charles Hafley tried to keep his team focused on the final goal.

The Tigers captured its first district championship in four years as it manhandled host Northeast, 45-12, to win the District 14-7A championship on Friday night.

“Our senior captains –Tyquan Fields, Terrance Blands, Broderic James, Aris Knight, were phenomenal,” Hafley said. “They come to practice every day. They come ready to work and they believe in what we talk about. Holding the rope … and that’s what the kids did, during that wave we had the first four games and through the grunt of the season. We just came out in district play and did Blanche Ely football.”

Blanche Ely opened the season with a 45-15 loss to M.L. King (Georgia); a 46-6 loss to Deerfield Beach; a 31-21 setback to Glades Central and a 29- 15 loss to Miami Northwestern. The Tigers have won four of its past five games – the only loss coming at the hands of Plantation, 32-26. They’ve won three consecutive games, including the district-clinching win over Northeast.

Senior quarterback Nelson Ervin threw for 148 yards and four TDs Friday night, as the Tigers finished 3-0 in the district.

“I think the biggest difference is all about believing in themselves,” Hafley said. “Nelson Ervin got himself together, mentally, physically and emotionally. He just led this team. He hasn’t had a turnover in any of our district games. He just focused and played Tiger Pride football.”

Northeast (2-7, 1-2) took the opening kickoff and marched 80 yards in 14 plays capped by a 9- yard scoring run by Hurricanes’ quarterback Brion Sanchious to take a 7-0 lead.

From there, Ervin took over as he threw three touchdown passes and Anson Benton returned an interception 28 yards for a score as the Tigers scored 28 unanswered points to take a 28-6 halftime lead.

Ervin threw touchdown passes to Laderrick Smith (37 yards); Edward Walker (13 yards) and Chazton McKenzie (13 yards) in the first half. He added a 12- yard TD pass to Kenneth Rawls in the second half. The Tigers also got a 17-yard field goal from Charite Carmeley and a fumble recovery for a touchdown by Steven Carter. Northeast added a late score on a 4-yard TD pass from Deangelo Fulford to Binjimen Victor.

Hafley said the team would need to play mistake-free football to go deep in the playoffs.

“You have to control your turnover battle and make sure you keep your penalties to a minimum,” Hafley added. “If we can do that, we can be successful and make a run at this thing.

“There are many monsters out there in 7A and we respect them, but, in the playoffs, everybody starts 0-0,” he continued. “You could be 10-0 or 5-5, but, at the end of the day, when the first round of the playoffs come, everybody is 0-0 and each week counts, and we take it one game at a time.”

The slow start “hardened” his team and prepared them for a deep run in the playoffs. Hafley said the team would go as deep as his seniors will allow and credits the team chemistry from the administration and the community to the players and coaches.

“The kids believe that,” Hafley said. “The teams we played were traditional powers, all the way from Miami Northwestern, Glades Central, Deerfield Beach and MLK. Hats off to them and their coaching staffs, but it just gave us an opportunity to watch that film and get better. One thing about this team is we are the scariest team in 7A right now.”

Bucks pound South Plantation

Quarterback Danarious Graham ran for two touchdowns and passed for a third as Deerfield Beach rolled to the District 11- 8A championship and remained undefeated at 9-0.

Senior running back Aeron McNeal rushed for 172 yards and scored on a 72-yard TD as Deerfield Beach ran its record in the district to 7-0 with a 42-16 victory over host South Plantation.

Brandon Powell was limited by an injury in the first half; however, he finished with 40 yards and a TD.

By Gary Curreri

The last time Deerfield Beach won a state title it defeated Blanche Ely in the 1999 championship game. Now, both teams, in different classes, have the same aspirations.

Blanche Ely, the defending Class 7A champion and top ranked team in the state, survived a scare and held on for a double overtime, 85-79 victory over visiting Palm Beach Lakes to advance to Lakeland for the state semifinals this week.

The Tigers are hopeful of becoming just the third team from Broward County to win back-to-back state championships on Saturday night.

Marcus Owens scored 17 points and pulled down 8 rebounds, while Joshua Huntley added 10 points and 12 rebounds for the Bucks (28-4), who will play the state’s fifth ranked Hagerty (Oviedo) squad in the state semifinal on March 1. It is the Bucks first trip to Lakeland since 1999 when it last won the state title.

Deerfield Beach coach Kenny Brown said the team learned a lot in its two losses to Blanche Ely down the stretch. Blanche Ely handed Deerfield Beach its only two losses in its past 10 years.

“Those losses taught us we have to play 32 minutes of Bucks basketball,” Brown said. “We learned that we had to come out and play tougher and play hard. This is a different team now. I know that defense wins championships, but I am an offensive guy and we work on shooting.” Blanche Ely needed to work overtime to punch its ticket to the state tournament in Lakeland – double overtime actually. The Tigers (25-1) will face Bartow in the Class 7A state semifinals next week at the Lakeland Center.

Richard Lee led the Tigers, who are ranked No. 18 in USA Today’s Super 25 national poll, in scoring with 22 points. Lance Tejada and Dallas Cameron scored 19 and 20 points, respectively, as Blanche Ely rallied from a 63-58 deficit with a little more than two minutes remaining. Khalil Thomas finished with 16 points, 17 rebounds and five blocks as the Tigers outscored Palm Beach Lakes, 11-2, in the second overtime.

Melvin Randall entered this week with a 403-131 career coaching record. Photo by Gary Curreri

By Gary Curreri

And the wins keep coming.

Blanche Ely boys’ basketball coach Melvin Randall moved into an exclusive club when he won his 400th career game on Nov. 29 with an 84-41 victory over Monarch.

Randall, in his 11th year at Ely, credited the influence of four former Broward coaching greats for his success – the late Butch Ingram, Greg Samuels, John Keister and Wade Edmond.

Randall began his coaching career as an assistant to Edmond at Ely and then moved on to Deerfield Beach where he was a head coach starting in 1992 through 2000 and won state titles in 1997 and 1999 with the Bucks and in 2007 with the Tigers.

“To be in it for this long and still have that energy,” said Randall, who is 403-131 in his 19-year coaching career, including 203-78 at Ely. “I don’t know if it is strange or abnormal, but I know that there have been many like (Dillard girls coach) Marcia Pinder [who] has been in it for many, many years.”

“I am still having fun doing what I am doing,” Randall added. “I am blessed and I feel that I am giving back what I have gotten out of it when I was in high school and in college.”

The Tigers went on a 20-6 run in the second quarter to open a 35-19 halftime lead and coasted to its fourth victory of the season, 69-51 over visiting Boyd Anderson on Saturday night.

Clide Geffrard finished with 20 points and nine rebounds, while Derek Walker added 19 points and eight rebounds. Josephus Bell added 10. Krishaun Myers had five points and five assists.

Randall, a 1981 South Plantation High graduate who went on to Mercer University in Macon, GA before returning to South Florida, said he still enjoys the Xs and Os and said his assistant coaches continue to bring the energy to the gym.

“They keep me going as well with new ideas,” said the 48-year-old Randall, who lives in Ft. Lauderdale. “Whether it is offensively or defensively, I am always open to new ideas. If you were to walk in the gym, you wouldn’t know who [is] the head coach and that is how I have been for years.”

He said he is also pleased with the success he has had throughout his career, in which he has averaged more than 20 wins a year.

“I am very proud of that,” Randall said. “It is not so much the Ws and the Ls, but to have a record of my seniors going off to school. That is the most important thing to me and then seeing them come back or to see them do well as young men.”

Simply Soccer Camp

The city of Pompano will host a Simply Soccer holiday break camp from Dec. 19-22 for boys and girls, ages 5-14, and of all skill levels, who will be taught a variety of soccer skills from dribbling to shooting.

There are three sessions each day ranging from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. (cost is $75); extended hours camp is available from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. for $100, and a Tiny Tot program is offered for kids ages 5 and 6 from 9 a.m. to noon for $50. Campers must bring a soccer ball, swimsuit, shin guards, water bottle and lunch. You do not have to be a city resident to attend. For more information, call the city of Pompano Parks and Recreation Department at 954-786-4119.