Tag Archive | "volleyball"

Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Highlands holds basketball camp

Posted on 01 August 2019 by LeslieM

By Gary Curreri

Highlands Christian Academy continued its long tradition of hosting a basketball camp this summer. Reg Cook, the school’s former AD, and Boys Varsity basketball coach, started the camp in 1986 with 19 campers in attendance. This year’s camp had 25 campers and consisted of children in the 3rd through 8th grade.

We had a great group of campers,” said Highlands Christian basketball coach Paul Pridemore, who is also the school’s athletic director. “They learned a lot of fundamental skills that they can build on. The most exciting thing that happened was we had one camper that accepted Christ as his savior.”

Trophies were awarded for competitions like free throws, hot shot, full court layups, Mikan layups, one-on-one, in addition to the best defender, most improved and camper of the week.

In addition to basketball, Highlands Christian Academy also held a softball camp and a volleyball camp that ended this week.

Pompano Beach Men’s Golf Association results

The Pompano Beach Men’s Golf Association held two tournaments recently for its players. A total of 29 golfers competed in the Two Best Ball of Foursome tournament on July 17 at the Pines Course and the team of Jim Blake, Frank Cutrone and Willie Smith shot 116 to win by two strokes. The team of Bill Hazlett, Robert Raser and Dennis Sejda shot a 118 and won on a match of cards over the third place team of Robert Blau, Gary Gill and Jim Greeley, who also carded a 118. Jim Blake won the closest to the pin contest on hole No. 15.

One week later, the Pompano Beach Men’s Golf Association held an individual play – Odd Holes Minus ½ Handicap in Classes tournament on the Pines Course with Tom Pawelczyk winning the Class A Net Score with a 29.0. Dennis Sejda recorded a 29.5 to take second, while Bill Hadersbeck shot a 30.0 to finish in third in the Class A.

 In Class B, Mike Marruquin shot a 29.5 and finished in first place after a match of cards over Jim Greeley. Robert Raser carded a 30.0 to take third.

Dennis Rooy shot 27.5 to take first place in the Class C Division, while Bill Hazlett (29.5) and Henry Lesburt (30.5) finished second and third respectively. Lesburt won on a match of cards. The closest to the pin winner on hole (No. 17) was Bill O’Brien.

There were 30 players in the field.

Simply Soccer camp down to final week

Area residents have one final chance to take part in the Simply Soccer camp series that is in its 31st year of soccer camps for children 5-15 in nearby Coral Springs.

There are three sessions each day ranging from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m., extended hours camp from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m., and a Tiny Tot program for kids ages 5 and 6 from 9 a.m. to noon. Full day campers must bring a soccer ball, swimsuit, shin guards, water bottle and lunch. You do not have to be a city resident to attend.

 The final week is Aug. 5-9. You can register daily from 8 a.m. to 9 p.m. at the Coral Springs Gymnasium, 2501 Coral Springs Dr., Coral Springs. For information on the camp, call 954-345-2200.

Highlands Christian Academy recently held a basketball camp with 25 campers (bottom photo). The camp also handed out awards (top photo).

Comments Off on Highlands holds basketball camp

Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Pompano boys win county volleyball title

Posted on 20 March 2019 by LeslieM

By Gary Curreri

Photo by Gary Curreri

The Pompano Beach boys volleyball team won the school’s first county middle school championship in the sport with a 22-24, 21-13, 21-12 victory over Silver Lakes at Pompano Beach High School.

In the first set, the teams traded leads before eighth-graders Christensen Paul and Nikolai Jones slammed home kills for Silver Lakes to pull out the win.

Pompano Beach broke a 2-2 deadlock in the second set to go up 9-2 behind the serving of eighth-grader Logan Keothavy. They held that margin for most of the set and closed it out with two service points by eighth-grader Samson Lormeus.

In the final set, Pompano Beach seized an 11-8 margin after several early lead changes before pulling away from Silver Lakes as eighth-grader Nolan Debrocq had five straight service points and after a couple of side outs, and the score 18-10, the Bengals outscored Silver Lakes 5-2 for their first county championship in the sport.

Tournament MVP and Pompano Beach Middle School eighth-grader Logan Keothavy played an instrumental role during the season and in the playoffs. He’s played the sport since he began middle school athletics.

“I like playing and the team,” said Keothavy, 13, of Lighthouse Point. “I like passing, and hitting, and it feels pretty good to win the championship. I felt everyone in the crowd cheering for us – our parents, our families, everyone.”

When Pompano Beach dropped the first set of the championship game, Keothavy rallied the troops.

“We lost the first set and we didn’t think we should have lost that,” he said. “We weren’t moving our feet and playing like we usually do. Winning this is pretty big. We are 12-0 and that is better than any team.”

He said he wasn’t sure when the season began if they would hoist the championship trophy.

“It wasn’t until the fifth or sixth game of the season when I thought we had a chance to finish undefeated and win the county championship,” Keothavy said. “We were winning all of the time and it was fun.”

Pompano Beach Middle School coach Michael Miller was in his second year as volleyball coach at the school. Last season, he coached the girls team and this year the boys. Both teams lost in the quarterfinals of last year’s playoffs.

“It was a team of seven boys where no one was above the other and they all worked well as a team,” said Miller, who also teaches science at the school. “They listened to their coaches and captains and we all worked as a unit. No one was elitist and no one was above anyone else. It was a beautiful thing really.”

Miller said after losing the first set, they just talked about what they did wrong and what they could do to fix it.

“And we motivated each other,” Miller said. “We just needed to play stronger. We didn’t lose a single match during the entire season, not a single game. They played well as a unit.”

They lost two games (sets) in the playoffs. The other was in the quarterfinals in Coral Springs.

“It’s big,” Miller said. “The kids can see that you can be successful and work as a team. It is good life skills and it is beneficial to everybody, including the school. I couldn’t be prouder of these guys. They are very humble. They are all good students. They work well together. It’s a good thing.”

In addition to Keothavy, Miller also said the play of his captains, eighth-grader Zack Ruge and seventh-grader Garrett Weadock, were instrumental to the team’s success.

“Finishing undefeated is pretty special,” Miller said.

Comments Off on Pompano boys win county volleyball title

Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

9th annual Ranse Classic

Posted on 10 November 2018 by LeslieM

Living simple, playing hard on Deerfield’s beach

By Diane Emeott

Photos by Chris Korzen

The Most Interesting Man in the World,” from the Dos Equis beer commercials, brought his debonair charm to Deerfield’s beach for the 9th annual Ranse Classic Beach Volleyball Tournament on Saturday, Nov. 3.

Actor Jonathan Goldsmith now represents Astral Tequila. The owner of the tequila company that sponsored the “Most Interesting Man” is Joe Taverrite, a Royal Palm Beach (near West Palm Beach) volleyball player.

We were pretty lucky to have him there!” enthused Deerfield resident John Esposito, a longtime supporter of the Ranse Classic.

BSO Deerfield District Fire Chief Matt Pellitteri, who also attended the event, said Esposito did a great job.

We both grew up on Deerfield’s beach and have daughters who have played beach volleyball here,” he said,

Over 200 players and several hundred spectators came out to the event held north of the pier, along Deerfield’s shore.

Esposito said he was “blown away that the event has become so successful” — after getting past the three to five year mark (which isn’t easy for many events).

The Ranse Volleyball Classic has evolved into a nationally-recognized event to benefit Stroke Awareness, through the hard work of the local volleyball community. Our 10th year during the first week of November of 2019 will be the best yet!” he said, adding, that he wants to thank Broward Health North and the City of Deerfield Beach. “Moving the location of the main court has elevated the tournament to the next level in the world of beach volleyball.”

The committee that puts on the event consists of all local volleyball players: Andre Melo, Douglas Nascimento, Diogo Sousa, and me, as well as too many volunteers to name, but we could not be successful without them,” Esposito said.

DS Sports Plex (on Powerline Road, south of SW 10 Street) was a title sponsor, as was Southern Jet — the owners of which are both Deerfield residents and volleyball players.

Blue Ocean Poke restaurant in the Publix plaza was also a big supporter.

Other sponsors included Wyndham Deerfield Beach Resort, HEW Hard Exercise Works, Playa Bowls, Ranse Jones Stroke Awareness Fund — Broward Health North, Astral Tequila, TRA and JB’s on the Beach.

Broward Health North, which has a Comprehensive Stroke Center, hosted a merchandise tent with T-shirts featuring the slogan “Live Simple. Play Hard” – a motto which Ranse lived by.

The event, part of the “Dig The Beach” Volleyball series, benefits the Ranse Jones Stroke Awareness Fund at Broward Health North.

Ranseford “Ranse” Jones was a former Deerfield Beach firefighter who had a brain aneurism while playing the semi-final of the AVP Young Guns tournament in Panama City in May 2004. He died six months later on Nov. 8, 2004 at the young age of 34.

Comments Off on 9th annual Ranse Classic

Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Charity beach volleyball event raises $5K

Posted on 29 March 2018 by LeslieM

By Gary Curreri

Ben Koos couldn’t have been happier with the recent charity beach volleyball Pro/Am Tournament on Deerfield Beach.

The Embrace Life Children’s Foundation teamed up with Dig the Beach Volleyball and raised more than $5,000 to go towards helping children in the community and those proceeds went directly to helping the Salah Foundation Children’s Hospital at Broward Health.

The event was a good start to hopefully an annual event,” said Koos, the tournament organizer. “We had over 100 players come out between Saturday and Sunday, which made for great viewing for the fans and a great time for the players.”

The inaugural event featured two days of competition, including Men’s/Women’s Doubles for both professional and amateur players, while Sunday included Junior Boys/Girls 12-18 and Co-Ed Doubles.

Several community sponsors joined in, including Jersey Mike’s Subs and Harmless Harvest Coconut Water, who fed and hydrated the players. Other local businesses supporting the event included Rox Volleyball as a Title Sponsor, Pediatrix, Island Water Sports, Hypower Electric and International Union of Police Associations.

Koos’ wife, Carolyne, who helps run the charity, also deemed the event a success.

We ended up with 100 players, which wasn’t bad for the first time,” she said. “With the funding we received, we have been able to outfit the NICU and Pediatric Unit with some much-needed items on their wish list and also pay for transportation for the sickle cell pediatric patients to Camp Boggy Creek, so those patients can forget their medical issues and just have fun for a bit.

We just had a Spring Fling visit filled with bunnies, chicks, and spring goodie bags and toys for all of the pediatric patients from oncology, peds floor, to PICU and NICU,” she continued. “It is a joy and a blessing to help these families with whatever they need from help with medical bills to fun group outings with patients to shows, or tickets to events, funding for medical research, or day-to-day needs, like clothes, or computers.”

Carolyne Koos said the organization does what they can to try and improve the lifestyle. She and her husband started the non-profit charity organization after their 2-year old son, Christian, passed away recently after a long battle with a rare neurological disease. His genetic disease, known as Leukodystrophy, can affect anyone from a newborn baby to an elderly person.

Whatever makes their life a little easier while they work on getting better, we are happy to do,” said Carolyne, who would bring gifts to the Broward General Medical Center and Miami Children’s Hospital during her son’s stays “just to see a smile on a child’s face.”

Carolyne speaks with the child life advocates at each hospital to find out the needs of the children and to find out how they can help.

As always,” she continued, “being 100 percent volunteer driven with no administration costs or salaries, you can tell our heart is in what we do. It truly is a beautiful gift to be able to work with and help these families…I have to say from my point of view all the players, organizers, promoters and supporters were nothing short of a huge blessing to me and the families.”

For more information, visit www.embracelifechildrensfoundation.com.

Comments Off on Charity beach volleyball event raises $5K

Tags: , , , , ,

Ranse Jones event: a success

Posted on 17 November 2016 by LeslieM

sports111716By Gary Curreri

Kaitlyn Smith was one of more than 200 players that recently took part in the seventh annual Ranse Jones Classic beach volleyball tournament in Deerfield Beach.

Smith, 20, grew up playing beach volleyball in Deerfield and played a year at nearby Florida Atlantic University last year, but said her engineering studies curtailed her college career.

Still, the 2015 Highlands Christian Academy graduate finds her way out to the sand that is just minutes away from her Deerfield Beach home.

It is great how they celebrate it in a positive way and bring the whole beach (volleyball) family together,” Smith said. “A lot of us are local, but a lot of people come from out of state and that’s awesome. I play here all of the time and I think it is great to see people out here doing the same thing and supporting a great cause … having fun, and the positive energy is great.”

The tournament is staged each year to celebrate the life of the volleyball player and Flagler County firefighter after whom the tournament is named. The tournament generally raises between $20-$30,000 on an annual basis for Ranse Jones Stroke Awareness Fund at the Broward Health North Stroke Center.

In April 2010, Jones suffered a brain aneurysm while playing in the semifinals of the Panama City AVP Young Guns tournament. He died that November. Jones had played in 21 AVP tournaments since 2000. He also spent time on the Extreme Volleyball Professionals tour and competed in the Men’s Open Division of the 2009 U.S. Open of Beach Volleyball.

Fort Lauderdale’s Juanita Mendoza, 29, said the tournament was huge.

There are a lot of people that play in this from a lot of different states,” Mendoza said. “(It is very competitive) as well as people who are here to honor the cause.”

Jensen Beach High School junior Jillienne Cangelosi, 16, made the drive from her home in Stuart to play in the tournament.

It is a really big event,” Cangelosi said. “It is really great because people aren’t only here to compete. They are here to have a good time.”

When we had the bagpipes in the morning, you could just feel everybody thinking about him,” she continued. “And the moment of silence, even though there were other noises obviously, it was amazing to think about him and that his memory was still here.”

Bucks in action Friday

Deerfield Beach High School is hoping for redemption this Friday as it visits Flanagan in the Class 8A regional semifinals at 7:30 p.m.

The Bucks (8-2) did its part as it coasted to a 27-13 regional quarterfinal victory over Western as quarterback Nick Holm passed for 230 yards and two touchdowns and added a scoring run to boot. Deerfield Beach is ranked 5th in the state in the AP Football rankings.

We have been on a collision course for a whole year now,” said Bucks coach Jevon Glenn. “Let the two big dogs go at it and give the people what they want to see. There is a lot of respect for both teams.”

The defending 8A state champion Falcons (9-2) topped down Piper, 21-7, last week to set up a rematch of the same round last year where Flanagan, currently ranked third in the state in the AP Football rankings, won 17-0 en route to Orlando.

Tigers close season on winning note

Stanley Bolden caught two touchdown passes, the second from 27-yards out in overtime, to give Blanche Ely a 13-7 upset victory over Dillard recently in the 47th annual Soul Bowl at Lockhart Stadium.

After Dillard’s George Golden scored on a 39-yard touchdown run to put the Panthers ahead 7-0, the Tigers (3-6) tied the game on a 60-yard pass play from senior quarterback Karinzo Ward to Bolden.

Blanche Ely, which missed the playoffs for the first time since 2012, won the rivalry game for the 7th time in the past eight meetings and led the series 25-20-2. Dillard led (6-4), which won the District 15-6A title in a three-team tiebreaker, went on to lose to Miami Carol City, 47-8, in the regional quarterfinals.

Comments Off on Ranse Jones event: a success

Tags: , , , , ,

Junior volleyball players “dig” the beach

Posted on 18 August 2016 by LeslieM

sports081816By Gary Curreri

In the past five years, there has been an explosion of collegiate opportunities for playing beach volleyball.

Two sisters from Deerfield Beach – Alanna and Audrey Hodge – recently placed third in the AVPFirst Girls 14-Under volleyball championship on Fort Lauderdale Beach.

Alanna, age 14, is a freshman at Monarch High School and has played beach volleyball for five years.

I like beach volleyball more than indoor because you get more touches on the ball and it is fun to play with new partners to see how you do with other people,” she said.

Audrey, age 12, a seventh-grader at Boca Christian, also played beach volleyball for five years.

There is a lot of pressure because I am playing in a higher division than I normally would,” Audrey said. “I like it because it is mostly all on you. You are responsible for half of the court.”

Shawn Taylor, of the AVP (Association of Volleyball Professionals) and the coach at Spring Hill College in Mobile, AL, said with more juniors playing the game, more and more schools are offering scholarships.

For years it was just the pro beach tour and there was no avenue to get there, and with colleges coming in as a player, it gave juniors something to shoot for,” Taylor said. “Now with more juniors playing the game, it has provided us with an avenue to create a pipeline and a clear path for them to go from playing junior recreational to, hopefully, playing at the collegiate level and then carrying on past that to the professional level.”

Taylor said there are schools adding the sport “everyday” and estimated there were about 65 schools offering beach volleyball.

They anticipate being at 100 (schools) in a year or two,” Taylor said. “They were at zero (schools) five years ago. It was a pipe dream and a myth. It was like crazy talk going around.”

Florida Beach Volleyball Tour tournament director Gino Ferraro is in his 27th year and hosted eight events this year – including stops in Pompano Beach, Ft. Lauderdale, Siesta Key, Hollywood, and plans to hold one in Delray Beach next year.

The season starts at the beginning of May and runs through the second week of August,” Ferraro said. “Because of the size of the field, it is hard to find beaches that will hold us anymore.”

Jeudy commits to Alabama

Deerfield Beach High School senior wideout Jerry Jeudy is taking his talents to the University of Alabama next season.

Ranked the fourth-best receiver in the nation by ESPN, Jeudy earned a spot on the all-offense team in July at Nike’s The Opening, one of the top camps in the country in Beaverton, OR It helped parlay him into a good spot to choose his next destination.

I’m excited,” said Jeudy, who chose the Crimson Tide over Florida, Miami, Florida State University and Tennessee. The four-star recruit had offers from more than 20 different schools. “It was the best fit for me. It’s a great program with great coaches, great players and that’s a winning team. I feel like I can go there and do what I have to do and step on the field and make plays.”

It was a very hard decision for me,” added Jeudy, who caught 41 passes for 496 yards and 10 scores last season for the Bucks. “I prayed a lot and felt that Alabama was more of a home.”

Deerfield teammate Daewood Davis, who transferred from Stranahan in the spring, previously announced he was committing to the University of South Florida.

Comments Off on Junior volleyball players “dig” the beach

Tags: , , , , ,

Pompano volleyball peaking at right time

Posted on 29 October 2015 by LeslieM

sports102915By Gary Curreri

Eighth-year Pompano Beach volleyball coach William Strachan loaded his schedule this season with perennial state powerhouses and the strategy has seemed to play off.

Pompano Beach moved to 15-11 on the season with a 25-14, 25-14, 25-23 victory over visiting Suncoast in Tuesday night’s Class 5A regional quarterfinal as senior setter Cassidy Bonito led the way with 6 kills, 30 assists and 35 digs.

It marked the second consecutive district championship for the Tornadoes and fourth title in the past five years. It was runner-up to Cardinal Gibbons in 2013 after also winning in 2011 and 2012. Tara Brannen also had 9 kills, 6 digs, 3 assists, 2 blocks, while Jasmine Souverein-Reisert had 8 kills, 6 blocks and 4 digs.

I purposely played a brutal schedule,” Strachan said. “I basically played anybody I thought was going to be good. We didn’t schedule St. Thomas Aquinas, but we played them twice. We played Merritt Island and Bishop Kenny. The reason for it is that we had a lot of young players come in and we wanted to catch them up to speed.”

Pompano Beach was knocked out in the Class 5A regional final last year by Merritt Island in four games. The Tornadoes will play Archbishop McCarthy on Saturday in the regional semifinal and the winner of that will likely get Merritt Island in the regional finals.

Strachan hoped for a .500 season when the year began. He said Bonito has played a large role in the team’s success.

I may be biased, but I think she is the best setter in Broward County,” Strachan said. “She is just a really strong, physical player, with really soft hands and nice ball control when it comes to setting.

Her volleyball IQ is tremendous. She sees a lot of things that young setters don’t see so she is able to run a more effective offense.”

Bonito, 18, of Pompano Beach, said the team did graduate a lot of players from last year’s team, but saw the potential as the season wore on.

We have a lot of freshmen that came in and stepped it up defense-wise,” Bonito said. “We really did try and fill the spots and practiced as a team to get that bond we needed.”

Bonito also took on more of a leadership role this season. The team captain was new to the school last year after transferring from West Broward. It also helped her adjust to the new players, something she will have to do when she leaves for college next year.

There is a lot of pressure, very much so,” Bonito said of still looking for a school to play at the next level. She wants to major in education. “I believe that I am a good contributor, especially as a setter. Every team I have been on I have been a captain, or in a leadership position. I am very cooperative and get along with anybody. Off the court, you have to be a student first and I also believe that is important. That’s a positive.”

Deerfield looks to lock up title

Deerfield Beach (7-1, 4-0), which failed to make the postseason last year, can win the District 11-8A football title with a victory over visiting Piper on Friday.

It would also ensure a regional quarterfinal home game against Plantation, while the loser would travel to Flanagan. The Bucks have outscored the opposition 262-85 and the lone blemish on the team’s record is a 33-15 loss to perennial state power, Jacksonville Bolles, four weeks ago.

Senior quarterback Teddrick Moffett is a dual threat having rushed for 227 yards and 8 scores and passed for 1,047 yards and 14 TDs. Deerfield Beach manhandled Monarch, 34-0 last week, while Piper topped Coral Springs, 34-8.

Piper (8-0, 4-0) has clinched its first playoff berth since 2003 and has outscored the opposition this season 171-90.

The kids got a chance (during the summer) to go out and compete against the best in the country and they realized that we have some of the best talent too,” said Deerfield Beach coach Jevon Glenn, whose team also defeated nationally-ranked St. Thomas Aquinas, 6-3 earlier in the month. “If we continue to put it all together we have a chance to be special this year.”

Comments Off on Pompano volleyball peaking at right time

Tags: , , , , ,

Smith signs with FAU

Posted on 04 December 2014 by LeslieM

sports120414By Gary Curreri

Kaitlyn Smith won’t be far from home when it comes to playing collegiate sports. The Highlands Christian Academy senior will be playing just 6 miles up Interstate-95 from the school’s campus.

Smith, 18, a Ft. Lauderdale native who lives in Deerfield Beach, will play sand volleyball for Florida Atlantic University (FAU). Smith has been at Highlands Christian Academy for 12 1/2 years.

I have been playing sand volleyball for five years,” Smith said. “One of my friends (Kealey Wik) asked me to play one time and I have loved it ever since. She is an inspiration to me.”

Smith said she loves how the sport keeps her in shape and how it is a beautiful atmosphere on the beach.

I have made a lot of relationships and it presents both mental and physical challenges, which have made me strong and who I am today,” Smith said. “Winning is important to me, but how you get there is what matters. When I play, I worry about how I play, how I can help improve my partner and my game. I also make sure that I supply good sportsmanship.”

She also plays for the Tribe indoor volleyball club and DVA Sand volleyball. She played in the Junior Olympics in California and competed in the High Performance All-Star program in Deerfield Beach.

Smith carries a 4.0 gradepoint- average and is dual enrolled at FAU. She selected the Boca Raton school over four other schools, including Stetson, Florida Gulf Coast, University of Florida (UF) and the University of Central Florida. She visited all of the schools except for UF. She plans to study criminology and math.

I chose FAU because it is close, a great school and [has] incredible coaching,” Smith said. “Head coach Capri (Grotowski), and her assistants Kendra (Van Zwieten) and Tammy (Pelski), are a few of the best there is … so, who wouldn’t chose FAU?”

Smith said she was pleased with the Knights indoor volleyball season. The team finished 16-9. She finished with 13 kills, 75 service points, 27 assists and 718 digs. Smith is the No. 1 ranked libero in the state, according to MaxPreps, and is ranked No. 65 in the nation.

We had a great season,” Smith said. “Even though we didn’t finish how we planned, I learned a lot. As always, I kept my skills up while I was away from the sand.”

Comments Off on Smith signs with FAU

Tags: , , , , ,

Tornadoes playing well

Posted on 23 October 2014 by LeslieM

sports102314By Gary Curreri

Pompano Beach High School girls’ volleyball team coach William Strachan said the only opponent that can knock off the Tornadoes is themselves.

Pompano Beach (20-5) will look to win its fourth district championship on Thursday, when his team takes on Cardinal Gibbons (17-6) in the District 16-5A championship at 6 p.m.

To win states, we have to take care of the ball,” Strachan said. “In volleyball, you have to do two things — one is to make your serves, [the other is} to get that first contact on serves. We have to execute. I believe the girls, especially the seniors, are stepping up at the right time.”

Pompano Beach dropped the Broward County Athletic Association (BCAA) girls’ volleyball championship last Saturday to St. Thomas Aquinas in the title game, 25-21, 23-25, 25-20, 25-18 at Cardinal Gibbons High School.

I felt pretty happy about the BCAA Final,” said Strachan. “I am glad we are playing at a high level. We missed some serves down the road and St. Thomas capitalized on it. I told them our service team had to do better than their servers and that wasn’t the case in that match.”

Heading into districts, Pompano Beach ended Cypress Bay’s bid of an undefeated season and then dropped two tough matches to St. Thomas Aquinas. The Tornados have also played Chaminade, Pine Crest, Calvary Christian, Cardinal Gibbons, and Jupiter.

It prepares us,” Strachan added. “If you look at our schedule all year, we basically handpicked the top teams in South Florida to play. Playing Cypress Bay or St. Thomas is just another game for us. It’s good because if you play the top teams you hope you improve. You find out what you need to work on and right now I think we are playing at a very high level.”

The team’s losses were to St. Thomas (twice), Pine Crest, Chaminade and Jupiter.

In our losses, it is just that our team will make an error and the other team capitalizes on it and goes on a run,” Strachan said. “I think that the only team that can beat us, really, is ourselves.”

Junior Cassidy Bonito transferred from West Broward and has helped the team.

In the past, Pompano Beach has had sisters Nina and Stephanie Pellitteri (FSU), Brittany Pellitteri (FAU) and Savannah Davis (FIU) who have contributed; however this year’s squad has a different dynamic.

This is the first year where we have two big middles, where, in years past, we have always been staying on the outsides,” Strachan said. “I felt good this year because we have Paige (Alsten) in the middle and I think she is the best middle in the county. Our second middle Jasmine (Souverein-Reisert), even though she doesn’t have the touches or the experience, she is 6-ft. 4-in. and that makes her a factor.

We have Nikki (Esposito) and Tara (Brannen) on the outsides and they are good players,” Strachan said. “Both of my setters like to hit too, so that is helpful. Our worst opponent is ourselves sometimes. We have to execute and play at a top level. If we do that, we’ll win. We have got to work better on finishing strong and we’ll do that in the next week or two. If we can execute, I don’t think there is a team that will beat us.”

Alsten, a senior middle blocker and the team’s most dominant hitter, is committed to Webber College in Georgia. Esposito, a senior outside hitter, is committed to play sand volleyball at FSU. Other top players for the Tornados include Casey Calhoun (senior setter), Cassidy Bonito (junior setter), Tara Brannen (junior outside hitter), Cori Smothers (junior libero).

HOOPS FOR A CURE

The City of Pompano Beach and Blanche Ely High School are going to duke it out on the court in a Hoops For a Cure Basketball Challenge to raise funds for Breast Cancer Awareness Month next Wednesday, [Oct. 29] at 5 p.m. in the school’s gym.

As part of the city’s wellness program, employees from Pompano’s public works and utilities departments formed a Hoops For Health basketball team that has been playing basketball every week after hours as part of the wellness initiative.

They challenged the Blanche Ely High School varsity basketball team, teachers and staff to a basketball competition to raise awareness for Breast Cancer Awareness Month. Both teams will be wearing pink for the game.

Pompano Beach Mayor Lamar Fisher will take part in the basketball game for this worthy cause.

The Blanche Ely High School Marching Band, teachers and city employees will also be in attendance to cheer on their team and show their support.

Comments Off on Tornadoes playing well

Tags: , ,

Pompano Beach volleyball takes district title

Posted on 31 October 2012 by LeslieM

By Gary Curreri

Pompano Beach girls volleyball coach William Strachan wasn’t sure what to expect out of his team this season after losing five starters to graduation.

The Tornadoes finished 21- 4 last season as it lost to Jensen Beach in the regional semifinals, and Strachan knew his team would have to develop quickly to have a shot at the post season.

“Coming into the year, I thought we would take our licks this year, but we are playing well,” said Strachan, who is in his fifth year at the school. “We are relatively young. We have two seniors on the team and the rest are underclassmen. We graduated six seniors last year, but it was most of our offense. We lost a couple of all-county players.”

It didn’t stop Pompano Beach from capturing its second consecutive district championship as Paige Alsten had 21 kills and 13 points in the District 16-5A championship win over Mourning High School on Oct. 29.

The Tornadoes (17-7) polished off Mourning in relatively quick fashion as it won in three games – 25-19, 25- 12, and 25-17. Pompano Beach was slated to play Riviera Beach Suncoast on Wednesday night in the Class 5A regional quarterfinals.

“It was just a matter of fine tuning the discipline,” Strachan said. “We have a lot of beach talent. We are like a pipeline to college beach volleyball. We are making up in athleticism. There is a difference between the indoor and outdoor game, but our ball control skill is there.”

Pompano Beach senior Savannah Davis has committed to FIU’s sand program, which will make its debut this spring. She will join another pair of Tornadoes’ graduates who have gone on to play beach volleyball in college.

The Pellitteri sisters, sophomore Stephanie and freshman Kristina, went on to Florida State, where they helped the Seminoles finish third in the nation last season. Younger sister Brittney Pellitteri, a junior at Pompano Beach, is likely headed to a college sand volleyball program as well.

The team has also received strong play from sophomore Casey Calhoun and freshman Cori Smothers this season.

Comments Off on Pompano Beach volleyball takes district title

Advertise Here
Advertise Here