High school roundup (Jan. 8-13): Cardinal Mooney boys top North Port in MLK Showcase
SATURDAY
BOYS BASKETBALL
MLK Showcase
Cardinal Mooney 67, North Port 52
AT: Booker High for MLK Showcase
TOP PLAYERS: CM, Connor Heald 28 points, Kevin O'Donoghue 17 points; NP, Eli Lubsey 20 points, Jackson Kinker 12 points, Isaiah Gabriel 11 points.
RECORD: Cardinal Mooney 11-7
NEXT: Cardinal Mooney at Southeast, Thursday, 7:30 p.m.
Booker 54, Fort Myers 53
AT: Booker
TOP PLAYERS: (B) Jamaeron Ruffin hit a 3-pointer at the buzzer to lift the Tornadoes.
RECORD: Booker 7-9
NEXT: Booker hosts Imagine School of North Port, Monday, 4:30 p.m. in MLK Showcase
Riverview 84, Imagine School of North Port 42
AT: Booker High for MLK Showcase
TOP PLAYERS: (IS) Angelo Blas 15 points, Jordan Kirkus 7 points, Peyton Rassbach 6 points
RECORD: Imagine School 6-11
NEXT: Imagine School at Booker, Monday, 4:30 p.m. in MLK Showcase
GIRLS BASKETBALL
Sarasota 70, IMG Academy 38
AT: IMG Academy
TOP PLAYERS: (S) Sofi Miller 29 points, 10 rebounds; Paisely Binswanger 17 points; Kennedy McClain 7 points, 12 rebounds; Alyssia Bane 7 points
RECORD: Sarasota 11-4
NEXT: Sarasota at Southeast, Tuesday, 6 p.m.
GIRLS SOCCER
Out-of-Door Academy 2, Saint Stephen's 1 (SSAA championship)
AT: Saint Stephen's
RECORDS: Out-of-Door 10-0-1, Saint Stephen's 7-3-2
FRIDAY
GIRLS SOCCER
Saint Stephen's 4, Bell Creek Academy 0 (SSAA semifinal)
AT: Saint Stephen's
TOP PLAYERS: (SS) Quinn Sansone 2 goals, 1 assist; Piper Pullen 1 goal, 2 assists; Ava Varga 1 goal; Alexa Pymm 1 assist; Mak Owens 3 saves in goal
RECORD: Saint Stephen's 7-2-2
NEXT: Saint Stephen's hosts Out-of-Door Academy, SSAA state championship, Saturday, 11 a.m.
BOYS BASKETBALL
Sarasota Christian 58, Manatee 50
AT: Sarasota Christian
TOP PLAYERS: (SC) Ben Milliken 25 points, Matthias Hulka 15, Josh Frazzini 10, Randall Collins 4, Justin Brock 3, Carson Spann 1
RECORDS: Saint Stephen's 11-5, Manatee 4-10
NEXT: Saint Stephen's hosts Universal Academy, Tuesday, 4 p.m.
Imagine School at North Port 97, The Classical Academy 64
AT: Imagine School
TOP PLAYERS: (IS) Zahmir Jackson 17 points, Wesley Woods 14, JJ Hall 13
RECORD: Imagine School 6-10
NEXT: Imagine School at Booker tournament vs. Riverview, Saturday, 3 p.m.
THURSDAY
GIRLS BASKETBALL
Sarasota 59, Palmetto 25
AT: Sarasota
TOP PLAYERS: (S) Paisley Binswanger 16 points, 8 steals; Haley LaGasse 15 points; Sofi Miller 13 points, 12 rebounds
RECORD: Sarasota 10-4
NEXT: Sarasota at IMG Academy, Saturday, 11 a.m.
BOYS BASKETBALL
Cardinal Mooney 58, Riverview 44
AT: Riverview
TOP PLAYERS: (CM) Conner Heald 22 points, George Leibold 11, Kevin O'Donoghue 10
RECORD: Cardinal Mooney 10-7
NEXT: Cardinal Mooney in Booker tournament vs. North Port, Saturday, 1:30 p.m.
Bayshore 67, Sarasota Christian 57
AT: Sarasota Christian
TOP PLAYERS: (SC) Matthias Hulka 26 points, Josh Frazzini 19, Justin Brock 6, Ben Milliken 5, Randall Collins 4
RECORD: Bayshore 5-9, Sarasota Christian 10-5
NEXT: Sarasota Christian hosts Manatee, Friday, 7 p.m.
Parrish 67, Ida Baker 34
AT: Parrish
TOP PLAYERS: (P) Malakai Cuffy 16 points, Dylan Higgins 14, Kymistrii Young 10
RECORD: Parrish 12-5
NEXT: Parrish hosts Lemon Bay, Tuesday, 7:30 p.m.
Sarasota 79, Southeast 50
AT: Southeast
TOP PLAYERS: (S) Mike Drayton 19 points, 8 rebounds; Danny Munn 11 points, 5 rebounds; Oliver Boyle 10 points, 11 rebounds
RECORD: Sarasota 14-2
NEXT: Sarasota at Jesuit, Friday, 7 p.m.
WRESTLING
Class 3A-Region 2
LAKEWOOD RANCH − Even though the Palmetto Ridge High wrestling team defeated Riverdale High in the Class 3A-District 7 Dual Team Tournament final, Bears coach Blaine Ison did not go into Round 2 of the Region 2 tournament overconfident.
“Riverdale is always a really tough team, a very good, tough program,” Ison said. “We won the last one, but there were a lot of matches that could have gone either way. We just happened to be the better team that day.”
Palmetto Ridge was the better team Thursday night, defeating the Raiders, 51-19, in Round 2 of the regionals.
The Bears advance to Round 3 on Jan. 19 at Osceola High School against the host Kowboys, who won their two rounds Thursday. Palmetto Ridge has advanced to Round 3 in all five years of the Dual Team Tournament.
“Riverdale is a great program,” said Ison, whose team defeated Plant City, 59-12, in Round 1. “It’s not always expected. You still have to go out there and get the job done.”
Palmetto Ridge received 2-0 performances from eight wrestlers, including two pins each from Julius Avila (106-pound weight class), Erik Perez (113), Mark Whalen (144), Demetri Zertopoulis (157), Matthew Kniola (190) and Kaden Darwin (285). William McGowan picked up a win and a forfeit win. Owen Pratt (165, 175) notched two decisions, one in overtime.
“All of our kids stepped up and wrestled whistle to whistle,” Ison said. “They came out there and battled, every single position.”
Riverdale could not carry the momentum of its thrilling Round 1 win over Lakewood Ranch High.
Trailing the Mustangs 37-33 entering the final bout, 126-pounder Ayden Balma posted a 5-point, 15-0 technical fall at the 126-pound weight class to give the Raiders a 38-37 victory.
Balma went 2-0, as did Preston Thompkins (132) and Houston Brand (190). Brand had a pin and overtime win against Palmetto Ridge.
District 7 champion Lakewood Ranch received pins from Logan Borcsane (113), Andres Anastasi (138), Shawn Maestre (165), Trey Schwartz (190) and Will Moran (285), a major decision from Nick Chop and a come-from-behind decision win from Aiden Sanders (106).
− Dennis Maffezzoli
WEDNESDAY
GIRLS BASKETBALL
Riverview 56, Lakewood Ranch 36
LAKEWOOD RANCH − The Riverview High girls basketball team put on its running shoes for the second half against Lakewood Ranch High.
The Rams constantly beat the Mustangs down the floor for easy baskets during the final 16 minutes and went on to a 56-36 victory Wednesday night at Lakewood Ranch High.
Up 24-17 at halftime, Riverview (15-2) scored the final five points of the third quarter after the Mustangs (5-5) had sliced their deficit to four. The Rams used an 11-0 run, their second of the game, to break it open in the fourth quarter.
“We’ve got to run,” Riverview coach Gerald Perry said. “We’ve done a lot of good things when we’ve decided to run.”
Lakewood Ranch, which suffered a 40-point setback earlier in the season in Sarasota, knew the Rams liked to run and prepared for it.
“We practiced on it,” Mustangs coach Frank Bell said. “That’s what killed us the first time we played them, too, getting up and down the court. Transition killed us again this time.”
Lakewood Ranch answered the Rams’ 11-0 run by scoring 11 straight points at the end of the first half.
The Mustangs opened the fourth quarter with a 3-pointer from senior Elainna Villegas 35 seconds in, but that was their last field goal of the game.
“We just turned the ball over,” Bell said. “It was way better than the last time we played them, way better. I’m proud of the girls. We could do better, but we still have half a season to get ready for districts.”
Villegas led Lakewood Ranch with 15 points, including four 3-pointers. Sophomore Kayla Holland chipped in with six points.
“Coach does a really good job of beating our zone,” Perry said of Bell. “Sometimes they get some really open shots. We just wanted to emphasize running and playing better defense.”
It was not a great shooting night for the Rams, who had Tuesday’s game at Parrish Community High postponed because of weather, making Wednesday’s contest the first of 2024.
“We’ve had some really good practices, so us shooting the ball and our guards rebounding and putting it back up was something that was really good for me,” Perry said. “We’re going to need that down the stretch.”
Post Susan Lowther, the only senior in the Rams’ starting lineup, led the way with 17 points. Junior Krysten Montas added 12 points, sophomore Kennedy Guy 11 and junior Ava Sims 8.
“We’re blessed to have four guards on the floor, and our big can run with the guards,” Perry said. “That sort of gives us an advantage on teams.”
For a team that has lost twice in 17 games to 14-2 Seffner Christian and 11-5 Whitney Young out of Chicago in the Tampa Bay Invitational, the Rams are not a polished team, yet.
“We want to move the ball around and make better decisions,” Perry said. “We made some decisions that were uncharacteristic of us. We usually move the ball around well, even if we are not hitting shots. And we need to talk on defense. Defense to me is what we are all about. We need to communicate more often, not wait to see what the other team is going to do.”
Riverview has a week off before heading to Lemon Bay High on Jan. 17. Lakewood Ranch goes to Lemon Bay High on Thursday before playing host to Port Charlotte on Friday.
− Dennis Maffezzoli
BOYS BASKETBALL
Bishop Verot 68, Imagine School at North Port 46
AT: Imagine School
TOP PLAYERS: (IS) Angelo Blas 13 points, Zahmir Jackson 8, Brennen Taft and Malakai Strauss each with 6
RECORD: Imagine School 5-10
NEXT: Imagie School hosts The Classical Academy of Sarasota, Friday, 7 p.m.
TUESDAY
BOYS BASKETBALL
Sarasota 78, Venice 50
SARASOTA − The Sarasota High boys basketball team is going through its checklist for success.
The Sailors are not quite there yet, but are making strides.
Sarasota jumped out to an early lead and maintained it during a 78-50 victory over undermanned Venice High on Tuesday evening at Eddie Howell Gymnasium.
After Deylen Platt hit a 3-pointer to give Venice (8-9) the early lead, the Sailors (12-2) responded with 13 straight points to take an advantage they never relinquished.
A 3-pointer by Oliver Boyle, two from beyond the arc by freshman Johnny Lackaff, a Franklin Liriano layup off a turnover and a jumper by Michael Drayton fueled the early Sarasota surge.
The advantage reached 15 off a steal and dunk by Drayton midway through the second quarter.
But before the quarter ended, Venice had cut the deficit to eight on a layup by Platt.
“We’ve had a tendency to do that in games where we get up 13, 14 and then all of a sudden it’s lackadaisical basketball and we lose sight of the things we practice and do on a regular basis,” Sarasota coach BJ Ivey said. “The next thing you know the team goes on an 8-2, 8-0 run and they’re in the game again. We’ve got to redo it again. We’re working on consistency. We’ve still got a lot of room to grow in that regard.”
“I still thought we could hang around and make it a close game,” Venice coach Luke Davis said. “The effort just has to be better. You just can’t lay down and die like that.”
The Sailors tallied the final five points of the half, and Venice notched the first five points of the third quarter.
The run that extended the lead for Sarasota was a 10-0 burst, four by Liriano and 3-pointers by Lackaff and Boyle that extended the lead to 18.
The Sailors turned up the defense the rest of the way and did not permit the visitors any more runs.
“They were active. We talk a lot about defensive effort and execution,” Ivey said. “That’s the first thing we always look at. It was really good at times, and at times we were a little complacent.”
Sarasota also did a good job of sharing the ball, making the extra pass to get the wide-open shot.
Lackaff led the way with 21 points, followed by Drayton 17 that included three dunks, 14 from Boyle and 13 from Liriano, including a dunk.
“That’s something we talk about a lot,” Ivey said after his team improved to 8-0 at home. “Selflessness is a word they chose. We want to shoot open shots. We did that for the most part.”
A number of players who come off the bench for Venice did not make the trip.
“The weather situation,” Davis said. “They weren’t comfortable driving here. You’ve just gotta do what you’ve gotta do.”
In losing for the third straight game, Venice received 15 points from Chad Fleming and 10 from Mike Rhozko.
“We still tried to do what we do,” Davis said. “We probably played a little more zone than we wanted to just to save guys on fouls. It’s just that tough when you have that small of a rotation. I’m not making excuses at all.
“I just thought they were hesitant and weren’t very confident. At the end of the day, it falls on me how we practice. It’s been an up and down year. It seems like we’ve been constantly trying to figure things out. These guys know the real season starts in February and we’re gearing up toward that.”
Venice returns to action Friday at North Fort Myers High. Sarasota visits Southeast High on Thursday.
− Dennis Maffezzoli
MONDAY
BOYS BASKETBALL
Cardinal Mooney 79, Imagine School at North Port 47
AT: Imagine School
TOP PLAYERS: (CM) Connor Heald 18 points, Kevin O'Donoghue 17; (IS) Angelo Blas 24 points, JJ Hall 9, Peyton Rassbach 9
RECORDS: Cardinal Mooney 9-7, Imagine School 5-9
NEXT: Cardinal Mooney hosts Lakewood Ranch, Tuesday, 7 p.m.; Imagine School hosts Bishop Verot, Wednesday, 7 p.m.
Parrish 53, Southeast 37
AT: Parrish
TOP PLAYERS: (P) Dylan Higgins 19 points, Malakai Cuffy 13; (S) Jamarri Bivins 12 points, Terraze Adams 11
RECORDS: Parrish 11-5, Southeast 5-6
NEXT: Parrish at Ida Baker, Thursday, 7:30 p.m.
BOYS SOCCER
Imagine School at North Port 5, Grace Christian 3
AT: South County Regional Park
TOP PLAYERS: (IS) Trent Brown 5 goals, Matteo Storino and Jack Coffee each with 1 assist, Fernando Hernandez made 7 saves in goal
RECORD: Imagine School 5-2
NEXT: Imagine School vs. Grace Christian, Thursday, 6 p.m. at South County Regional Park
This article originally appeared on Sarasota Herald-Tribune: Sarasota Manatee high school sports roundup for the week of Jan. 8-13
