Mike Ridaught
Last week the P.K. Yonge girls soccer team advanced to its first final four in program history with a 2-1 win against Episcopal (Jacksonville) in a Class 3A-Region 1 Final.
“I am so, so happy for these players,” said P.K. Yonge coach Rebecca Schackow. “A lot of people pour into this program and want these girls to realize their potential and I am right there at the top of the list. I just want them to experience all the greatness, all the success, all the joy, so I’m just so excited and happy, and grateful.”
Junior Faith Hardy scored both goals for the Lady Blue Wave, including the game-winner with four minutes remaining.
“It’s unbelievable,” Hardy said after the win on Valentine’s Day night. “I’m so speechless. I couldn’t help but cry. It’s awesome.”
After three straight regional final appearances, with losses to Jacksonville schools Providence and Bolles, the Lady Blue Wave finally broke through.
“Personally, I just feel really grateful because I’ve been given a job to help lead some really amazing young women and just try to help them have great experiences, be the best they can be, help others, have lives that are going in a great direction,” Schackow said. “I’m getting to do that and I’m getting to see it play out in these neat ways of like reaching goals, dreaming big, accomplishing great things, doing something they’ve never done in this school before, so it feels great.”
They’ve played a very difficult schedule this season which includes 6A regional quarterfinalist Navarre, 2A state semifinalist St. Johns Country Day (Orange Park), and Bartram Trail (St. Johns), which is hosting Creekside (St. Johns) in a matchup of two of the top seven teams in the country, in Wednesday’s 7A-Region 1 Final.
However, they face one of their toughest tests of the season in a couple of days.
P.K. Yonge (16-3-3), which is the No. 4 seed in Wednesday’s 3A state semifinals, will face top-seed and nationally-ranked Montverde Academy at 1 p.m.
The Eagles (16-4-1) are ranked fourth overall in Florida and 11th in the MaxPreps national rankings.
They are averaging 4.24 goals per game and have allowed just 27 goals in 21 games, while P.K. Yonge is averaging 4.59 goals with just 12 goals allowed all year.
Edgewood (Merritt Island), the No. 2 seed, will face No. 3 seed NSU University (Fort Lauderdale) at 10 a.m. in the other state semifinal.
A little over two weeks ago I wrote that the Hawthorne girls basketball team and the Williston boys basketball team both had a chance to repeat.
I noted that the last area girls’ basketball team to win back-to-back was Keystone Heights, which won the 2A state championship in 1994 and the 3A title in 1995.
The last area boys’ team to repeat was GHS, which won the Class 5A state title in 1999 and 2000.
Tonight, the Hawthorne girls have a chance to advance to the final four in Lakeland for the fifth time in the past six years.
Last year, Hawthorne won its last nine games, including a 42-38 win against Wildwood in the 1A state title game.
The top seed Lady Hornets (19-3) defeated No. 2 seed Hilliard, 38-27, in last Wednesday’s Class 1A-Region 3 Semifinal to advance to tonight’s region final.
Hawthorne, which played without star guard De’Mya Adams, had two players score in double figures and two other players grab double-digit rebounds.
Senior Zakena Ealy had 12 points, followed by senior Lakijah Brown with 11 points. Senior Ranicia Coleman and junior Jhalea Jackson each had 10 rebounds.
Adams, who will be back in the lineup tonight against Madison County, averages over 16 points and four steals per game.
Madison County (21-4) advanced to tonight’s 1A-Region 4 Final against Hawthorne with a 60-54 win against Newberry (15-9).
Four players scored in double figures, led by senior Janiyah McKnight with 20 points.
Junior Jaidyn Wesley had 14 points, followed by sophomore Tahj Dobson with 11 points, and freshman Ja’niyah Livingston with 10 points.
Both teams have peaked at the right time, with Hawthorne winning its last 16 games and the visiting Cowgirls winning 11 in a row.
You can listen to tonight’s game online (audio only) at Mainstreet Daily News beginning at 6:45 p.m. with Marty Pallman (Play-by-play) and Mike Ridaught (Color) calling the action.
The tipoff is at 7 p.m.
In other girls’ action, No. 2 seed Trenton is at No. 1 Wildwood for a 1A-Region 4 Final, No. 4 seed Oak Hall is at top-seed North Florida Educational Institute (Jacksonville) for a 2A-Region 1 Semifinal, and No. 4 seed P.K. Yonge is at top-seed Providence (Jacksonville) for a 3A-Region 1 Semifinal.
On Tuesday night, the top-seed Williston boys basketball team will host No. 3 seed Trenton in a Class 1A-Region 4.
The Red Devils (26-2), who defeated Chipley, 58-49, in last year’s 1A state title game, have won eight in a row, including a 76-18 win against No. 4 seed Pahokee in the regional semifinals last Thursday.
Sophomore Deandre Harvey and junior Giovanni Wright had 11 points each, followed by senior Reggie White (10 points) and senior Javon Brown (9 points).
Trenton (14-11) advanced with a 49-41 win at No. 2 seed Chiefland (11-12).
In other boys basketball action tomorrow night, No. 4 seed Fort White, which upset top seed Hawthorne, 56-51, in the 1A-Region 3 Semifinals, will travel to No. 2 seed Hilliard for a 1A-Region 3 Final.
The only other two area boys’ teams remaining are GHS and Buchholz.
The No. 6 seed Hurricanes, who edged No. 3 Oakleaf (Orange Park), 47-46, in last Thursday’s regional quarterfinals, will travel to No. 2 seed Ponte Vedra.
Meanwhile, No. 4 seed Buchholz (18-10), which won its first playoff game in 15 years with a 59-48 victory at home against No. 5 seed Forest (Ocala), will travel to top seed Wiregrass Ranch (Wesley Chapel).
The Buchholz game will be broadcast online (audio only) at Mainstreet Daily News beginning at 6:45 p.m. with Pallman (Play-by-play) and Jacob Islam (Color) calling the action.
The winners of the GHS and Buchholz games will play in this Friday’s regional final for a spot in the 6A state semifinals