South Florida Girls Hoops Travel Team Finding National Success

SFHSSports: Twitter | Facebook

The Lady Jaguars of South Florida, one of four local girls' travel basketball teams competing in four states this month, are off to a strong start.

At the July 6-8 Tournament of Champions in Suwanee, Ga., the 2017 team of upcoming senior high school players, finished 3-1.

In the opening game, the Lady Jaguars defeated Below The Rim (Okla.), 55-52. Leading the team were guard Monica Grimaldo (Archbishop McCarthy) with 19 points including four three-pointers; forward Gabriela Zagari (Cooper City) with 16 points; guard Reagan McCray (Archbishop McCarthy) with eight points and guard Shannon Kunkel (Gulliver Prep) with eight assists and three points.

In the next game, the Lady Jaguars defeated the Atlanta Cagers, 48-33. McCray had 16 points; Zagari added 11 points and five rebounds; forward Emma Krause (Cardinal Gibbons) had 6 points and 6 rebounds and Grimaldo had six points and three assists.

After losing to the Douglasville (Ga.) Lady Tigers, 50-40, the Lady Jaguars bounced back with an impressive 33-19 victory over Boo Williams Team Select (Va.). Grimaldo had 11 points; Kunkel, seven points, six rebounds and five assists; Zagari, eight points and two rebounds and Krause, four points and five rebounds.

"We did expect a strong start," said Lady Jaguars coach Ricky Grimaldo. "The group of core players we have started playing together in fifth grade. Through the years, we have lost some players and added some players. It's a very talented, competitive team. We are making a name for ourselves little by little."

"I think we surprised some people. We are beginning to get some recognition. We don't look like most athletic teams, but we end up surprising teams. They work hard and have a very high basketball IQ."

The Lady Jaguars are known for their defense particularly help-side defense.

"Defense is our staple," Grimaldo said. "We play man-to-man defense well. Our players know how to help each other out. Our girls play together well as a team."

Other local teams competing on the road this summer are the Miami Suns, D3 MOAM and Team Breakdown.

Archbishop McCarthy has six players competing on the 2017 and 2019 Lady Jaguars of South Florida travel teams and three others including 6-foot-8 freshman Chantell Gonzalez and twin sisters Carla and Cristina Soto on the Miami Suns Red and 8th teams.

In addition to the Suwanee Tournament of Champions, other summer tournaments are: July 8-9 Real Deal in the Ville (Tenn.), July 10-12 Nike Tournament of Champions (Chicago), July 10-13 Battle in the Boro (Nashville, Tenn.), July 23-25 Basketball in the Bayou (New Orleans, La.) and PBS Summer Invite (Ga.), July 26-28 ASGR Summer Basketball Playoff (Charlotte, N.C.) and July 27-29 Nike Skills (Ga.).

The South Florida club teams games and practice sessions are held in March, April, May and July.

"Our goal is to help all our girls get into college," said Grimaldo, Principal at Stephen Foster Elementary School in Fort Lauderdale. "July is a big period for our travel basketball. We are playing all NCAA-certified events in front of college coaches."

The Lady Jaguars and other South Florida travel teams cater to all age groups.

"We are proud of bringing the girls together when they are young, developing them at an early age, teaching them skills and how to play basketball," Grimaldo said.
"When they are in middle school our big goal is to get them ready for high school. We have a good relationship with the high school coaches."

The Lady Jaguars, now in their sixth year, are getting more involved with social media in hopes of promoting the teams and attracting sponsors to help defray travel and training costs.

"We would like to travel more nationally," Grimaldo said. "This season is our biggest national schedule we've ever had. We have great support from the parents. It's taken a team effort to make it all happen."