Edison Advances To Flag Football Regional Final; Red Raiders To Meet Coconut Creek

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First-year flag football team Miami Edison is one game away from the State Final Four in Tampa.

The undefeated and District 15-1A champion Red Raiders (11-0) will meet Coconut Creek (15-0) in a battle of the unbeaten's Tuesday night in the Region 4-1A final at Coral Glades High School at 7 p.m.

Edison advanced with a thrilling come-from-behind 13-12 victory over Miami Jackson Friday at Traz Powell Stadium.

"We had never been behind in a game before, but the second half we were down," said Edison head coach Vince Hall. "We called a timeout and looked in the girls' eyes and told them if they wanted to be great this was the perfect time to make a great comeback and win this game. We told them to embrace the moment. We didn't want it to get away from us. They worked hard for this."

Early in the fourth quarter, the Red Raiders were trailing, 12-6. After the defense came up with a great stop, Edison junior quarterback Jaquala Brown led a 40-yard scoring drive hitting Brittany Julius with a 13-yard touchdown with two minutes left. Iranna Hines scored the conversion. Julius finished with two catches, two touchdowns and seven flag pulls.

Hall gave credit to offensive coordinator Harold Jacobs for putting together a great offensive scheme for the winning drive.

"He has led the girls on and off the field," Hall praised. "He made some great play calls and put together a great drive."

The victory came on the heels of Edison's first district title, a 13-0 win over pre-season favorite Miami Northwestern.

"It feels great we are one game away from states," Hall said. "The girls were so excited that Friday morning they woke up at 6:30 and started the texts going around saying 'this is our day,' 'we are going to be great,' 'this is the day to embrace our moment,' 'grind it out.' They were prepared. There was a fight in their eyes."

Edison is one of three Dade teams to advance to Tuesday's region finals. The other two are Miami High, 21-0 winners over Ferguson and Hialeah, 14-7 winners over Everglades. Coral Springs is the only other Broward team to advance with its 6-0 overtime win over Piper.

"It makes a statement for Dade County to have three teams," Hall said. "We have quality athletes coming out of Dade County. Miami High won the state title in basketball and turned around and won the district title in flag football. Hialeah competes in the district basketball tournament and wins districts in flag football. The talent level is so high with our girls and boys."

Coconut Creek, district runners-up last season, won its first district title this season. The Cougars have been undefeated for three consecutive regular seasons.

The Cougars are led by left-handed quarterback Ambresha Long, who relies on both arm strength and running ability. Leading running back Shedly Apollon is one of nine seniors.

"We know they have a left-handed quarterback, good receivers and team speed," Hall said. "They have discipline and have been playing flag football longer than we have. We have to be ready to make adjustments."

In other regional semifinals:

Region 4-2A: Coral Springs 6, Piper 0 (OT), Senior quarterback Olnick Dulverge scored on a five-yard touchdown on a fourth-and-goal run to break a 0-0 regulation game tie. Maxine Samuel led the defense with two of the five interceptions her team came up with. The Bengals finished the season at 10-4.

The Colts (11-2) will play No. 1 state-ranked and undefeated Seminole Ridge, 13-12 Region 3-2A winners over Park Vista, in Tuesday's region final. The semifinal game was moved to Thursday to accommodate three Coral Springs two-sport athletes who qualified for the state track and field meet in Bradenton.

Region 4-2A: Miami High 21, Ferguson 0, The Stingarees remain undefeated (13-0) behind speedster Jeri Richard, who threw two touchdown passes, 13 yards to Destiny Weldon and 65-yarder to Shekinah Rachel and scored on a 21-yard touchdown run in the opening seconds of the game. She also picked off two passes from her safety position.

Region 4-2A: Hialeah 14, Everglades 7, The Thoroughbreds (12-3) rallied in the second half behind Ja'Keira Battles' two touchdown passes to Diamond Celestine.

Region 4-1A: Coconut Creek 13, Monsignor Pace 0, In a battle of the unbeaten teams, the host Cougars shut out Pace (13-1) behind Long and Apollon.

TUESDAY REGION FINALS SCHEDULE
Region 3-2A: Coral Springs at Seminole Ridge, 7 p.m.
Region 4-2A: Miami High at Hialeah, 4 p.m.
Region 4-1A: Edison vs. Coconut Creek at Coral Glades, 7 p.m.

FLORIDA HIGH SCHOOL FLAG FOOTBALL STATE CHAMPIONSHIPS at Robinson High School, Tampa
May 13, Friday: 1A Semifinals, 3:30, 5 p.m.; 2A Semifinals, 6:30, 8 p.m.
May 14, Saturday: 1A State Championship, 3 p.m., 2A State Championship, 5 p.m.