The FHSAA girls basketball postseason gets no easier for West Orange after earning impressive wins last week while clinching the Class 7A District 3 championship.
The Warriors (18-8), up four spots to No. 6 in the Sentinel Super Six rankings, host No. 4 Colonial (15-9) in a region quarterfinal playoff game Thursday at 7 p.m. The winner advances to face either No. 3 Timber Creek (15-5) or Dr. Phillips (16-7) in the semifinals.
DP ended the regular season ranked No. 3 among area teams before West Orange handed the Panthers a 56-54 loss in the district final.
“Whoever we’re facing at this point is going to be a solid team. There’s no easy way out,” West Orange second-year head coach Brian Rizo said.
No matter who stands in the way at this point in the season, it appears the Warriors are up for the challenge. Freshmen Jasmynne Gibson and Jasmine Bocca have matured into major contributors alongside veterans Ajalon Gillard and Kyla Cruz.
Gibson averages 10 points and 9 rebounds per game while Bocca, a point guard, is fourth on the team in scoring at 7.9 points per game. Cruz, one of just three seniors this season, averages 8 points and 2.5 steals as the team’s top defender. Gillard enters regionals averaging 12.8 points per game.
“Their confidence is through the roof right now,” Rizo said. “There’s almost a realization for them that ‘Hey, we belong here and we can compete with anybody.’ They’ve started to buy in and really focus on fighting for each other.”
The girls basketball Super Six rankings entering region tournament play are listed below. Team records are as reported by MaxPreps.
Super Six rankings
1. Lake Highland Prep (14-0): The defending Class 4A state champion and top-ranked FHSAA team in the state made easy work of district foes last week while defeating Tavares 76-6 and Eustis 67-31.
2. Wekiva (20-3): Jada Eads scored 17 points and Rylan Moffitt finished with 15 points and 5 rebounds during a 69-55 district final win vs Daytona Beach Mainland (19-2) in a matchup of Class 6A’s top teams.
3 (6). Timber Creek (15-5): The Wolves, state semifinalists a year ago, avenged a regular-season loss vs. Colonial during a 71-62 win for their third consecutive district title. Timber Creek advanced through the semifinals via a 52-33 win vs. Oviedo (15-4).
4. Colonial (15-9): Freshman Dezmariah Soto shot 8-of-12 from the field and finished with 24 points for the Grenadiers in a district-final loss at Timber Creek. Freshman Camryn Patterson added 12 points on 4-of-8 shooting.
5. Jones (14-5): State semifinalist Tigers repeated as district champs in Class 5A with blowout wins vs. Ocala Vanguard (68-38) and Lecanto (65-26). Jones hosts Zephyrhills (18-8) Thursday in the region quarterfinals.
6 (10). West Orange (18-8): The Warriors, who have reached the region semifinals each of the past four years, own quality wins this season against Dr. Phillips, Apopka, Eustis and The Master’s Academy.
Second Six: 7. St. Cloud (14-6), 8. Dr. Phillips (16-7), 9. Lake Mary (14-11), 10. Apopka (14-6), 11. Eustis (13-6), 12. The Master’s Academy (14-7).
This article originally appeared on OrlandoSentinel.com. Email J.C. Carnahan at jcarnahan@orlandosentinel.com.
