FLAG FOOTBALL: Class 2A regional quarterfinal playoff preview

Playoff time is here and with the newly expanded brackets for the first time ever in regional playoffs, that means there are more games and more excitement to be had in flag football as 32 teams are competing for the goal of becoming the state champion in Class 2A.

Here is our preview of all 16 Class 2A regional quarterfinal games:

REGION 1 QUARTERFINALS

No. 8 Crestview (9-7) at No. 1 Fleming Island (13-1)

NOTES: Crestview was knocked out in the semifinals in District 2A-1 by Niceville who missed the playoffs after falling to Pace in the district championship … Lilly Cooke will be the leading quarterback for the visiting Bulldogs with receivers Lauren Cox, Aliana Murray, and Leah Bailey likely to be the leading receivers to haul in catches … Linebackers Kennedy Baluran and Kailey Howard as well as rusher Paris Kolmetz are the leading defensive players for the Bulldogs … Mykayla Maddox will be the main layer to watch as she has thrown for over 1,300 yards this season including over 30 touchdowns and only having thrown five interceptions as well as adding a handful of interceptions on defense … Maddox’s favorite target will be Elizabeth Edwards who has over 450 yards receiving and a handful of touchdowns on the season … Crestview has been scoring an average of 25.8 points per game while giving up 14.9 points per game this season while Fleming Island has averaged 30.7 points per game while giving up 3.9 points per game … This is Fleming Island’s sixth overall regional playoff appearance in school history … For Crestview this is their first regional playoff appearance in school history.

PREDICTION Fleming Island over Crestview

No. 5 Port Orange Spruce Creek (12-2) at No. 4 Winter Park (11-3)

NOTES: This is Spruce Creek’s second straight regional playoff appearance in school history … Spruce Creek has averaged 18.1 points per game during the season while giving up an average of 4 points per game … For Winter Park this is their first regional playoff appearance in school history … For the host Wildcats, offensively keep an eye on quarterback Destinee Howard who has thrown for 815 yards this season with Calin Jerry rushing for 751 yards and 11 touchdowns … Mia Vizer is the leading receive for Winter Park with 267 yards receiving and seven touchdowns … Defensively Vizer, who also plays as defensive back, leads the defense with 93 tackles on the season and five interceptions while linebackers Jasmine Bocca and Janesa Williams each have seven interceptions on the season … Camila Contreras leads the team with 14 sacks while Jerry has 12 sacks on the season … Winter Park averages 16.8 points per game while giving 6.7 points per game.

PREDICTION: Spruce Creek over Winter Park

No. 7 Jacksonville Sandalwood (9-5) at No. 2 Pace (16-2)

NOTES: This is Sandalwood’s second regional playoff appearance in school history … keep an eye on quarterback Ashley Purdy, who is a freshman that has thrown for over 2,000 yards this season and 20 touchdowns while also rushing for four more touchdowns … Favorite targets for Purdy include Ericka Bell, with over 580 yards receiving and four touchdowns and Daniela Garcia who has over 450 yards receiving and four touchdowns …  For Pace, this also marks their first regional playoff appearance in their short four-year history … The Patriots have a special quarterback in freshman Amaya Pablo who has thrown for 3,176 yards passing with 49 touchdowns going against only 11 interceptions … Pablo also leads the team in rushing with 870 yards rushing and 13 touchdowns … Favorite targets for Pablo include Lucy Gongwer who has 769 yards receiving on 76 catches with 11 touchdowns with Ashten Dickerson having 759 yards receiving on 82 catches and five touchdowns … Shelby Cooks and Ava Wheaton are tied with Gongwer with each of them having a 11 receiving touchdowns each through 18 games played … Aryana Hughes who is the last original member left of the inaugural team, leads the team with 71 tackles and has racked up a whopping 43 sacks and has collected two interceptions as well … Dickerson leads the team with 10 interceptions on the season …  Pace has averaged 34.6 points per game while giving up an average of 6 points per game .. For Sandalwood, they have averaged 16.7 points per game while giving up an average of 14 points per game.

PREDICTION: Pace over Sandalwood

No. 6 Orlando Timber Creek (12-2) at No. 3 Tallahassee Chiles (14-3)

NOTES: This is Timber Creek’s third straight regional playoff appearance … Kian Hugh is worth keeping an eye on as she has thrown for over 1,200 yards and 20 touchdowns this season … Hugh’s favorite targets have been Jasmine Cheema who leads in receiving with 389 yards receiving with five receiving touchdowns … Defensively Nevaeh Washington leads the teams in tackles with 48 while Cheema is right behind Washington with 35 tackles … Ava Jessum leads the team in sacks with 10 sacks and also has 30 tackles on the season … Ayanna Dixon leads the team in interceptions with four interceptions on the season … The Wolves have been averaging 16.6 points per game while giving up an average of 4.6 points per game … This is Chiles’s first regional playoff appearance since 2010 … the Timberwolves have averaged 25.8 points per game this season while only giving up an average of 7.3 points per game … no statistical information for Chiles was available as of press time.

PREDICTION: Chiles over Timber Creek

REGION 2 QUARTERFINALS

No. 8 Valrico Bloomingdale (11-5) at No. 1 Lithia Newsome (16-1)

NOTES: This is a rematch of a regular-season game where Bloomingdale came up one point short against Newsome, 21-20 back on March 22 … This is Bloomingdale’s second straight regional playoff appearance … Ti Ti Comer is one to keep an eye on for the visiting Bulls at the quarterback position who has thrown for 2,749 yards and 34 touchdowns as well 357 yards rushing and four touchdowns on the ground … Comer’s favorite targets include Grace Elliot who leads in receiving yards and receiving touchdowns with 771 yards on 86 catches with 12 touchdowns … Emily Gudin is another favorite target who has 56 catches for 530 receiving yards and 11 touchdowns … Defensively for Bloomingdale, linebacker Hayley Robinson leads with 90 tackles while Brianna Phillips leads in sacks with 16 sacks … Elliot and Gudin are the leaders in interceptions with nine and seven respectively … The Bulls have averaged 20.4 points per game this season while giving up an average of 8.1 points per game … For the host Wolves, they are led by one of the top players in the state in Devyn Silvestri who plays both ways … For Silvestri at quarterback she has thrown for 2,669 yards and 39 touchdowns this season while also rushing for 570 more and 12 touchdowns on the ground … defensively Silvestri has 23 tackles and five interceptions … Silvestri has several targets in the passing game in Madison Ludwig (62 catches, 674 yards, 5 touchdowns), Kayla Ludwig (55 catches, 673 yards, 12 touchdowns), and Emma Clough (67 catches, 578 yards, 16 touchdowns) that will do a bulk of the work … defensively Madison Ludwig leads the team with 95 tackles and interceptions with 12 while Hallie Wolpert is the leader in sacks with nine sacks … Newsome has averages 28.4 points per game during the season while giving up just 6.9 points per game.

PREDICTION: Newsome over Bloomingdale

No. 5 Riverview (13-4) at No. 4 Orlando Dr. Phillips (15-1)

NOTES: This is Riverview’s second regional playoff appearance in school history … Some players to keep an eye on the offense include quarterback Kaylee Dominquez, and Natalia Quiles who is the leading receiver for the Sharks … Defensively keep an eye on linebacker Leilani Brown as well Quiles who also have shown out as the top players on that side of the ball for Riverview … Riverview averages 25.2 points per game while giving up 10.4 points per game … This is Dr. Phillips second straight to the regional playoffs with their second straight district championship … Dr. Phillips has not stats available as of press time … The Panthers have averaged 26.9 points per game this season while giving up just only 4.1 points per game.

PREDICTION: Riverview over Dr. Phillips

No. 7 Seffner Armwood (10-2) at No. 2 Tampa Alonso (17-1)

NOTES: This is Armwood’s first regional playoff appearance since 2016 … No statistics were available about the Hawks as of press time … The Hawks have been averaging 25.7 points per game this season while giving up an average of 9.4 points per game this season … Alonso has won four consecutive state championships and are on the hunt for their first championship since 2019 … The Ravens are led by Mieke Rowe, another of the top flag football quarterbacks in the state with 4,426 passing yards and 84 touchdowns on the season as a junior … Rowe has also rushed for 149 yards and six more touchdowns … Rowe has several targets she likes to aim at including Makenna Sturgis (57 catches, 1,163 yards, 23 TDs) who is only in her freshman year, Eryn Klaus (60 catches, 880 yards, 16 touchdowns) and Sadie Bode (50 catches, 700 yards, 12 touchdowns) … Defensive for Alonso, Klaus leads the team in tackles followed along with linebacker Sophie Duong who has 60 tackles … Rusher Ella Bode leads the Ravens with 20 sacks and is third in tackles for the team at 48 …  Alonso has averaged 40.5 points per game this season while only giving up an average of 3.9 points per game.

PREDICTION: Alonso over Armwood

No. 6 Ruskin Lennard (13-5) at No. 3 Tampa Hillsborough (10-3)

NOTES: Head coach Travis Combs, now in his third season at Lennard finally has pushed the Longhorns into the regional playoffs for the first time in school history and will get a formidable opponent in Hillsborough … Keep an eye on Abby Elwell who has been the starting quarterback this season for the Longhorns … Elwell has a variety of targets to choose from on the field in the passing game including freshman Kyah Vance, senior Lexi Mosely, senior Katie Paskert, sophomore Grayce Bird, and sophomore Kaitlyn Sigmundi … defensively keep an eye on Emma Balacco, Jennifer Bevel, and Kate Keith as well as Mosely who will anchor the majority of the defense itself … Lennard has averaged 24.9 points per game this season while on giving up 10.9 points per game … For the host Terriers, keep an eye on quarterback Layla West who had 1,225 passing yards along with 27 touchdowns during the regular season … West also added 301 yards rushing and three touchdowns on the ground … West’s biggest target will be Makenzie Phillian who had 46 catches for 416 yards and eight touchdowns during the regular season … Defensively for Hillsborough, linebacker Sanaa Cotton leads the way on tackles with 32 while rusher Reina Labor follows right behind at 25 tackles … Labor also leads the team in sacks with 15 sacks … West leads the team currently in interceptions with seven … The Terriers have been averaging 24.8 points per game while giving up 6.7 points per game this season.

PREDICTION: Lennard over Hillsborough

REGION 3 QUARTERFINALS

No. 8 Port St. Lucie Centennial (10-6) at No. 1 Stuart Martin County (15-1)

NOTES: This is a rematch from the regular season … Martin County defeated Centennial on April 6, 20-0 … Centennial is expected to see a mix of Viktoreyah Aponte and Olivia Kaes at quarterback … Targets in the passing game include Kiahra Wood and Tyler Cervini … Defensively, Kate Ehrsam, Koriyah Butler along with Cervini will be named to keep an eye on … The Eagles have averaged 20.8 points per game this season while giving up 13.2 points per game … This is also Centennial’s second straight regional playoff appearance …. Martin County comes into this matchup riding on a 12-game winning streak since their only loss to Apopka back on March 26 … As of press time, there were no statistics available regarding the Tigers … Martin County has averaged 16.8 points per game this season while giving up just 3.3 points per game.

PREDICTION: Martin County over Centennial

No. 5 Lake Worth Park Vista (14-1) at No. 4 Harmony (15-2)

NOTES: Park Vista is back in the regional playoffs for the first time since 2019 when they had made a run all the way to the Class 2A state championship game … There were no statistics available regarding Cobras players available as of press time … Park Vista is coming off a loss to the Boca Raton Spanish River in the District 2A-12 championship …. The Cobras have averaged 25.5 points per game this season while giving up just 3.1 points per game … For Harmony, this is their first regional playoff appearance since 2019 as well … There were no statistics available regarding any Longhorn players available as of press time … Harmony has averaged 15.1 points per game while giving up 4.1 points per game.

PREDICTION: Park Vista over Harmony

No. 7 Wellington (12-5) at No. 2 Boca Raton Spanish River (15-2)

NOTES: This matchup is a rematch from the regular season … Wellington defeated Spanish River 13-6 on April 5 … This is Wellington’s first regional playoff appearance in school history … as of press time there were no available statistics on the Wolverines’ players … Wellington has averaged 19.1 points per game while giving up 7.9 points per game … For Spanish River this is their second straight regional playoff appearance with their second straight district championship …. Offensively for the Sharks, keep an eye on Gianna Pacitti who has thrown for over 3,300 yards and 54 touchdowns this season … Some of Pacitti’s favorite targets include Mya Quinn (57 catches, 830 yards, 15 touchdowns), Maya Salas (53 catches, 665 yards, 10 touchdowns), and Alessandra Pacitti (69 catches, 636 yards, 4 touchdowns) … Defensively, Salas leads the team in tackles with 60 while Natali Dominguez and Eden Zausner have 51 and 50 tackles respectively … Kaitlyn Ruiz who has 43 tackles on the season leads the team with 21 sacks … Quinn leads the team in interceptions with a whopping 26 interceptions on the season … The Sharks have scored an average of 29.9 points per game this season while giving up just an average of 5.6 points per game.

PREDICTION: Spanish River over Wellington

No. 6 Fort Piece Westwood (11-3) at No. 3 Westlake Seminole Ridge (12-3)

NOTES: This is Fort Pierce Westwood’s first regional playoff appearance since 2019 … There was no statics available as of press time regarding the Panthers’ top players … Westwood has averaged 17.1 points per game this season while only giving up just 6.5 points per game … For Seminole Ridge, this is their second straight regional playoff appearance after winning their second consecutive district championship … Seminole Ridge is seeking their first state championship since last winning one in 2016 … There were no available statistics on top players for the Hawks as of press time … Seminole Ridge has averaged 26.3 points per game this season while giving up just 4.9 points per game … All of Seminole Ridge’s three losses this season have come from Top 25 teams in the state including defending Class 1A state champion Tampa Robinson, Tampa Alonso and Boca Raton Spanish River.

PREDICTION: Seminole Ridge over Westwood

REGION 4 QUARTERFINALS

No. 8 Fort Lauderdale St. Thomas Aquinas (12-2) at No. 1 Davie Western (14-0)

NOTES: This is St. Thomas Aquinas’ first regional playoff appearance in school history … This is also St. Thomas Aquinas’ first year fielding a flag football program … Offensively, keep an eye on Stella Gutierrez at quarterback who has thrown for over 2,000 yards this season and 24 touchdowns … Favorite targets in the passing game for Gutierrez include Kamryn Corporan (55 catches, 817 yards, 6 touchdowns), Nyla McFadden (54 catches, 605 yards, 9 touchdowns), and Elena Clark (28 catches, 202 yards, 4 touchdowns) … Defensively, keep an eye on Corporan (35 tackles) who has led the team in tackles and interceptions (4 interceptions) as well as rusher Nadia Scalisi who has 31 tackles and leads the team in sacks with 23 … The Raiders have averaged 25.6 points per game this season while giving up 8.4 points per game … For Western, they are seeking their second straight trip to the Class 2A state championship game this season as this playoff trip marks their fourth consecutive appearance in the regional playoffs … The Wildcats are led by Sydney Ford who has 2,486 yards passing and 39 touchdowns on the season … Ford also has 195 yards and four touchdowns on the ground … Some of Ford’s favorite targets in the air include Veronica McBride (43 catches, 712 yards, 15 touchdowns), Nandi Ramessar (31 catches, 490 yards, 6 touchdowns), and Lauren Holschauer (33 catches, 418 yards, 10 touchdowns) … On defense keep an eye on Ford who leads the team in tackles with 35 with Lian Scott who has 34 tackles … Ayisha Scott leads the Wildcats with eight sacks while Keylee Allen leads the team with 8 interceptions … Western has averaged 34.3 points per game this season while giving just 2.4 points per game and have posted eight shutouts in 14 games.

PREDICTION: Western over St. Thomas Aquinas

No. 5 Cooper City (13-4) at No. 4 Miami Ferguson (12-2)

NOTES: This is Cooper City’s first regional playoff appearance since 2019 … The Cowboys did not have any available statistics for their players as of press time … Cooper City has averaged 25.1 points per game this season while giving up 8.8 points per game … For Ferguson, this marks their third consecutive appearance in the regional playoffs with three straight district championships … Expect the Falcons to be led by quarterback Yanize Montgomery while having targets to throw to including senior Sophia Blanco and junior Elizabeth Garcia … defensively senior Brianna Edwards and juniors Arianna Otano and Kalani Anglin will be names to keep an eye on … Ferguson has averaged scoring 18.4 points per game this season while giving up just 2.6 points per game.

PREDICTION: Cooper City over Ferguson

No. 7 Hollywood South Broward (11-1) at No. 2 Miami High (13-1)

NOTES: This is South Broward’s first regional playoff appearance in school history … The Bulldogs are going to be relying on Ahlani Packer to drive the offense at quarterback as she has racked up over 2,000 yards and 22 touchdowns so far this season … Some of Packer’s favorite targets will include Jamesha Card (46 catches, 701 yards, 5 touchdowns), Isabella Oquendo (57 catches, 672 yards, 8 touchdowns), and Nygeia Burgess (34 catches, 443 yards, 3 touchdowns) … Defensively, Sofia Machado leads the way on the team with 112 tackles while Elsie Davis is second with 66 tackles … Both Machado and Davis are the sack leaders for the Bulldogs with 57 and 33 respectively on the season … Packer leads the team in interceptions with 19 … South Broward has averaged 24.6 points per game this season while giving up 3.75 points per game … This is Miami High’s first regional playoff appearance since 2019 … The Stingarees had no available statistics on their top players as of press time … Miami High has averaged 24.8 points per game this season while giving up 5.5 points per game.

PREDICTION: Miami High over South Broward

No. 6 Homestead (10-2) at No. 3 Weston Cypress Bay (13-0)

NOTES: This is Homestead’s first regional playoff appearance in school history … For the Broncos keep an eye on quarterback Delexis McCall who has 878 yards passing and 15 touchdowns on the season along with 820 yards rushing with eight more touchdowns to account for … Top targets for McCall will be Rachel Ulysse (19 catches, 293 yards, 5 touchdowns) and Darranique Mobley (9 catches, 208 yards, 4 touchdowns) … Defensively, Mobley and McCall lead the way in tackles with 56 and 37 respectively while Mobley leads the team in sacks with 19 on the season … McCall also leads the Broncos in interceptions with six while Jayda Fisher is second with five interceptions … Homestead has averaged 20.3 points per game while giving up an average of 6.5 points per game this season …. For Cypress Bay, this is their first regional playoff appearance since 2011 … Offensively for the Lightning expect a rotating quarterback situation with Riley Orovitz (778 yards passing, 9 touchdowns), and Maddy Brouse (760 yards passing, 711 yards rushing, 16 total touchdowns) splitting the snaps … Targets for both Orovitz and Brouse include Peyton Looky (22 catches, 464 yards receiving 10 touchdowns; 20 carries, 425 yards, 4 touchdowns), and Campbell Halsey (34 catches, 344 yards, 3 touchdowns) … For the Lightning defense Myla Marshall leads the way in tackles with 44 followed by Kelly Brouse with 36 tackles … Marshall leads the team in sacks with 28 while Maddy Brouse leads the team in interceptions with 10 … Cypress Bay has averaged 24.5 points per game this season while giving up just under 1 point per game having only given up points in just two games played.

PREDICTION: Cypress Bay over Homestead