FHSAA Class 1A girls flag football regional finals preview

GAINESVILLE, Fla. – The “Elite Eight” is among us in girl’s flag football on Monday night, with the regional finals here as the winners will punch their tickets to Jacksonville for the 2023 FHSAA Flag Football State Championship next weekend at Mandarin High School.

Here is a look at the four games for Monday night for each of the regional finals in Class 1A:

REGION 1

(4) Stanton at (2) Choctawhatchee, 7 CT: For visiting Stanton (17-2), this now marks their best season in program history, reaching the regional for the first time. This happened partly thanks to No. 1 seed Ed White getting bounced in the regional quarterfinals and then defeating the team that defeated Ed White in Florida High last week. They will get their biggest challenge and test of the season with a long road trip to Choctawhatchee (16-2) out in the Panhandle. Several key athletes are to watch for the visiting Blue Devils, including all-around athlete Courtney Brown, quarterback Charlee Evoniuk, and wide receiver and linebacker Gaby Fajardo. They will be the three names that the host Indians will have to contend with on the field. And speaking of the Indians, they won a huge victory over a tough and gritty Paxon team last week as they now seek their second straight trip to Jacksonville. This season, freshman quarterback Diaris Morales has shown what she can do and is developing into an athlete that will become even more known in the next few years. So far this season, Morales has passed for 3,699 yards and 61 touchdowns while rushing for 585 yards on 91 carries and nine more touchdowns. Morales has had several favorite targets emerge this season, including Morgan Grace (925 receiving yards, 15 touchdowns), Kaitlyn Eisenberg (746 yards receiving, 15 touchdowns), and Khamauri Hardy (641 receiving yards, 12 touchdowns). This matchup could be exciting, but since the Indians have been in this position several times with head coach Jim Bay in command, it will Choctawhatchee have the edge over Stanton.

REGION 2

(2) Braden River vs. (1) Robinson at One Bucs Place, 7: If you noticed, this game is going to be hosted at One Bucs Place, the indoor training facility of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, which is huge as this will be the second ever girls flag football playoff game hosted after host Robinson (18-2) hosted Gibbs last week in the regional semifinals and defeated them 35-0. For visiting Braden River (14-2), this will mark the first time they have made a trip this far in the playoffs and to the regional finals after defeating Lecanto last week, 6-0. The visiting Pirates will need to play their best game of the season, going up against a Knights squad that is seeking their seventh straight Class 1A state championship and their eighth state championship in the last nine seasons. The Pirates will rely heavily on junior quarterback Cydnee Brooks, who has thrown for over 2,300 yards and 42 touchdowns, along with over 560 rushing yards and five more touchdowns on the season. Brooks’ top two targets have been Monique Schwalbach (Over 670 yards receiving and 14 touchdowns) and Courtney Kawack (over 515 yards receiving and seven touchdowns). Defensively, the best athlete the Pirates have is Maddison Epperson, who has 18 sacks along with 61 flag pulls on the season, while Ameria Smith leads the team in interceptions with six. With the Knights, some consistent athletes have stood out this season, including sophomore quarterback and defensive back Haidyn Spano. Spano has thrown for 4,480 yards and 81 touchdowns this season, adding 227 yards rushing and six touchdowns to her totals. While Spano is amazing on offense, it is on defense where she does well as well, with nine interceptions along 15 pass deflections to go along with 46 flag pulls. Targets in the receiving game for Spano include Katejion Robinson, who has 1,149 yards receiving and 25 touchdowns, along with Manasvi Vijayaraghavan and Adriana Williams. Vijayaraghavan has 984 yards receiving and 24 touchdowns on the season, while Williams has 931 receiving yards and 11 touchdowns. It also should be noted that Vijayarahavan has nine interceptions the season, while Julia Guillermo leads the Knights in sacks with 28. Overall, this game will be a tall order for Braden River going up against an established and well-seasoned powerhouse team in the state.

RELATED: FHSAA Class 2A girls flag football regional finals preview

REGION 3

(8) Somerset Canyons at (3) Mainland, 6: The only No. 8 seed remaining, Somerset Canyons (15-5), has shown they belong here as a district champion that has played their best season of girl’s flag football in the program’s history. Host Mainland (13-5) is looking at reaching the state semifinals for the first time in program history and keeping a roll on the successful athletic season the school has been having. The visiting Cougars have reached this game for the first time by defeating No. 1 seed Wildwood and then defeating No. 4 seed Fort Pierce Westwood to get this game. As such, the biggest reason the Cougars have arrived here is thanks to a quarterback who is only in the eighth grade Ava Wotipka who has thrown for 2,582 yards and 30 touchdowns while rushing for 428 yards and nine more touchdowns. Wotipka has two favorite targets she likes to find downfield in the passing game, with leading receiving Delanie Doty, who has 1,180 yards receiving and 14 touchdowns, and Jayda Simmons, with 616 receiving yards and ten touchdowns. Defensively, eyes will be on Cameron Celce, who has racked up 36 this season from her rusher position, while Ana Gutierrez leads the team with 12 interceptions. For the Buccaneers, Ava Colubiale will lead the way offensively. So far, Colubiale has thrown for 3,364 yards passing and 39 touchdowns, along with 586 yards rushing and 11 more touchdowns. Kassie Stoner is the top receiver for the Buccaneers, with 1,083 yards receiving on 86 catches and 17 touchdowns. Defensively, Colubiale leads the team in interceptions with 11, while Clinique Maddox is one of two double-digit sack earners, leading the way at 15 sacks. With the statistics of these two programs looking solid, in the end, could the more experienced Mainland finally break through to a place they have wanted to reach for the last few seasons? That is a possibility.

REGION 4

(2) Miami Killian at (1) Miami Edison, 3:30: This is a regular-season rematch between visiting Miami Killian (16-1) and host Miami Edison (17-1), with Miami Edison coming away with a 12-6 victory just over a month ago. As such, things in flag football can shift very quickly, so will the visiting Cougars be a team of destiny, or will Miami-Dade’s most consistent flag football program reach the state semifinals for the third straight season? This game will determine that with many athletes on the field. For Miami Killian, it starts with Jerniyah Fowles, who, as a sophomore, has been showing her skills with 2,727 yards passing and 36 touchdowns, along with 295 yards rushing and one more touchdown. During the season, two targets have been on Fowles’ radar in leading receiver Kelis Durham and Catitylyn Gibson, both sophomores. Durham leads with 1,003 yards receiving on 92 catches and 13 touchdowns, while Gibson has 71 catches for 760 yards and 13 touchdowns. What is also interesting about Gibson is that she leads the team in interceptions with 11, while Durham leads the team in flag pulls with 28. Over at Miami Edison, a plethora of talent leads the way, starting with a freshman quarterback in Rakyia Louis, who has thrown for 3,565 yards and 29 touchdowns. She is supported by one of her top targets in athlete Alexandra Harris who has 53 catches for 964 yards receiving and eight touchdowns, along with 56 carries for 760 yards and 14 more touchdowns. Poetry Auguste (931 receiving yards, 11 touchdowns) and Felicia Wright (830 receiving yards, ten touchdowns) are other leading receivers Louis typically targets on offense. On defense, Harris is second with flag pulls at 130 pulls, Camille Candidate leads the team with 140 flag pulls, and sacks at 61, and Talayah Akhdar is second on the team with sacks at 28. Auguste leads the team in interceptions with 11 on the season.