St. Cloud Bulldogs Rally Past Lake Nona to Claim First District Title Since 1971 in Boys Basketball

By: J. Daniel Pearson
Positively Osceola

More than 50 years of district frustration ended Saturday night when senior Elias Torres ignited a fourth-quarter rally to lift St. Cloud past Lake Nona, 60–56, delivering the Bulldogs their first district championship since 1971.

It was not an easy ride for the Bulldogs.

With the score tied 38-38 after three, Torres took the game in his own hands – coming up with two steals, two assists and scoring seven points in the period. His heroics included a sequence where he made a driving layup off his own steal, hit a three-pointer from distance and then dished to Matt Bieman for another basket, keying a 7-2 run that putt St. Cloud up 45-41 in the fourth quarter.

“I’ve been head coach here for only three years, but I have been around high school basketball for a while and I can honestly say that I have never seen a player that means more to a team than Elias means to this team,” Billiteri said. “Last year, we graduated two of key players and saw five guys transfer to other schools. Elias could have taken that same route and looked for a better deal. Instead, he chose to stay loyal, came back, and now has lead his team to its first district championship in decades. He is without question the heart and soul of this team.”

Still, there were many other heroes for the Bulldogs in addition to Torres.

Senior co-captain Diomar Ortiz led all Bulldog scores with 20 points, including seven in the second quarter that saw St. Cloud overcome a four-point deficit and take a 28-24 lead at halftime. Starter Nate Thompson, who sat out more than half the game after picking up two quick fouls to start the game and a third midway through the period on a double technical call, was scoreless through three quarters but added eight in the fourth period – including knocking down four straight free throws in the final minutes of the game. Bieman, a sophomore, scored nine, including three key baskets in the final quarter.

“They were bigger, faster and more athletic that we were,” Billiteri said. “But you could say that about a lot of our opponents this year. But the heart, hustle, guts and determination of this group can’t be measured. We knew it would be a battle tonight, but I also had confidence in this group.”

Although he praised his players for the win, Billiteri deserves credit for making several in-game adjustments that stopped the Lions momentum.

It has become a theme for Billiteri since taking over a program that went two decades without a winning season, Billiteri is now 65-17 in his career, including a 22-5 mark this season. Under Billiteri, St. Cloud has had three winning seasons, two 20-win seasons, a first-ever OBC championship, a regional win, and now that elusive district title.

Another county school captured a district title on Saturday. Osceola used its pressure defense to jump out to a 22-6 lead and cruise to an 81-61 win over Davenport. It was the third consecutive district championship for the Kowboys – who won their fifth game in a row in moving to 21-5 on the year.

Both St. Cloud and Osceola will now wait until the regional brackets and pairings are released on Sunday. The Kowboys will most likely be seeded second, insuring home games through the regional semifinals. Gateway and Harmony, who won girls district tournaments on Friday, will also learn their regional pairings on Sunday.

Basketball District Tournaments

Schedules and Scoreboard For Osceola County Teams

Boys Class 7A, District 9

Quarterfinals (Feb. 3)

Poinciana 64, Celebration 58

Semifinals (Feb. 5)

Osceola 79, Poinciana 45

Davenport 45, Ridge Community 43

Championship (Feb. 7)

Osceola 81, Davenport 61

Osceola wins 7A, District 9 and advances to Regionals

Boys Class 7A, District 6