By: J. Daniel Pearson for Positively Osceola
Three Orange Belt Conference champions will be crowned on Friday, as week-long OBC tournaments will be held in girls basketball and boys soccer; while the one-day girls weightlifting championship will be held at Harmony’s gymnasium.
Girls’ basketball begins on Tuesday with four quarterfinal games. Semifinal and playback consolation games are slated for Thursday with first and second round games being played on the campuses of the highest seeds. The third place and championship games will be played on Friday night (5:30 p.m. and 7 p.m.) at Tohopekaliga.
Boys’ soccer will have quarter and semifinals contested on Tuesday and Wednesday nights, with the highest seed hosting. Third place (5 p.m.) and championship games (7 p.m.) will be played at Harmony on Friday night.
Since both teams have met numerous times this year with the Bulldogs coming out on top each time, St. Cloud will be heavy favorites to win their 13th consecutive team championships; while Harmony and Tohopekaliga will most likely be battling for second place.
St. Cloud is undefeated against county opposition this year. “We’re going to be the favorites but we certainly not taking anything for granted,” St. Cloud coach Cory Aun said. “This meet doesn’t really factor into the post-season but it’s a source of pride for our kids as far as bragging rights that come with being county champions. Winning the OBC Championship is one of our top goals every year.”
Top lifters in the meet include St. Cloud’s Emily Deluca (100-lb. class), Ashley Aun (110), Sophia Recio (129),Belen Gonzalez (154) and Jaylonie Mejia (183); Tohopekaliga’s Emily Martinez (119) and Morgan Pascual (169); and Harmony’s Alexa Woodman (139) and Yazreal Martinez (119).
Top lifters in the meet include St. Cloud’s Emily Deluca (100-lb. class), Ashley Aun (110), Sophia Recio (129),Belen Gonzalez (154) and Jaylonie Mejia (183); Tohopekaliga’s Emily Martinez (119) and Morgan Pascual (169); and Harmony’s Alexa Woodman (139) and Yazreal Martinez (119).
The boys’ soccer tournament should be a wide open affair this week, as six teams come into the tournament with winning records. “Harmony is a really dangerous team and they are a six seed,” Celebration assistant coach Chad Boudreaux said. “That’s all you really need to know about how good this tournament should be this year. In the past it wasn’t that hard to predict which two teams would make the final, but that’s not the case this year.”
Based on state rankings from last Monday, Gateway (9-2-1) is the top seed for the tournament and will open play against Liberty (0-15-1) in the quarterfinals. The Panthers are seeking their first boys OBC title after losing to Celebration in last year’s championship game.
“We started off 7-1 and then got hammered by Tohopekaliga,” Panthers coach Sagar Patel. “I thought we went into that game a little over confidant and also felt we were getting away from our fundamentals. That game woke us up. We tied a really good Horizon team a couple of days later and then picked up two more wins last week, so hopefully we are back on track.”
Celebration, who won the last two OBC Championships and five of the last six, is sort of the mystery team this year. A perennial state power, the Storm play more of a regional schedule and after a 2-2-2 start will come into the tournament as the four seed. Since then, Celebration won two straight and have a 4-2-2 record. They will face Osceola, a surprise team at 5-2-2, in a first round game. A Storm win, would most likely put them in Wednesday night semifinal against Gateway – creating a rematch of last year’s championship.
“We don’t worry too much about seeding, you have win three games to win the title so it doesn’t matter who you play and when,” Boudreaux said. “We got hit pretty hard by graduation after last year and we got off to a slow start with so many new players and some guys playing new positions. I do believe we are starting to hit our stride.”
The lower half of the bracket finds second-seeded Tohopekaliga (10-4-0) hosting seventh seed Poinciana (6-6-0) and sixth seeded Harmony (5-9-0) traveling to number three St. Cloud (10-2-2). That will be a rematch in the same venue of a Jan. 5 game, where the Bulldogs slipped by their arch-rivals by a 2-1 score.
It’s interesting to note that there have already been several results that contradict the official tournament seeding. For example, third seeded St. Cloud beat second seeded Tohopekaliga, 3-2, in November and—as mentioned — #1 seed Gateway took a 4-0 loss to second seeded Toho on Jan. 5.
“It’s going to be a great tournament,” Patel said. “I honestly believe there are five or six teams that can actually with this thing. Celebration has dominated in recent years and although they lost some talent to graduation, you know they are going be a disciplined, well-coached team. Tohopekaliga beat us earlier this season and even Osceola, who we handled fairly easily last season, played a great game against us this year (a 1-0 Gateway win). You absolutely will not be able to take anyone lightly this week.”
Barring upsets, it’s a good guess that St. Cloud (13-6) will most liked face long-standing rival Gateway (9-4) in the girls’ basketball final. To get there, the Bulldogs will have to navigate past #7 Osceola in Tuesday’s quarterfinal and then beat the winner of Tohopekaliga (10-1) vs. Poinciana (3-6). Gateway’s path to the finals will necessitate beating Liberty in the quarterfinals and then getting past the winner of Celebration (5-5) vs. Harmony (5-5) game.
Although St. Cloud is seeded second, they may actually be the favorites in the tournament as Gateway – who already lacks some depth on its roster – will be without star player Malayna Stevenson, who is still rehabbing a severe ankle injury. History is also on the Bulldogs side, as they have won the last four OBC titles – including beating Gateway in last year’s championship game.
“Nope, Gateway is the #1 seed and the target is squarely on their back,” St. Cloud coach Chad Ansbaugh joked. “But seriously, they earned the top seed. Justin (Gateway coach Justin Marino) always does a great job with those kids and they continue to win with a small roster and without one of their best players. If we are fortunate enough to meet them in the final, it should be a great game.”
With Stevenson out, Marino will rely on sharp-shooting sophomore guard Alyssa Marino and sisters Karna and Evana Rivera to carry the load. “Without question, the key will be our shooting,” Marino said. “In the past, it seems like every time we play St. Cloud our shooters go cold. We have played and beaten some teams this year that are on their level, so it is just a matter of doing what we are capable of doing offensively.”
In addition to soccer and basketball, an OBC Championship will be contested in girls’ weightlifting at Harmony’s gym beginning at 4:30 p.m. Under head coach Cory Aun, the St. Cloud Bulldogs will look got a 13th consecutive title in the traditional (bench press plus clean and jerk) and their third straight title in the Olympic discipline (clean and jerk plus snatch).
St. Cloud defeated Harmony – a team that perennially challenges them for the title –several times this year already. The Lady Bulldogs are led by Emily Deluca (100-lb. class), Ashley Aun (110), Sophia Recio (129),Belen Gonzalez (154) and Jaylonie Mejia (183).
“We’ve competed against the other top teams in the county this year and have done well against them, so we will probably go in as favorites” St. Cloud coach Cory Aun said. “Still we will take nothing for granted. Although this championship doesn’t mean anything as far as the post-season, it means a lot to our athletes. It’s for bragging rights in the county, so I know we will be excited for the competition.”
Tohpekaliga, led by Emily Martinez (119) and Morgan Pascual (169) and Harmony, paced by Alexa Woodman (139) and Yazreal Martinez (119), pose the biggest threats to St. Cloud’s long-standing dominance.
In addition to the Orange Belt Conference championships being contested this week, Osceola and Harmony will be going for a state championship as the Kowboys will host the FHSAA Class 3A State Dual Meet Championships, Jan. 19-20. Those schools are two of the eight remaining Class 3A teams left in the single elimination tournament that begins on Friday.
The Longhorns and Osceola made it to the tournament will sub-regional championships this past week (read about it here: https://www.positivelyosceola.com/osceola-kowboys-harmony-longhorns-qualify-for-fhsaa-state-duals-in-wrestling-championships/ ).
Osceola will take on Palmetto and Harmony will wrestler Wellington in quarterfinal matches that begin at 6 p.m. Friday night (Jan. 19). If the Kowboys win, they will take on the Gainesville Bucholz vs. Timber Creek winner in the semifinals. If victorious on Friday, Harmony would take on Wellington in the semis. Those matches are slated for 9 a.m. Saturday with the finals at 2 p.m.
Created in 2018, the State Dual Championships has seen Osceola record a pair of runner-up finishes (2020, 2023). South Dade, who has won five of the six previous team titles and the top ranked team in the state, will be favorites to repeat.
CHAMPIONSHIP WEEK SCHEDULE
Girls Basketball OBC Tournament Schedule
Tuesday, Jan. 16
Game 1: #8 Liberty at #1 Gateway, 6:00 p.m.
Game: 4 #5 Celebration at #4 Harmony 6:30 p.m.
Game 3: #6 Poinciana at #3 Tohopekaliga, 6 p.m.
Game 2: #7 Osceola at #2 St. Cloud, 6:30 p.m.
Thursday, Jan. 18 (At Higher Seed)
Game 5: Winner Game 4 vs. Winner Game 1
Game 6: Winner Game 3 vs. Winner Game 2
Game 7: Loser Game 4 vs. Loser Game 1
Game 8: Loser Game 3 vs. Loser Game 2
Friday Jan. 19
7th Place Game: Loser Game 7 vs. Loser Game 8 (at higher seed)
5th Place Game: Winner Game 7 vs. Winner Game 8 (at higher seed)
3rd Place Game: Loser Game 8 vs. Loser Game 6; 5:30 p.m. at Tohopekaliga
Championship Game: Winner Game 5 vs. Winner Game 6; 7 p.m. at Tohopekaliga
Boys Soccer OBC Tournament Schedule
Tuesday, Jan. 16
Game 1: #8 Liberty at #1 Gateway, 6 p.m.
Game 4: #5 Osceola at #4 Celebration, 6:30 p.m.
Game 3: #6 Harmony at #3 St. Cloud, 6:30 p.m.
Game 4: #7 Poinciana at #2 Tohopekaliga, 6:30 p.m.
Wednesday, Jan. 17 (Games at Higher Seed)
Game 5: Winner Game 4 vs. Winner Game 1
Game 6: Winner Game 3 vs. Winner Game 4
Game 7: Loser Game 4 vs. Loser Game 1
Game 8: Loser Game 3 vs. Loser Game 4
Friday, Jan. 19
7th Place Game: Loser Game 7 vs. Loser Game 8 (at higher seed)
5th Place Game: Winner Game 7 vs. Winner Game 8 (at higher seed)
3rd Place Game: Loser Game 5 vs. Loser Game 6, 5 p.m. at Harmony High School
Championship Game: Winner Game 5 vs. Winner Game 6, 7 p.m. at Harmony High School
FHSAA State Dual Meet Wrestling Championships
Friday, Jan. 19
3A Quarterfinals at Osceola High School
Harmony vs. Wellington, 6 p.m.
Osceola vs. Palmetto Ridge, 6 p.m.
Saturday, Jan. 20
3A Semifinals, 9 a.m. at Osceola High School
Osceola/Palmetto Ridge Winner vs. Timber Creek/Bucholz Winner, 9 a.m.
Harmony/Wellington Winner vs. South Dade/Plant City Winner, 9 a.m.
3A Finals, 2 p.m. (Osceola High School)
