Almost exactly 30 years after a young Gina McFerren coached Oak Ridge to a fastpitch softball state title, she celebrated another FHSAA championship with a stellar Orange County squad Saturday night.
Freedom’s boys volleyball team rallied from two sets down to score a dramatic comeback victory against Southwest Miami and reward McFerren once again for coming out of coaching retirement eight years ago.
The Patriots lost the first two games, 23-25 and 25-19, but then bounced back to win the next three 25-20, 25-18, 15-13 at Archbishop McCarthy High School in Southwest Ranches.
“We took their team lightly. That was our biggest mistake,” junior Matt McIntyre said of Freedom’s slow start. “Our mentality completely changed after those first two games. We didn’t come here, down to Miami, to lose. We had to have that fire mentality. We fought and managed to come out successful.”
A quartet of talented juniors led Freedom to a 30-2 season and its second championship in a row. Andre Aguilar, a versatile 6-foot-4 setter and hitter, led the Patriots in the final with 19 kills, 19 assists and 8 digs. McIntyre delivered 21 assists and had 9 digs. Andres Gomez had 12 kills. Pablo Peralta led Freedom in digs with 12.
Seniors Austin Davis 11 and Josh Colon added 11 and 7 digs, respectively.
McFerren said a lineup change helped the Patriots deal with Jack Hershman, a 6-3 senior who led Southwest (26-5) with 29 kills for the match.
“Southwest was a really good team,” she said. “We beat five of the top eight teams in the MaxPreps rankings to get this championship. The kids earned it, that’s for sure.”
Freedom won the 2019 Florida High School Athletic Association tournament to claim the first state team title in school history before the 2020 playoffs were canceled due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
“This group, as young as it was as far as experience, was a complete surprise,” McFerren said. “They peaked at the right time. We scouted our opponents very well and they executed the game plans flawlessly.”
Freedom swept previously undefeated Royal Palm Beach 25-15, 25-19, 25-16 in a 10 a.m. semifinal. Aguilar had 10 kills, 8 assists and 6 digs to lead the way in that match.
The Patriots had paved their way to the state title match by winning their region final 3-1 against previously unbeaten Winter Park, which defeated Freedom twice in regular-season play.
McFerren, 57, has a 184-36 record at Freedom since being asked to take over the program in the 2013-14 school year. Before that she compiled a 368-147 record in 17 seasons as a girls volleyball coach at Oak Ridge (1996-2002). And prior to that she coached softball at Oak Ridge and led the Pioneers to a May 10, 1991, state championship victory in the first year of FHSAA fastpitch playoffs.
Freedom’s victory marked the seventh boys volleyball state title for Orlando-area teams in a span of 13 seasons since 2009. Before that, South Florida squads won four of the first five tournaments. Bishop Moore has won three titles (2010, 2012, 2015). Freedom and Lyman (2004, 2013) have two and Timber Creek (2009) has one.
This story was first published at OrlandoSentinel.com. Varsity Content Editor Buddy Collings can be reached by email at bcollings@orlandosentinel.com.
