Lake Highland Prep’s successful sprint to a second consecutive girls basketball state championship included wins against three out-of-state teams and nine different programs from the Orlando area.
The Highlanders, who closed out the season undefeated as back-to-back Class 4A state champs over the weekend, capped their FHSAA campaign as the No. 1 team in the Sentinel Super Six rankings.
LHP earned an invite to the GEICO Nationals tournament April 1-3 in Fort Meyers after extending its win streak to 35 in a row with an 84-30 route of Fort Pierce Lincoln Park on Saturday in Lakeland.
“These girls are some of the best in the country. I don’t hold my breath when I say it,” LHP coach Al Honor said. “No matter what happens at GEICO, they’ve proven they’re the best in the country, and I stand by that.”
Lake Highland, ranked No. 1 nationally by MaxPreps, was one of eight area squads to reach the regional final round in 2020-21. Among the other participants were Super Six teams Wekiva, Timber Creek and Jones.
No. 2 Wekiva, playing in a state final for the third straight time, finished runner-up in 6A in back-to-back years. Freshman point guard Jada Eads averaged 15.3 points, 5.1 assists and 4.4 rebounds per game.
Junior Savannah Henderson led No. 3 Timber Creek (7A) while averaging 14.3 points per game. No. 5 Jones (5A) relied heavily on three juniors and two seniors, including senior leading scorer Chardae’ Greene, who averaged 12.1 points per game. Both the Wolves and Tigers fell short of returning to the state tournament after making the trip a season ago.
Kissimmee City of Life defeated Foundation Academy (15-8) in a 2A regional final before losing to eventual state champion Miami Christian in a semifinal. The Master’s Academy advanced to the 3A state semifinals, while Oak Ridge (15-9) lost to state champion Tampa Plant in a 7A regional final.
Colonial ranks No. 4 and West Orange ranks No. 6 in the final girls basketball Super Six of the season. Team records listed below are as reported by MaxPreps.
Final Super Six rankings
1. Lake Highland Prep (19-0): Kayla Blackshear ranked third in scoring (10.2 ppg) and second in rebounding (5.5 rpg) as the lone senior for the Highlanders. LHP has not lost to an FHSAA playoff program since falling to Oxbridge Academy of West Palm Beach in the 5A state final in 2019.
2. Wekiva (24-4): The Mustangs appear equipped for a fourth consecutive trip to the state tournament next season as all but one starter is slated to return. Senior guard Shadaria Smith averaged 12.6 points, 3.9 rebounds, 2.7 assists and 2.6 steals for the 6A runners-up.
3. Timber Creek (17-6): Wolves took two of three from Colonial and split games with Dr. Phillips en route to regional final for second straight year. Colleen Shanahan led the team in rebounds (7.4 per game) and ranked third in scoring (8.4) while Zora Fray Chinn was tops in assists (3.2) and second in scoring (9.4) as seniors.
4. Colonial (16-10): Young team featured four freshman and two sophomores as primary scorers, led by Carmen Richardson at 8.5 points per game and Sophya Barreiro with 7.2 points per game. Quality wins for Grenadiers came against Jones, West Orange, Lake Mary and The Master’s Academy.
5. Jones (16-6): Juniors Brittany Wilson (10.1 ppg), Paris Gaines (9.2 ppg) and Kayliah Reed (8.6 ppg) helped 5A region finalist Tigers tally wins vs. West Orange, Dr. Phillips, Apopka and The Master’s Academy. Gaines led the team with 9.6 rebounds per game.
6. West Orange (18-9): Warriors defeated Dr. Phillips twice, split games with Apopka, and recorded wins vs. Master’s, Eustis (14-7) and Gateway (18-7). Junior Ajalon Gillard led the team in scoring (12.8 ppg) followed by freshmen Jasmynne Gibson (9.4 ppg) and Jasmine Bocca (8.3), and senior Kyla Cruz (8.2).
Second Six: 7. Dr. Phillips (16-8), 8. St. Cloud (15-7), 9. Lake Mary (14-12), 10. Apopka (14-6), 11. The Master’s Academy (17-8), 12. Kissimmee City of Life (14-7).
This article originally appeared on OrlandoSentinel.com. Email J.C. Carnahan at jcarnahan@orlandosentinel.com.
![Through two games against the Magic, the Cavs average the most first-quarter points (31.5) among all playoff teams. "For us, we've just got to get off to a better start [and] not let them get off to this hot start," Orlando guard Cole Anthony said.](https://www.orlandosentinel.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/Magic-Cavaliers-Basketball-14.jpg?w=525 "Through two games against the Magic, the Cavs average the most first-quarter points (31.5) among all playoff teams. \"For us, we've just got to get off to a better start [and] not let them get off to this hot start,\" Orlando guard Cole Anthony said.")
