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The Boca Raton Tribune S P O R T S
Owls dominate FIU 52-7 for sixthstraight Shula Bowl win
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Florida Atlantic University football (5-5, 4-2 C-USA) dominated the FIU Panthers (4-6, 2-4 C-USA) from start to finish en route a 52-7 win in Shula Bowl XXI, marking the Owls’ sixth-straight Shula Bowl victory, on Saturday night at Riccardo Silva Stadium.
The Owls never let off the gas from the opening snap to the final whistle. After kicking off to the Panthers to start t h e g a m e , Jaylen Wester i n t e r c e p t e d FIU’s Grayson James on the first play of the game. T h e f r e s hm a n ’s f i r s t career interception gave the Owls the b a l l a t t h e F I U f o u r y a r d l i n e . N’Kosi Perry punched in on a one-yard quarterback sneak to put the Owls on top, 7-0, a lead FAU would never relinquish. Perry connected with Je’Quan Burton, who toetapped at the back of the endzone on a five-yard touchdown pass to give FAU a 14-0 lead. The Owls added another score before the first quarter came to a close as Perry scored his second rushi n g t o u c hd o w n o f t h e d a y o n a three-yard s c a m p e r u p the middle to give the Owls a 21-0 lead after one. FAU a d d ed th r ee m o r e o f f a Morgan Suarez 31-yarder less than a minute into the second quarter to push the Owls lead to 24 unanswered.
After taking a 31-7 lead into the locker room, FAU continued to dominate the Panthers as FIU just couldn’t find an answer to the Owls. LaJohntay Wester got into the endzone for his first score of the night on a nine-yard r ush to push the Owls lead to 31. With just over three minutes to go in the third, Perry found Tony Johnson for his second passing touchdown of the contest on a 17-yarder, pushing the FAU lead to 45-7. Willie Taggart Jr. came on in relief in the fourth quarter and tallied the Owls final touchdown of the contest on a 12-yard run to bring the score to its final, 52-7. “I’m really excited about how our entire football team played. That was by far the best game we’ve played this year as an entire unit, from special teams, offense, and defense,” said “Hagerty Family Head Football Coach Willie Taggart “They took w h a t o u r coaches gave them during the bye week and came out here and executed really well. That w a s r e a l l y g ood to see b e c a u s e we w e r e a l i tt l e n e r vo u s coming into the game because N’Kosi hurt his hand earlier in the week in practice and didn’t practice on Wednesday. Thursday, he came out and threw it around a little bit, but he fought through some things today and did a great job for us.” Perry finished the night 14-for-22 for 104 yards and a pair of passing touchdowns, while adding three
The Owls never let off the c a r r i e s f o r 16 yards and gas from the opening snap two r ushing to the final whistle. After scores. Burt o n l e d t h e kicking off to the Panthers to O w l s ’ p a s s catchers with start the game, Jaylen Wester 42 yards on intercepted FIU’s Grayson f i v e r e c e pt i o n s a n d James on the first play of the a t o u c h game. down. Johnson also had a f a n t a s t i c day, collecting 43 yards on two receptions, including a game-long 26-yarder, and a touchdown. Larry McCammon led the Owls rushing attack, turning in 104 yards on 26 carries LaJohntay Wester also had a solid day on the ground, recording 67 yards rushing on three attempts, including a careerlong 52-yarder. The Owls hit the road next weekend as they head to Murfreesboro, Tennessee to take on the Middle Tennessee Blue Raiders on Saturday, Nov. 19 for a 3:30 p.m. kickoff on ESPN+.
Br yant Named Player of the Year, 3 others named to All S unLakes South Division
Fresh off capturing the SunLakes Conference South Division Championship, the Panthers had a wonderful night at the FCSAA Division II Volleyball Banquet.
Allison Br yant was named the Sun-Lakes Player of the Year. In winning Player of the Year, Allison is also the Region 8 Player of the Year as well as the FCSAA DII Player of the Year. Allison is 7th in the nation and 2nd in the conference in kills per set (4.41). She is one of only 4 players in the Sun-Lakes Conference to have 200 or more kills (269) and digs (210).
Nina Vallesi will be joining Allison on the All-NJCAA Region 8 team. Nina was 14th in the conference in hitting percentage (.245) and ranked in the top 20 in the conference in all of the blocking categories.
Ashlyn Banton and Dena Otte are the 2 Panthers on the Sun-Lakes Conference 2nd team. Ashlyn was 12th in the conference in digs (278) and 5th in digs per set (4.63). Dena was 18th in kills per set (2.22) and 13th in hitting percentage (.246).
FAU Owls Head to Gainesville to Face the Gators
T he Florida Atlantic University men’s basketball team will wrap up its seven-day road trip at Florida on Monday night. The Owls (1-1) will tip off against the Gators (2-0) at 7 p.m. The g ame can be watched on SEC Network/ESPN+ and listened to on the radio on FoxSports 640am South Florida.
Monday night’s g ame ser ves as a homecoming for FAU head coach Dusty May. Prior to taking over the Owls’ program in March of 2018, May was on the Gators’ sidelines as an assistant for three years. While he was at Florida, May was part of a staff that led the Gators to a 69-37 record, backto-back NCAA Tournaments and a run to the Elite Eight in 2017. During his tenure at FAU, May has led the Owls to four-consecutive winning seasons, which is an FAU record.
FAU center Vladislav Goldin led the way for the Owls against Ole Miss, tying his career-high of 19 points on a very efficient 9-of-13 (69.2%). Goldin recorded nine rebounds as well to lead the Owls.
So far in the young season, Goldin is the Owls’ leader in points per game (13.5) and is second on the team in rebounding (6.0 rpg). He also leads FAU in shooting percentage (68.4%).
FAU has been an active team on the offensive glass with an average of 14.5 offensive rebounds per game. Giancarlo Rosado has led the Owls with an average of 6.5 rebounds per game including 4.5 offensive boards per game.
Against Ole Miss, the Owls registered 15 assists on 26 field goals. Two games in, the Owls are averaging 18.5 dimes per game led by Nick Boyd’s 4.5 per game and Br yan Greenlee’s 3.5 a night.
Alijah Mar tin is averaging 12.5 points per g ame and 5.5 boards per game. Against Ole Miss, Martin racked up 16 points on an efficient 6-of10 shooting from the floor and 3-of5 from 3-point range. In the opener against Lynn, Martin tallied nine points to go with nine rebounds.
After Monday night’s g ame, the Owls will return to Boca Raton to host the Paradise Invitational against Bryant and Detroit Mercy. FAU will play Bryant on Nov. 17 at 7 p.m. then Detroit Mercy at 6 p.m. on Nov. 19. Bryant and Detroit Mercy will then square off in the neutral site contest on Nov. 21 at noon.
Lynn men’s basketball roll in opener
Four players scored in double figures to lead the Lynn University men’s basketball team to a dominating 100-81 win over Johnson University in its season opener, Saturday evening.
The Fighting Knights scored 53 in the first half to lead by 15 at intermission en route to their first 100-point game since January 2020.
Freshman Jimel Lane led the Fighting Knights with 28 points on 11-of-15 shooting with six rebounds. Fellow freshman Nordin Kapic was second on the Lynn roster with 18 points with a team-best eight rebounds.
Sophomore Montez Leath scored added 14 points with four assists, while freshman Esteban Lluberes finished with 11 points and four assists. Junior Braxton Bartlett and freshman Rickey Ballard each scored eight points.
PBA Volleyball Falls to No. 4 Tampa in Last Home Game
The Palm Beach Atlantic volleyball team played its home finale on Saturday against No. 4-ranked Tampa.
T h e S a i lf i s h p l a y e d t h e S p a r t a n s f o r t h e s e co n d t i m e i n five days, having traveled to t h e S p a r t a n s i n Tu e s d a y ’s loss. PBA (1216, 6-12 SSC) looked for revenge in front o f a H o m ecoming crowd, but the defendi n g n a t i o n a l champs proved too much for the ‘Fish. Tampa (24-3, 14-3 SSC) took the match, 3-0.
Kayla Matthews led the Sailfish attack with 11 kills and four digs. Abbie Zylstra added 10 kills and four digs of her own. Jayden Otto racked up 30 assists with five digs and two blocks. Jayna Bredenberg recorded a team-high six digs as libero.
The Sailfish started slowly in the first set, allowing the Spartans to lead 16-4. PBA’s squad crawled its way back into the set. A 12-1 run, including kills by Matthews, Angeleyshka Curbelo, and Anna Gregerson, an ace each from Otto and Matthews, and five errors from the Spartans made it 17-15. A 5-1 run later in the set from the ‘Fish tied the set at 23. PBA looked to steal the opener, but Tampa held on to win, 26-24. T h e s e cond set started similarly to the first, but the Sailfish failed to repeat their c o m e b a c k . Ta m p a h e l d PBA to a .094 hitting percentage in the second, leading to a 25-16 win for the Spartans.
PBA started better in the third set, hanging with Tampa until the 16-13 mark. The Spartans pulled away with a 6-0 run, including three attack errors for the ‘Fish to make it 23-13. PBA answered with a 5-1 run with kills from Mary Morgan Formby, Zylstra, and Matthews, but Tampa sealed the match with a 25-19 win.
Tampa outhit PBA, .294 - .160 in the match. PBA totaled 20 unforced errors in the match.
E x per t Or t hopedic Car e Close to Home Isn’t Just for Athletes
If you’re suffering from an orthopedic problem — whether it’s a bad back, a sore knee or shoulder, a sports injury or arthritis — even a short drive can make the pain worse. Thanks to two convenient Baptist Health Orthopedic Care locations in Palm Beach County, you have easy access to the experts who have the experience, technology and facilities to treat your problem quickly. “Seeing a professional sooner rather than later can often prevent more complex problems down the road,” says orthopedic surgeon Anthony Miniaci, M.D., deputy chief medical executive of Baptist Health Orthopedic Care. “Most orthopedic issues don’t require surgery, but whether yours does or doesn’t, it’s our goal to get you back to a pain-free lifestyle.” The team at Baptist Health Orthopedic Care includes orthopedic surgeons specialized in joint replacement, foot and ankle, trauma and sports medicine, primary care sports medicine physicians and physical medicine and rehabilitation specialists. With a wide range of expertise, the team can handle everything from the most common injuries to the most complex.
With increasing life expectancy, an accident or injury resulting in an orthopedic problem is almost inevitable at some point. Among the most common orthopedic concerns are sprains and strains, muscle and tendon tears, fractures and other traumatic injuries, and arthritis. In addition, back pain causes more visits to physicians than any other orthopedic problem. Some conditions are caused by repetitive motion and wear and tear on the body, while others could be the result of a congenital, or birth problem.
With the most advanced imaging and other diagnostic tests, doctors at Baptist Health Orthopedic Care can quickly pinpoint the issue and address it. Nonsurgical and minimally invasive options are explored first, but when surgery is indicated, each patient receives an individualized treatment plan. Services also include regenerative medicine, such as stem cell treatment, pain-relieving injections and physical therapy.
Anthony Miniaci, M.D. Deputy Chief Medical Executive
For more information or to request an appointment, visit BaptistHealth.net/Ortho or call 833-556-6764.
