The Hawthorne girls basketball team lost a heart-breaker in the FHSAA Class 1A state championship game at the RP Funding Center in Lakeland on Friday night.
Ponce de Leon senior Lilly Brooks hit a three-pointer with nine seconds remaining to stun Hawthorne, 40-37, ending the Lady Hornets’ quest to win back-to-back state titles.
Hawthorne (20-5) turned the ball over 33 times in the game, yet still had a chance to win after leading for most of the game.
Senior Mya McGraw finished with a team-high 17 points for the Lady Hornets.
Ponce de Leon (22-2) won despite shooting just 23.3% from the floor.
BASEBALL
Santa Fe defeated Gainesville 10-0 to improve to 2-1.
Devante Mitchum went 3-for-4 with a triple and an RBI. Zane Starling finished 1-for-3 with a triple and 3 RBI’s.
“I thought we played really well,” said Santa Fe coach Travis Yeckring. “It helps when you come out and score two in the first and two in the second. We hit up and down the order all night so I’m proud of how we swung the bat and how we pitched tonight.”
Gainesville, which will travel to Vanguard (Ocala) on Tuesday, dropped to 1-3.
Elsewhere, St. Francis Catholic Academy shutout rival Oak Hall School, 7-0, to snap a 3-game losing streak in the series. It was the first win of the season for the Wolves (1-2), while the Eagles fell to 0-1.
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