Longtime Southridge softball coach Gloria Satterfield passes away

   Miami-Dade County lost one of its softball coaching
pioneers Sunday when former Southridge coach Gloria
Satterfield died of lung cancer at the age of 69.

   Satterfield was the Spartans' first-ever softball coach,
hired in 1976, and led them to a record of 288-97 during her
17 seasons. She led Southridge to the state's slow-pitch state
championships five times in six seasons from 1983-1988.

   After the transition to fast-pitch softball under the
Florida High School Athletic Association in 1988, Satterfield
guided the Spartans to the playoffs twice, including a berth
in the 1992 Class 4A state championship game.

   Born in Tulsa, Oklahoma, Satterfield graduated from Daniel
Webster High School and later from the Oklahoma College for
Women. In 1961, she moved to Miami and spent 15 years teaching
and coaching at Riviera Junior High before working at
Southridge.

   Satterfield was named The Miami News Softball Coach of the
Year in 1983 and 1987. She moved back to Oklahoma two years
ago. Last spring, she was diagnosed with lung cancer. After a
brief illness, she passed away early Sunday morning surrounded
by family members at her home in Jenks, Oklahoma.

Our sincerest condolences go out to Satterfield's family.

Several Dade and Broward athletes and coaches honored

Hey fans,

Over the past 10 days, a bunch of Dade and Broward's top performers from a memorable season were honored by the Florida Dairy Farmers Association.

Over the years, the group has not given many awards to this talent-rich area, but this season has been different.

Pat Dorsey and I compiled a list. Enjoy.

   • Palmetto's Kelly Saco, who led her team to a state
championship, collected another prestigious honor recently
when she was named the Association's Softball Player of the
Year.

   Saco is the first Dade recipient of this award since its
inception in 1993. She finished with a 16-2 record, 168
strikeouts, six shutouts and a 0.40 ERA. Saco, The Miami
Herald's Class 6A Pitcher of the Year, will play this fall at
Syracuse this fall.

   • Southridge runners Brandon O'Connor and Ebony Eutsey were
named the Track and Field Athletes of the Year.

   O'Connor was a state champion in the 200 and 400-meter
races, finishing with some of the fastest times in the country
this season. He ran a 20.82 in the 200 and a 47.12 in the 400.

   His coach, Rodney Wright, was named the Overall Boys' Coach
of the Year. Wright led the Spartans to their first state
championship and his teams have not lost a dual meet in five
seasons.

   Eutsey, who was recently named the Gatorade State Athlete
of the Year, ran a 23.79 in the 200 meters and a 53.85 in the
400 at state to win state titles in both. She recently ran the
fastest time in the nation (53.23) at an invitational meet
this summer.

   Her coach, Sam Burley, who is retiring this season and is a
member of the Florida High School Athletic Association Hall of
Fame, was named Overall Girls' Coach of the Year. Burley led
the Spartans to their first state title in five seasons.

   • Thanks to Cypress Bay star Brennan Boyajian, boys' coach
Vince Grossi and St. Thomas Aquinas girls coach Carol
Deopsomer, Broward County accounted for three of the four high
school tennis award winners announced Thursday.

   Boyajian, bound for the University of North Carolina this
fall, won the Boys' Player of the Year award after going
undefeated and winning the 4A overall singles title. Grossi,
who led Boyajian and the Lightning to the 4A boys' team title,
took Boys' Coach of the Year honors.

   Deopsomer, who led the Raiders to their second consecutive
3A girls' title, won Girls' Coach of the Year. Only Girls'
Player of the Year Jacqueline Kasler of Gulf Breeze -- the 2A
state champion who edged finalists Amelia Martinez (Cypress
Bay; 4A overall singles winner) and Courtney Clayton (St.
Thomas Aquinas; 3A overall singles champion) -- kept Broward
from sweeping the awards.

   • Southwest senior outside hitter Jonathan Roldan was named
the Boys' Volleyball State Player of the Year after posting
459 kills, 107 aces, 157 digs and 63 blocks. Also The Miami
Herald's Player of the Year for Dade, guiding the Eagles to a
state championship.

   His coach Mauricio Diaz was named the Coach of the Year
after winning his second state title in six seasons after
leading Southwest to a 27-2 record. He has a career record of
230-31 and has led the Eagles to the state tournament four
times.

For a full list of winners chosen for the 2007-08 School Year, go to www.floridamilk.com/sports

Ely football taking resumes

Blanche Ely athletic director Connie McGirt sent out a release today, announcing the school is taking applications for its football coaching position, which opened when James Jones resigned last month after one year at the helm.

Resumes can be sent to McGirt at 1201 NW 6th Avenue in Pompano Beach (33060) or at connie.mcgirt@browardschools.com, and will be accepted through June 18.

Whoever lands the position will take over a team that went 6-5 last year (losing to eventual 5A state champion St. Thomas Aquinas by just one point in the regional quarterfinals), but won't have LSU-bound defensive back Patrick Johnson. Still, senior-to-be Michael Carter -- Broward's No. 4 recruit, according to Larry Blustein's rankings -- returns to the defensive backfield.

--Patrick Dorsey (e-mail)

Bradenton Prep sanctioned, and sanctioned hard

This is still developing, but on Monday the FHSAA laid down sanctions on Bradenton Preparatory Academy resulting from what that governing body called "the recruitment of students from other FHSAA member schools in the Bradenton-Manatee area". The school's football, basketball and boy's tennis programs will be placed on probation for three years and the school will have to pay a fine of $38,000.

I know Bradenton is not exactly in our coverage area, but in this online world of 24-hour national news cycles, shouldn't the Miami Herald's ace high school staff be able to broaden its scope on a slow news day?

Here's a link to the June 5 letter from the FHSAA to Bradenton, which enumerates the 19 violations, as unearthed by the FHSAA during an investigation that started on March 13.  Among the indiscretions are such amatuer no-nos as living with a representative of a school's athletic program, illegal financial assistance, financial assistance in the form of "academic scholarships" (also not allowed for high school athletes), recruiting irregularities, and improper contact with school officials.

The names of the students who were investigated are, of course, blacked-out throughout the document. But that doesn't mean they will necessarily escape punishment.  The "top count" on Bradenton's list of misdeeds indicates that the school "actively sought basketball players using outside agents and college recruiters".  Any student whose name comes up in that kind of situation, blacked-out or not, may also face sanctions from the NCAA when - and if - they go on to play in college.

The document indicates that as a "proactive measure", the school imposed several consequences upon itself, including firing two of its athletic directors and two basketball coaches.

Keep an eye on the Miami Herald's high school sports page on Tuesday as we work to get more information about this story.

Another sweep for St. Thomas

St. Thomas Aquinas didn't just sweep the Miami Herald's Broward All-Sports awards this year. Recently, the FHSAA announced the winners of the 2007-08 Dodge Sunshine Cup All-Sports Awards -- and the Raiders were right up there again, sweeping the boys', girls' and overall categories in Class 5A.

But in a way, St. Thomas had the biggest win of all schools, regardless of class. Their 1,184.5 points amassed (based on state, district and regional finishes in various sports, with points subtracted for violations and bad sportsmanship) were the most among any school in Florida (Jacksonville Bolles, a 3A private school, was second, with 1,137.8). Also, their margin of victory -- 324.5 points over Tampa Plant -- was the biggest in any class.

Here are South Florida's top finishers:

• 6A: Cypress Bay (1st girls, 3rd boys, 3rd overall).
• 5A: St. Thomas Aquinas (1st girls, 1st boys, 1st overall).
• 4A: Cardinal Gibbons (6th overall); Pace (5th boys, 10th overall).
• 3A Public: Parkway (4th girls).
• 3A Private: American Heritage (2nd girls, 3rd boys, 2nd overall); Gulliver Prep (4th girls, 2nd boys, 3rd overall); Ransom Everglades (4th boys, 5th overall); Pine Crest (8th overall).
• 2A Private: Dade Christian (2nd girls, 6th overall)

--Patrick Dorsey (e-mail)

South Florida's good sports

A few Miami-Dade and Broward schools earned cash and plaques for good sportsmanship, as the 2007-08 FHSAA/Fred E. Rozelle Sportsmanship Awards were announced by the FHSAA (Section winners get $500, overall winners for each class get $2,500). The top local schools:

• 6A: Cooper City (Section 4 winner)
• 5A: Booker T. Washington (Section 4 winner, overall winner)
• 3A: University (Seciton 4 winner)
• 2A: Westminster Christian (Section 4 winner)

Schools are nominated by FHSAA representatives, with winners chosen by an anonymous committee based on, according to the FHSAA: "programs and activities implemented within the school and community to promote sportsmanship; number and type of unsportsmanlike ejections; number and type of exceptional sportsmanship reports; and source of the nomination."

--Patrick Dorsey (e-mail)

Spring sports' scholastic stars

The FHSAA has released the top spring-sports teams, GPA-wise, for 2008. In Broward, Archbishop McCarthy, Westminster Academy and Pine Crest stood out, while Gulliver Prep represented Dade.

South Florida's teams (all of those recognized have a combined GPA of 3.0 or higher):

• Archbishop McCarthy: Baseball (3.071, fifth in 4A); Softball (3.100, sixth in 4A); Boys' Tennis (3.505, fourth in 1A); Boys' Track (3.215, fifth in 2A); Girls' Track (3.395, sixth in 2A).
• Gulliver Prep: Softball (3.119, ninth in 3A); Boys' Lacrosse (3.138, fourth in single class); Boys' Water Polo (3.229, fifth in single class); Girls' Water Polo (3.205, eighth in single class); Boys' Tennis (3.010, eighth in 2A); Girls' Tennis (3.246, eighth in 2A); Boys' Track (3.160, seventh in 2A); Girls' Track (3.351, eighth in 2A).
• Pine Crest: Baseball (3.343, second in 3A); Boys' Weightlifting (3.513, first in 1A).
• Westminster Academy: Softball (3.388, fourth in 2A); Girls' Water Polo (3.767, first in single class); Boys' Tennis (3.783, first in 1A); Girls' Tennis (3.644, fourth in 1A); Girls' Track (3.611, third in 1A).

Winners (Pine Crest boys' weightlifting, Westminster Academy girls' water polo and boys' tennis) will receive a state championship plaque.

--Patrick Dorsey (e-mail)

South Florida's achievers

Time to celebrate academics: The FHSAA has released its top squads for the 2007-08 winter sports, in terms of cumulative team GPA. Listed schools posted a 3.0 or better. According to the release, the top schools by class and sport will receive championship plaques at the end of the school year.

Broward's achievers:

• St. Thomas Aquinas: boys' basketball (3.09 GPA, 4th in 5A), girls' basketball (3.527, 2nd in 5A), wrestling (3.068, 2nd in 2A), girls' soccer (3.513, 4th in 5A), boys' soccer (3.159, 6th in 5A)
• Posnack: boys' basketball (3.341, 1st in 1A), girls' basketball (3.582, 4th in 1A), girls' soccer (3.626, 3rd in 2A)
• Archbishop McCarthy: girls' basketball (3.065, 9th in 4A), girls' soccer (3.234, 10th in 4A), boys' soccer (3.125, 3rd in 4A)
• Westminster Academy: girls' basketball (3.565, T-5th in 2A), girls' soccer (3.571, 6th in 2A), boys' soccer (3.569, 2nd in 2A)
• Florida Bible Christian: girls' basketball (3.312, 8th in 1A)

And Miami-Dade:

• Belen Jesuit: boys' basketball (3.197, 1st in 4A), wrestling (3.093, 3rd in 1A), boys' soccer (3.032, 5th in 4A)
• Ransom Everglades: boys' basketball (3.337, 3rd in 3A), girls' basketball (3.468, 7th in 3A), wrestling (3.032, 4th in 1A), girls' soccer (3.247, 12th in 3A), boys' soccer (3.104, 7th in 3A)
• Gulliver Prep: boys' basketball (3.026, 7th in 3A), girls' basketball (3.447, 9th in 3A), girls' soccer (3.372, 9th in 3A), boys' soccer (3.297, 4th in 3A)
• Miami Country Day: boys' basketball (3.361, 5th in 2A), girls' basketball (3.514, 8th in 2A)
• Monsignor Pace: girls' basketball (3.399, 4th in 4A)
• Carrollton: girls' basketball (3.356, 12th in 3A), girls' soccer (3.187, 13th in 3A)
• Miami Christian: girls' basketball (3.366, 11th in 2A), girls' soccer (3.278, 13th in 2A)

--Patrick Dorsey

Attention volleyball junkies:

...At least those located in South Florida. According to the FHSAA's website, the 2008 state volleyball finals (check the to-be-filled-out bracket here) are coming to Broward.

Douglas High School of Parkland in northern Broward County will be the site of the 2008 FHSAA Boys Volleyball Finals state championship tournament, the FHSAA office announced today. The tournament is scheduled to be held May 9-10. "The FHSAA thanks Douglas High School Principal Ann Kowalski and Athletic Director Dave Grad for offering their school facilities and services to serve as host for this event," said FHSAA Executive Director John A. Stewart. "We know that they will work hard to make this a first-class event for the participating student-athletes, coaches and spectators alike." For more information on the 2008 FHSAA Boys Volleyball Finals visit the boys volleyball page.

Fans might get to see some local teams there, too. Cardinal Gibbons moved to 14-1 Tuesday night with a win over Plantation, and the Chiefs' district also includes the tough St. Thomas Aquinas Raiders. Also on Tuesday, Cooper City and South Broward each moved to 9-1 with wins.

--Patrick Dorsey

1,000 wins for Hofman?

Piper baseball coach Rich Hofman, inducted Sunday into the Florida High School Athletic Hall of Fame, has plenty of numbers:

• Ten state championships (eight at Miami's Westminster Christian, two at Fort Lauderdale's Westminster Academy)
• Two national titles (at Westminster Christian)
• Ten state coach of the year awards
• Seven national coach of the year awards
• More than 200 former players who went on to play college baseball
• Forty professional baseball draftees
• Even one honor as Baseball America's High School Coach of the Decade (in the 1990s)

But Hofman, who entered Monday with 963 career wins, said he has an "arbitrary goal" of 1,000. Whether he gets there, though, is to be determined -- and not because he's on Piper's hot seat.

The 63-year-old native of Racine, Wis., came to South Florida in 1967 and has been coaching since, leading players such as Doug Mientkiewicz and some guy named Alex Rodriguez to big, big things. But, Hofman told The Miami Herald on Monday, the game might be passing him by. He loved being honored for his past, but wasn't as optimistic about his future.

How much longer does he plan on coaching? "Not too much," he said.

"The game is changing," he said. "The whole dynamics of coaching [are] changing."

What's changing: the rise of travel baseball and showcases, which Hofman said have "increased the ability level of a small group of players," but mostly are eroding the fundamentals of young players. Also, they've decreased the importance of the high-school coach.

"The high school coach isn't looked upon as the person that is most needed to be successful," he said, "and I think that has hurt the game quite a bit."

Travel baseball isn't all bad, to Hofman -- "I'm not opposed to kids playing baseball a lot," he said. "I'm just opposed to them not being taught the fundamentals of the game." -- but it's just not a game Hofman plays.

So that's what Hofman said he's trying to figure out. How much does he want to "fight" this trend? Enough to grab about three years' worth of wins, enough to get to that magic number?

Maybe, Hofman said. But if not, he still wanted to make one thing clear:

"I'm a little disappointed in the way high school baseball [is changing] and the direction that it's going, but I am absolutely ecstatic about the opportunity and the privilage that I've had in my career."

--Patrick Dorsey

Traffic school -- for coaches

Anyone who's gotten a speeding/traffic ticket might have been forced to go/sit/suffer through online traffic school -- which sometimes takes a legit six hours.

Well, the FHSAA announced Monday that coaches might soon face something similar. Not for their driving, but for their tempers:

Coaches who are ejected from contests because of unsportsmanlike conduct will be required to complete an online coaches education program before being reinstated to sideline duty, the Florida High School Athletic Association Board of Directors voted at its April business today. ...

Coaches who are ejected for unsportsmanlike conduct currently must serve a minimum suspension from sideline coaching of seven days and at least two contests (one game in football). The length of the suspension can be increased depending upon the severity of the unsportsmanlike act. During the suspension the coach cannot attend a contest in which his or her team participates, accompany the team to the contest, or have any other contact with the team during the contest. The coach, however, is permitted to conduct practice.

Under the proposal approved by the board, however, the coach also will be required to complete the six-hour "NFHS Fundamentals of Coaching" provided by the National Federation of State High School Associations before the coach can resume sideline coaching duties. If the coach completes the course within the suspension period, the coach will be able to return to the sidelines once the suspension is served. If not, the coach's suspension will continue until the course is completed. The school will be required to pay the fee associated with the online course unless it chooses to pass the cost on to the coach.

FHSAA executive director John A. Stewart's quote, in the statement:

"Today's action sends a strong message to our coaches that the FHSAA Board of Directors holds them to a high standard when it comes to sportsmanship. ... Student-athletes model their behavior after that of their coaches. So, it is imperative that coaches exemplify sportsmanship in the way they conduct themselves during contests."

Pretty much anyone who's ever taken the online traffic test will agree: This certainly is a "strong message." (No word on how it affects insurance rates, though.)

--Patrick Dorsey