Emma Luehrs of North Broward Prep volleyball.
This week, we continue the 2026-27 school year feature where we ask you to vote for a top high school varsity performer of the week (in Broward and Miami-Dade counties).
Nominees this week are from high school bowling, football, golf, swimming and volleyball.
Take our poll below to cast your vote. The poll will be open until Thursday, October 22 til around 10 p.m. You can vote as often as you like until then.
NOTE: You should see a Miami Herald box underneath this note for you to type Yes and click Submit. That will ignite the actual poll to vote.
Here are the nominees.
Angelie Brito, Ferguson bowling: the sophomore led the Falcons to their fourth consecutive GMAC girls’ title, beating Norland and TERRA at Bird Bowl in Miami.
Vanessa Camacho, American Heritage-Plantation volleyball: the senior had 9 service points, 5 aces, 7 kills, .777 hitting percentage, and 2 digs in a 3-set win over Northeast in a District 14-4A semifinal.
Beckett Castro, Belen Jesuit golf: the junior led the field with an impressive 3-under par 33, earning individual medalist honors as the Wolverines defeated True North and another Belen team in a nine-hole, tri-match at Trump National Doral.
Braden Chamberlain, St. Thomas Aquinas golf: the sophomore took medalist honors at 4-under par 32 in a tri-match against Coral Springs Charter Ransom Everglades at Fort Lauderdale Country Club.
Marcel Cowley, Columbus swimming: the junior led the Explorers to the GMAC boys’ title by finishing first the 100-yard backstroke and third in the 200 IM. He also swam on the winning 400 freestyle relay team and runner-up 200 medley relay team.
Samuel Garcia, Southwest bowling: the junior led the Eagles to the GMAC boys’ title at Bird Bowl in Miami.
Spencer Geller, Ransom Everglades football: the senior recovered 2 fumbles and caused one as the Raiders improved to 6-1 with a 44-0 win over visiting SmartEn Sports Academy.
Penelope Lopez-Casula, Miami Beach swimming: the sophomore led hte Hi-Tides to the GMAC girls’ title by finishing first the 100-yard freestyle and 200 freestyle. She also swam on the winning 400 freestyle relay and 200 medley relay teams.
Emma Luehrs, North Broward Prep volleyball: a starting varsity setter since 7th grade, she reached the 2,000 career assist mark, something unprecedented in high school volleyball for a freshman. To reach and surpass the mark, she recorded 40 assists, 5 digs, 3 aces, 1 kill, 1 block in a 3-1 (25-11, 25-15, 19-25, 25-20) win over Cypress Bay.
Kaden Sarff, Coral Reef bowling: the senior had the highest game score at 235 against undefeated Coral Park at Bird Bowl in Miami.
To be considered for a nomination (of Broward and Miami-Dade high school varsity athletes), email (with stats) hssports@miamiherald.com.
Miami Herald
Jim Varsallone writes a high school sports column twice a week, featuring top performers in all varsity sports (boys and girls) in Broward and Miami-Dade counties. He also covers pro wrestling, something he’s done since his college days in the late 1980s. Now in his fifth decade of coverage, he currently follows WWE (Raw, SmackDown and NXT), AEW, Ring of Honor, TNA Impact Wrestling, MLW, WOW, NWA, and the South Florida indies, mainly CCW. He writes MMA, too — mostly profile stories and video interviews with American Top Team and Sanford MMA fighters in South Florida. As for pro wrestling, he writes feature stories and profile pieces, updates upcoming show schedules in South Florida, photographs the action and interviews talent (audio and video) — sharing the content here and via social media on his Facebook, Twitter and YouTube channel: jim varsallone (jimmyv3 channel).
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