For the first time since 2018, a Volusia-Flagler-St. Johns area team won a girls basketball state title. The Mainland Buccaneers got it done, knocking off five-time defending champion American Heritage in Class 5A.

Spruce Creek was the second-to-last local team remaining. The Hawks charged to the Region 1-7A finals but fell to Colonial. They were the area’s top-ranked team, slotting ninth in the final Florida High School Athletic Association poll in February.

So naturally, Mainland and Spruce Creek picked up multiple All-Area nods. But with eight state playoff teams and five programs ranked in the top 100, the tri-county region featured a ton of talent.

ALL-AREA BOYS SOCCER: Meet the 2022-23 Volusia-Flagler-St. Johns All-Area boys soccer team

ALL-AREA GIRLS SOCCER: Meet the 2022-23 Volusia-Flagler-St. Johns All-Area girls soccer team

The 12 nominees of the Volusia-Flagler-St. Johns All-Area Girls Basketball Team are up for Player of the Year. The winner will be announced at the 2023 Volusia-Flagler-St. Johns High School Sports Awards June 6 at the Ocean Center Arena. The show is produced with support from Halifax Health.

During the live show, these nominees will be honored, and the Girls Basketball Player of the Year will be selected. All official nominees can receive a free ticket. More details about the program are coming soon.

Without further ado, let’s meet the team:

Nominees

Corrin Austell, New Smyrna Beach: The sophomore stuffed the stat sheet with 19.3 points, 5.1 assists, 4.0 rebounds and 4.1 steals per game for the 16-win Barracudas.

Tyja Beans, Spruce Creek: The senior was a constant scoring threat in the paint and a tireless rebounder on both ends. Beans put up 13.0 points and 9.1 rebounds (4.2 offensive) per game.

Jordan Boddie, Mainland: In her first year at Mainland, the senior averaged 11.5 points and 4.1 rebounds per game, both second on the state-winning squad.

Kelly Cramer, St. Joseph: The junior poured in 21.1 points per game while adding 6.6 rebounds and 3.7 steals for the Flashes, who made the state tournament and finished 15-9.

Tia Dobson, Mainland: The Bucs’ do-it-all point guard averaged 10.2 points, 3.8 rebounds, 3.6 assists and 2.3 steals per game on their route to a state championship.

Morgan Gavazzi, Ponte Vedra: Gavazzi, a junior, was the Sharks’ leading scorer (12.4 points) and passer (three assists) while also chipping in 3.6 rebounds per game for the FHSAA playoff participants.

Haylee Morelli, Trinity Christian: Just an eighth-grader, Morelli paced the area in scoring at 23.8 points per game. She added 3.2 rebounds and 3.4 steals.

Olivia Olson, Spruce Creek: The sophomore led the regional-finalist Hawks with 15.4 points per game and served as one of their two 3-point snipers (33%).

Sarah Randolph, Seabreeze: Randolph, a junior, was a double-double machine, churning out averages of 13.9 points and 16.7 rebounds per game.

Cami Robinson, Nease: As one of the area’s top scorers, the senior dropped 19.4 points and contributed 3.8 rebounds per game for the 20-7 Panthers.

Anovia Sheals, Mainland: The junior dominated with 19.7 points, 9.1 rebounds and 2.5 steals per game, leading the Bucs to a state title in her first year at the school.

Bryanna Simmonds, Deltona: The senior recorded averages of 15.0 points and 6.6 rebounds per game.

Other Athletes of Note

Hannah Clark, Flagler Palm Coast: The senior tallied 11.2 points per game for the 13-12 Bulldogs.

Alana Francis, Father Lopez: In her final season, Francis packed the stat sheet with 12 points, 8.4 rebounds, 3.5 assists and 2.1 blocks per game for the 12-11 Green Wave.

Kali Harris, Menendez: The junior paced the Falcons with 10.8 points, 7.7 rebounds and 3.8 steals per game.

Sophia Iskander, Beachside: The sophomore led the Barracudas to the playoffs with 10.5 points per game in the program’s inaugural season.

Kayla Kastor, Creekside: The senior scored 9.5 points and grabbed 6.5 rebounds per game for the Knights who fell just short of a district crown.

Ya’nija Lawson, Spruce Creek: As a junior, Lawson put up 9.0 points and 6.6 rebounds per game for the 23-6 Hawks.

Devon McNally, Tocoi Creek: The junior helped the Toros to their first winning season, leading them in points (12.5), rebounds (8.4) and steals (2.7) per game.

Kailani Merrell, Spruce Creek: A freshman, Merrell had 8.5 points and 3.0 rebounds per game and gave the Hawks another sharp-shooting threat.

Aja Pollard, Bartram Trail: The senior served as the Bears’ top scorer at 11.4 points per game while adding 3.6 rebounds.

Maya Richards, Ponte Vedra: Richards, a junior, turned in 8.8 points, 7.8 rebounds and 3.3 steals per game.

Kennedy Rosendahl, Ponte Vedra: The junior averaged 11.2 points per game and led the Sharks’ in 3-point shooting percentage (36%).

Taylor Vance, New Smyrna Beach: The sophomore contributed 13 points, 4.4 rebounds and 5.5 steals per game.

Top Coach

Brandon Stewart, Mainland: In his fourth year as the Bucs’ coach, Stewart led the team to a 21-8 record and their first state championship.

Honorable Mention

Bartram Trail: Lina Kouchis

Beachside: Anni Ament, Morgan Cremen, Ariana Walker

Creekside: Ainslee Cade, Melissa Epting, Jade Spivey

Deltona: Paris Allen

Father Lopez: Rae Perez

Flagler Palm Coast: Alexandria Connerton, Shyleigh Leblanc

Halifax: Kaneisha Washington

Mainland: Samantha Lecas

Matanzas: Grace Norris

Menendez: Dasani Newsome, Sophia Scibelli

Nease: Madi Ray, Kendyl Ryan

Pine Ridge: Kaylee Roman

Ponte Vedra: Taylor Perce

Seabreeze: Keeva Heggins

Spruce Creek: Jayda Centeno

St. Augustine: Aniyah Fisher, Deshiya Myers, Sadie Steen, Alayla Terry

St. Joseph: Zariyah Turner

Tocoi Creek: Erica McBrayer

Trinity Christian: Emma Stites

University: Nevaeh Barbary, Calise Chisholm

This article originally appeared on The Daytona Beach News-Journal: Girls basketball: Volusia-Flagler-St. Johns 2022-23 All-Area team