Hello, Royals!
Volleyball: ILS Volleyball Reclaims District Crown
The Lady Royals are back on top! ILS captured their fifth district championship since 2019, defeating Downtown Doral in straight sets (25-17, 25-22, 25-22) to reclaim the title from the very team that ended their run a season ago.
The Royals showed poise and determination throughout the match, controlling key moments and executing under pressure to secure another championship banner for the program.
For Head Coach Danny, the victory marks his 6th career district title five with the girls’ team (2019, 2020, 2022, 2023, 2025) and one with the boys’ (2025) program last year further cementing his legacy as one of the most successful coaches in ILS volleyball history.
With momentum and experience on their side, the Royals now turn their focus to the regional playoffs and another deep postseason run. Volleyball team is seeded #6 in the regional tournament, which is the highest ranking they’ve received in the state tournament. They will take on the #3 seed St. Andrews (Boca).
Golf: This was an impressive week for the ILS Golf team. On Tuesday they tied perennial state powerhouse MAST Academy and had the low man of the match in freshman Gilberto Morales who led all players with a round of 37 (+2). Freshman Lucio Perez Alonso also shot his best round of the year with a 38 (+3) to help lead the Royals. On Thursday, the Royals defeated Gulliver with another strong performance from Gilberto Morales who again led all players with his season best round of 36 (+1) to finish in 1st place twice this week. Sophomore Connor Heilemann chipped in with a round of 41. Federico Gil, Lucio Perez Alonso, and Francisco Pages all shot 42 to help guide the Royals to a victory. Sophomore Sofia Olarte led the girls team vs Gulliver with a round of 48 to finish 3rd overall.
The last match of the season is Tuesday, October 21 at Crandon vs Divine Savior at 3pm for their senior day. We will honor our seniors in the final home match of their high school career.
Cross Country: The ILS XC team competed at the Spartan Invite at Monsignor Pace High School this past Tuesday. The boys finished 3rd overall and were led a trio of top 10 finishes by Senior Daniel Brito (5th overall, 18:34), sophomore Felipe Garcia-Correa (9th overall, 19:22) and sophomore Benjamin Pieri (10th overall, 19:31).
The girls finished 5th overall and were led by Senior Andrea Echeverria (5th overall, 23:31) and junior Luciana Gadala-Maria (19th overall, 28:21).
The team will take advantage of a couple of bye weeks before they compete at their final regular season meet, the Junior Orange Bowl Invitational, on October 30th.
Swimming: LaSalle Swim Team Shines at the Belen Invitational!
Our Royal Lions made a splash this week at the Belen Invitational, showing grit, speed, and major improvement across the board!
Individual Highlights:
- Martin Peres, Brandon Pena, and Christian Coronado continued to show strong progress this season!
- In the 50 Free, Martin clocked a speedy 28.84, while Brandon and Christian finished close together at 38.6 and 38.5.
- In the 100 Free, Martin took 2nd in his heat with 1:05.41, while Brandon and Christian both swam solid 1:33 finishes.
- Barbara Espinal powered through the competition, earning 2nd place in her heats for both the 200 IM (2:46.03) and 100 Back (1:19.36). She finished 11th and 10th overall in both events and scored 13 points for LaSalle!
- Kristen Bachmann crushed it in the 100 Fly and 100 Back, taking 1st in both her heats with times of 1:08.33 and 1:14.33! She placed 5th overall in the Fly (14 points) and 6th overall in the Back (13 points) an incredible showing!
- Emma Larralde dominated her events, taking 1st place in her heats for both the 100 Free (1:01.33) and 100 Breast (1:17.26). She placed 4th overall in the 100 Free (15 points) and 6th overall in the 100 Breast (13 points) amazing work!
Despite competing with only three female swimmers, LaSalle’s women’s team placed an impressive 7th overall out of 13 schools, scoring a total of 68 points!
Football: The ILS Royals put together a complete team performance in a 40-0 shutout victory over St. Brendan. Sophomore quarterback Nate Merrell Jr. led the way offensively, completing 8 of 12 passes for 155 yards and 3 touchdowns. Sophomore running back Adrian Cox added balance to the attack with 8 carries for 49 yards, while senior Wendell Copeland hauled in 2 catches for 18 yards and a touchdown.
The Royals’ defense set the tone all night, flying to the ball and creating constant pressure. Ian Destinobles was a force up front with 8 solo tackles and 2 sacks, while Philip Jones Jr. added 6 solo tackles and 4 sacks, leading a defensive front that dominated the line of scrimmage.
This is the defense 4th shutout of the season; the Royals continue to roll as they head into the final stretch of the regular season.
Sports Schedule:
Tuesday, October 21, 2025: Girls Volleyball seeded #6 in regional tournament will host the #3 seeded St. Andrews 5:00PM. Winner advances to play on Saturday int he Semifinal game.
Senior Game!!! Golf team closes out the season at Crandon Park vs Divine Savior. Senior ceremony before the start of the match on the first tee.
Friday, October 24, 2025: Nike rivalries game! 1 of 8 games in the Nation Chosen by Nike for their NFL Rivalries event! It’s also going to be our Football and Athletic Training club SENIOR NIGHT ALERT!
- First 1500 fans get a limited addition Nike ILS Rivalries shirt and towel for the game. Nike will also have a shipping container making shirts on site for fans!
- If students want free items, they will need to purchase a ticket as well. They can still get in free with ID’s but for the free items we are asking them to purchase tickets. We will be trying to sell during the week at lunch starting Tuesday. More information to come.
Swimming District Meet @ Miami Country Day 12PM warm up 1:30PM start. (Dismissal 11AM)
GO ROYALS!
