The COVID-19 pandemic has interrupted life as we know it, and athletics is no exception. With Trinity teams a month from beginning district playoffs, the season was abruptly put on hold by the closure of Florida schools. Initially schools were closed through the end of March, but as the danger of the pandemic has become clearer that re-opening date has been pushed until May.  So, what about spring sports?  Are we done for good this season?

​The FHSAA announced last week that a decision on the fate of spring sports has yet to be reached and that seasons could be extended until as late as June 30.  There is also a possibility that in certain circumstances an extra year of spring eligibility could be granted to athletes.  

With the baseball team sitting atop the district rankings and track having 18 athletes currently in line to qualify for regionals, athletes and coaches are hopeful that the season could resume within the next month or two.  With senior athletes hoping to complete their senior season, the final decision by the FHSAA and the state of Florida is anxiously awaited by schools across Palm Beach County.  Trinity has 12 senior athletes currently competing in sports.

Follow the FHSAA on Twitter @FHSAA for the latest updates on spring seasons.

The Sun-Sentinel recently released their winter All-Palm Beach County teams and five TCA athletes were recognized for their outstanding play.

Senior Rumi Martie (soccer) received the highest honor as he was selected first-team.  He led the Warriors to an 8-5-1 season with 20 goals and 15 assists. Fellow senior Sergio Chois was named second-team.

Junior Melanie Garbarsky (basketball), the leading scorer in 2A at 28.3 ppg, received second-team accolades.  She also recently came in third in the Florida Dairy Farmers 2A Player of the Year voting.

Junior Tristan Gee (basketball) was named second- team all county.  He led the district in scoring and in blocked shots.  Teammate Vonte Allen received an honorable mention selection.  He was third in the district in scoring and second in rebounding.

Last month, two Trinity pitchers combined to throw a no-hitter in an 11-0 win of rival Lake Worth Christian. Ericson Irausquin, battling a knee injury, took the hill against the Defenders and cruised through five perfect innings.  The senior hurler struck out six before exiting with a double-digit lead.  Fellow senior Greyson Snow took the ball in the sixth and closed out the game with two strike outs.  

The performance continued a string of impressive outings by Warrior pitchers to open the season. Through nine games, TCA has compiled a 2.88 earned run average while holding opposing hitters to a .187 batting average. Irausquin has been perfect through three outings.  Junior Kyler Clarke has posted a 2.03 ERA while fellow junior Paul Arencibia's ERA sits at 2.25.

LAKE WORTH- Trinity Christian senior forward Rumi Martie has been named first-team All County by the Sun Sentinel.  The newspaper released their all-county teams on Wednesday morning.

Martie led the Warriors to an 8-5-1 season. A four-year starter, he scored a career-high 20 goals this season while piling up 15 assists.  He scored in all but two games for the Warriors this season.

Martie was on pace to advance to the regional meet in track this spring in the 200m, the 100m, and the 4x100m relay.  It remains to be seen if the track season will resume in light of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Martie is considering colleges in Virginia and Florida to continue his playing career after he graduates.

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LAKE WORTH- If you've watched Trinity Christian senior Rumi Martie play soccer, you know he's fast. Given his blazing speed on the pitch, he decided to try his hand at track and field this spring and he has burst on to the scene as a strong regional contender.

After never running track before, Martie is still working through the technical aspects of starting blocks and form.  That learning curve has not slowed him down much, however, as he currently has the second best 200m time in the district (24.58 seconds) and the fourth best 100m time (12.04 seconds).  He also anchors TCA's 4 x 100 m team that is currently the second fastest team in the district (48.30 seconds). As he gains experience and understanding of each race, expectations are sky high for Martie.

"Rumi has a ton of natural ability and potential as a sprinter," said coach Derek Chirch. "As he gets more comfortable in the blocks and lengthens his stride, he is going to be able to shave significant time off his marks. State qualifying is not out of the question for him come April."

Martie and the Warriors will run in the Park Vista meet on March 20 as their next competition.  The district meet will be run in Fort Lauderdale on April 16-17.

GREEN ACRES- Trinity Christian posted their third straight shutout and 22nd consecutive scoreless inning on Monday night as they shut out John I. Leonard 1-0.

Coming off shut outs of Highlands Christian and Lake Worth Christian, the Warriors continued their lock down pitching Monday. Junior Paul Arencibia was sharp on the hill, going six innings and giving up just one hit.  Ariel Antigua slammed the door for his first save of the season. TCA has allowed only one hit in the last 13 innings of play.

The Warriors one run came on a fielders choice ground out by Ruben Gonzalez in the top of the sixth. Trinity had just three hits on the day with those coming from Immanuel Regales, Antigua, and Arencibia.

With the win, Trinity improved to 5-3 on the season. Their next game will be a tough road matchup with King's Academy on Thursday.  

LAKE WORTH- After a tough 60-52 loss to rival Lake Worth Christian in district play on Thursday, the TCA girls' basketball team assumed their season was over.  They got a surprise on Sunday evening, however, when the FHSAA released the regional at-large berths and TCA had earned the eighth and final spot in regional play.  The 9-10 Warriors will take on the number three team in 2A in Miami Christian on Thursday.

Coming off a 3-14 season, the Warriors cemented themselves as one of the up-and-coming teams in the area. Their nine wins represented their most wins in seven years, and their tough strength of schedule propelled them into the surprise regional berth. Powered by the state's leading scorer Melanie Garbarsky (28.3 ppg), the Warriors are a dark horse in the eight-team regional field.

​Game time in Miami will be 7:00 pm on Thursday.

DAVIE- Trinity Christian snapped a four-game losing streak on Tuesday night, defeating Posnack Jewish Day 66-53 in the ECC tournament. Tristan Gee and Vonte Allen combined for 39 points to pace the Warriors.

Coming off a buzzer-beater loss on Monday night to Yeshiva, TCA started slowly against the Rams leading just 27-25 at the half. The Warriors offense tightened up in the second half, finding Gee (22 points) and Allen (17 points) in the paint consistently against the undersized Posnack team. Trinity eventually pulled out to a double digit lead in the fourth quarter that they never relinquished.

The Warriors four straight losses over the last week were by an average of six points per game to teams who are a combined 50-31. 

TCA will play Hebrew Academy in the fifth place game of the tournament on Thursday night in Boca Raton.  Districts will begin next week with the third-seeded Warriors taking on sixth-seeded Pine.

BOCA RATON- Trinity Christian came back from an eight point deficit in the fourth quarter to shock St. John Paul II 40-38 on Friday night. The win was the sixth straight for the red hot Warriors and perhaps their biggest of the season. 

Coming into the game, the Warriors had averaged 71 points per game over the course of the winning streak. This game, however, was a defensive battle from the tip. Despite cold shooting, TCA went into the locker room trailing just 23-17 and stayed within eight headed into the fourth quarter. The Warriors heated up quickly in the final frame, tying the game in the first three minutes.  A Jaiden Santiago steal and bucket and threes by Vonte Allen and Justin Wiggins knotted the game at 33.  St. John Paul retook the lead at 36-35 with less than a minute to go, setting the scene for more heroics from the Warriors.  Allen drained a three to give Trinity the lead for good.  After forcing a SJP turnover, Tristan Gee was fouled and made both free throws to seal the come-from-behind victory. Gee, the district's leading scorer, led the Warriors with 17 points.  Allen added 11 points and Wiggins had 10.

TCA will travel to Highlands Christian for a key ECC matchup on Tuesday night. They are currently 10-8 on the season after a 1-5 start.

LAKE WORTH- Trinity Christian won their fifth straight game as they scorched Glades Day 84-58 on Thursday night. TCA led by 17 at halftime and held off a third quarter GDS run to pick up the district win.

Juniors Tristan Gee and Justin Wiggins both had career-high scoring nights to lead the Warriors. Gee poured in 30 points and grabbed 13 rebounds. Wiggins dropped in 29 points and pulled in 15 rebounds.  Fellow junior Vonte Allen added 17 points and had 12 rebounds. 

With the win, the Warriors moved to 2-2 in district play and into third place in the district rankings. They will take on St. John Paul II in a big non-district game on Friday night.

LAKE WORTH- Trinity Christian utilized a balanced offensive attack to cruise past Morningside 57-42 at Friday night's Homecoming game. Five Warriors had at least eight points in leading TCA to their seventh win of the season.

After a week that the state's leading scorer Melanie Garbarsky had already posted 40 and 37 points performances, the Warriors took on a new look in this one. Sofia de los Mozos hit three first half three pointers, and Alyssa Jean-Gilles dropped in a season-high 13 points. Garbarsky continued her outstanding play with a game-high 23 points. Allison Eloy and Emily Castillo rounded out the scoring for the Warriors. 

The 7-6 Warriors have now more than doubled their win total of three wins from a year ago. They will host Glades Day on Thursday in a district 13 match up.

LAKE WORTH- Trinity Christian scored a school-record for points as they rolled past Morningside Academy 88-54 before a packed Homecoming crowd at the Peters Center. Junior Jovonte Allen poured in a career-high 34 points to lead the Warriors to their third straight win. The winning streak is TCA's longest since 2014. 

A motivated Warrior squad came out of the locker room on fire, running out to an 16-2 lead on an overwhelmed Eagles team. Tristan Gee scored early and often, dropping in 10 first quarter points on his way to a 22 point night. Seventh grader Drovinsky Ulysse wowed the TCA crowd, nailing a trio of three-pointers in helping pace the Warriors to a 22-point halftime lead. Eight different Trinity players got in the scorebook en route to the record-setting point total. The previous record of 81 points was scored in 2014 against Dreyfoos.  The Warriors also set a record for rebounds in game, grabbing 59 and shattering a record they set just last week.

TCA improved to 7-8 on the season after a slow 1-5 start. They host Dreyfoos on Tuesday and will look to move to the .500 mark for the first time this late in the season since 2014.