When Montverde Academy (Montverde, Fla.) opted out of the Florida High School Athletic Association playoffs five seasons ago, the plan was to end future years with a showcase invitational featuring some of the nation’s top winter-play programs.

Thursday, the fourth installment of the Montverde Academy Soccer Tournament starts with it usually strong and diverse eight-team field.

Four programs from Florida, led by SIMA FAB 50 No. 1 and event host Montverde Academy, will clash with two programs from Texas and one each from Arizona and California. The eight teams are a combined 78-7-12 this season.

In addition to Montverde, No. 9 Cathedral (Los Angeles, Calif.), No. 12 Hamilton (Chandler, Ariz.), No. 17 Coppell (Coppell, Texas) and No. 21 Gulliver Prep (Miami, Fla.) are all in the SIMA FAB 50 this week.

Since this event serves as the season finale for Montverde, the situation is quite simple. If the Eagles win for the fourth straight year, they will be the SIMA FAB 50 winter No. 1 team, and the next three months worth of winter-season play will only sort out who is No. 2. If Montverde Academy falls, the race for No. 1 likely will go on for months.

The following is a quick overview of the participating schools: 

AUBURNDALE (Fla.)

Record: 14-2-4

Top Scorers: n/a

Notes: Auburndale went 14-0-3 through November and December, but have struggled in January at 0-2-1. The two losses are to teams Auburndale had beat by multiple goals in December. 

CATHEDRAL (Calif.)

Record: 9-1-4

Top Scorers: Daniel Huizar, 7 goals in 10 games; Jose Cano, 5 goals in 13 games.

Notes: Los Angeles Cathedral recently won the SoCal High School Classic in California, and winning MAST would make a strong case for a California to inherit the SIMA FAB 50 No. 1 ranking. … Senior Saul Reyes has committed to UC Riverside. 

COPPELL (Texas)

Record: 2-1

Top Scorers: Roberto Arguello 3 goals, Colten Clark, Ryan Brinda and Jake Shumate each have two.

Notes: Coppell was the 2013 Texas 5A state champ and 2014 state runner-up. … The Cowboys are making a third straight MAST appearance and have a 4-2 all-time record at the event. … Jake Shumate has committed to Harding University and Stephen Tower has committed to Oklahoma Christian. 

ELSIK (Texas)

Record: 2-0

Top Scorers: Steven Argueta, Saul Amaya. 

Notes: Elsik enters the event as the youngest team with a lineup full of freshmen and sophomores and only two seniors that see regular time.  

GULLIVER PREP (Fla.)

Record: 8-1

Top Scorers: Adriano Castro. 

Notes: Castro, the team’s leading scorer, missed the match with American Heritage, which stands as Gulliver’s lone loss this season. … Gulliver has three NCAA Division I commits: Andy Alvarez (Army), Alexander Moztarzadeh (North Carolina) and Alberto Poleo (UCLA). 

HAMILTON (Ariz.)

Record: 11-0-2

Top Scorers: n/a

Notes: Hamilton won the Arizona Showcase in December, an event that featured teams from Arizona and California. … Hamilton has been in the Arizona large school state final four of the past five years.

MELBOURNE (Fla.)

Record: 14-2-2

Top Scorers: Nathaniel Grant 22 goals, 6 assists; Giovanni Ottomanelli 12 goals, 4 assists; Owen Tworkowski 10 goals, 15 assists; Austyn Brinkley 9 goals, 4 assists.

Notes: Melbourne, a defending state champion and former SIMA FAB 50-ranked team early in the season, played Montverde to a 3-2 preseason match. … Melbourne took the place of Sunlake, which dropped out of the competition. … Melbourne is riding a seven-match undefeated streak.

MONTVERDE ACADEMY (Fla.)

Record: 18-0

Top Scorers: Andre Shinyashiki, Lucas Fagotti, Kizza Edward, Biska Biyombo. 

Notes: Montverde Academy is riding a 114-match undefeated streak, which covers all four seasons since coach Mike Potempa arrived at Montverde. … Matheus Martins Silva recently committed to Saint Louis. 

 

MAST Schedule

Thursday, Jan. 15

Game #1 – Auburndale (Fla.) vs. Hamilton (Ariz.), 2 p.m.

Game #2 – Gulliver Prep (Fla.) vs. Cathedral (Calif.), 4 p.m.

Game #3 – Melbourne (Fla.) vs. Coppell (Texas), 6 p.m.

Game #4 – Elsik (Texas) vs. Montverde Academy (Fla.), 8 p.m.

 

Friday, Jan 16

Game #5 (Game #2 Loser/Game #3 Loser), 2 p.m.

Game #6 (Game #1 Loser/ Game #4 Loser), 4 p.m.

Game #7 (Game #2 Winner/Game #3 Winner), 6 p.m.

Game #8 (Game #1 Winner/Game #4 Winner), 8 p.m.

 

Saturday, Jan. 17

Game #9 (Game #5 Loser/Game #6 Loser), Training Field, 2:30 p.m.

Game #10 (Game #5 Winner/Game #6 Winner), Game Field, 2:30 p.m.

Game #11 (Game #7 Loser/Game #8 Loser), 4:30 p.m.

Game #12 (Game #7 Winner/Game #8 Winner), 7:30 p.m.