Bit of Joy
ImageImage
The Beachside High boys soccer team won the FHSAA Class 5A state championship with a 2-1 win over Pembroke Pines Charter on Saturday, Feb. 28, 2026. | Submitted, Jen Harman

BIT OF JOY | Boys’ soccer champs

By Will Brown
Published on March 5, 2026 at 10:46 am
Free local news and info, in your inbox at 6 a.m. M-F.

Congratulations to the Beachside High School boys’ soccer team on winning the St. Johns County school’s first state championship! The Barracudas defeated Pembroke Pines Charter 2-1 after extra time in DeLand in the FHSAA Class 5A championship on Saturday. Austin Kern scored Beachside’s first goal. Davi Martins, who scored in all five state playoff games, converted an 89th-minute penalty kick to cap off a Messi-like run through the playoffs. And Beachside goalkeeper Brian Garland produced 10 saves. Before the season, a quartet of seniors made their intention clear: “We’re all hungry for the state final. We’re hungry to get there. And hungry to win everything.” Beachside finished 19-2-2.

author image Reporter email Will joined Jacksonville Today as a Report for America corps member. He previously reported for the Jacksonville Business Journal, The St. Augustine Record, Victoria (Texas) Advocate and the Tallahassee Democrat. He also contributed to WFSU Public Media’s national Murrow Award-winning series “Committed: How and why children became the fastest growing group under Florida’s Baker Act.” Will is a native Floridian who has earned journalism degrees from Florida A&M University and the University of South Florida.

Keep Reading

Bit of Joy BIT OF JOY | Birthday shoutout

By Heather Henderson

Please join us in wishing the happiest of birthdays to one of our readers: Jessica’s sister, Danielle! Fun facts about the birthday girl: She’s a friend to so many in the community, an amazing mom, a 30 Rock trivia champion, and the purveyor of Jacksonville’s best cookies. (Really; Jacksonville Magazine readers say so.) 

 Read More
Let me read it first.