Playoff roundup: Vero Beach lacrosse teams advance, track and field teams win district

Region 2-2A Boys Lacrosse

Vero Beach 11, Boone 9

VERO BEACH — Five unanswered goals to finish the third quarter including a highlight-reel behind the back goal from sophomore Tanner Lenhardt propelled Vero Beach to an 11-9 regional quarterfinal win over Boone on Saturday morning.

With Vero holding a slim 4-3 halftime lead, two straight goals from Boone's Sam Culley put Vero Beach behind but Lenhardt helped fuel the critical stretch of the game to put Vero in command.

Scoring the tying goal a minute after Boone went ahead, Lenhardt threw a behind the back pass that Grayson Della Porta corralled and tucked away to give Vero Beach the lead back.

After goals from senior Landon Farrow and junior Elliot Stevens gave Vero Beach an 8-5 lead, Lenhardt went in on goal, faked a shot and going to his right whipped the ball behind his back and placed the shot perfectly to put his team ahead 9-5.

"That's the resiliency that I really love about this team and these players, even though they may be down, they understand what it takes to get back into the game and are willing to have the fortitude to do it," Vero Beach coach Lugene Ross said.

With the game taking place at 11 a.m. to accommodate Boone's return to Orlando to attend their prom in the evening, both teams were slow to feel each other out.

After five minutes, Luka Mellone opened the scoring for Boone but goals from Della Porta, Farrow and Lenhardt gave Vero a 3-1 lead after the first quarter.

After Stevens scored to make it 4-1 early in the second, Malone and Jackson Long netted goals late in the quarter to bring Boone within one at halftime.

After their big third quarter, Vero Beach allowed Boone to score to make it 9-6 with 7:58 remaining but right on the face-off, Vero senior Robert Craig won the draw and was left alone to race in on goal and score his first goal all season to put his team up 10-6.

"I'd been telling Robert all season, if teams are leaving you open after the draw, go and score," Ross said. "I think that gave him confidence that, if I shoot and don't score, Coach won't be mad and I'll be okay. He went ahead, they left him open and shot it. It was a big goal."

Boone made it interesting late with three goals in a span of 40 seconds to make it 11-9 with 1:23 remaining, but Vero Beach held strong to secure its seventh win in a row. They will await results Saturday night as Windermere and Timber Creek play and Vero will be on the road in the regional semifinal on Wednesday, Apr. 27.

Lenhardt and Stevens each finished with three goals and senior goalie Henry Stevens made nine saves for Vero Beach.

Region 2-2A Girls Lacrosse

Vero Beach 16, Winter Park 0

VERO BEACH — Alexa Vega scored five goals and Allie Rhoades added four goals as Vero Beach cruised to a 16-0 victory over Winter Park to begin their state tournament in the 2A regional quarterfinals.

A dominant display saw Vero Beach lead 10-0 after only 15 minutes on the clock. Vega scored three goals in that stretch and Calli Norris added two goals to give Vero a commanding lead.

Eight different players scored for Vero on the night, with Kerrigan Gilmore, Evelyn Mullins, Amelia Elliott, Tayden Cameron and Sydney Jenkins each grabbing one goal.

Vero Beach goalkeeper Joy Coffey didn't have much work to do and stopped the only shot she saw to record a shutout.

In the regional semifinal on Tuesday, Apr. 26, Vero Beach hosts Viera, who defeated East Ridge 17-13 in their quarterfinal. It is a rematch of last week's District 8-2A title game in which Vero won 15-7 and will be the third meeting between the teams this season.

Vero Beach track and field teams sweep 10-4A titles

STUART — Both the Vero Beach girls and boys track and field teams had standout afternoons at Martin County High School Friday to earn the District 10-4A championships.

Vero's girls took first place in five events to help fend off Harmony for the team title and had the strongest performance come from freshman Viviandra Phinizee, who scored wins in the 300 meter hurdles and the 200 meter dash.

Junior Brianna Carter won the triple jump, sophomore Camryn Reid took the shot put and junior Juliet Russell made it a sweep of the hurdle events for Vero Beach with a win in the 100 meter hurdles.

For Vero Beach's boys, sophomore Derrick Williams had a big day first running the anchor leg of the winning 4x100 relay team and later won the 200 meter dash.

Vero senior Devin Willis, an FIU commit, also ran a leg of the 4x100 relay team and also brought home the victory in the long jump.

Classmate Brandon Neely grabbed the victory in the discus for Vero Beach.

It was a strong day for Martin County distance runners as Florida Southern signee Anthony Matthew won the 1,600 meter run for the boys and Gina Fuca, a USF commit, won the 800 meter run for the Tiger girls.

Area sprinters also shined as Martin County junior Denzel Alexander won the 100 meter dash narrowly with a time of 10.95 and Fort Pierce Central senior Richelle Williams took the 400 meter dash for the Cobra girls.

Fort Pierce Central sophomore Nikayia Wilder brought home the win in the discus for the Cobra girls.

The top four finishers in all events will advance to the Region 3-4A meet which takes place at Boone High School on May 5.

District 10-4A Track and Field Championships

Boys team scores

Vero Beach 133, Viera 123, Harmony 119, Martin County 88, Melbourne 62, Fort Pierce Central 55, Osceola 44, St. Cloud 37, Treasure Coast 28, Centennial 10

Boys event results

4x800 relay: Viera (Michael Toppi, Aedan Rendek, Cameron Raney, Robbie Naberhaus) 8:19.05; 110 meter hurdles: Alex Tuyo (H) 16.03; 100 meter dash: Denzel Alexander (MC) 10.95; 1,600 meter run: Anthony Matthew (MC) 4:29.19; 4x100 relay: Vero Beach (Michael Carter, Tromance Smith, Devin Willis, Derrick Williams) 42.10; 400 meter dash: Devin Giles (V) 49.31; 300 meter hurdles: Alex Tuyo (H) 40.88; 800 meter run: Aidan Carroll (V) 2:01.22; 200 meter dash: Derrick Williams (VB) 22.11; 3,200 meter run: Michael Toppi (V) 9:35.41; 4x400 relay: Osceola (Bo Mascoe, Ja'Keem Jackson, Tyler Newsome, Jeff Banks) 3:29.11; High jump: Jadon Campbell (H) 1.82m; Pole vault: Ben Gearhart (V) 3.67m; Long jump: Devin Willis (VB) 6.41m; Triple jump: Yadiel Rivera Alonso (SC) 12.08m; Shot put: Gavin Rowell (M) 14.83m; Discus: Brandon Neely (VB) 42.85m; Javelin: Dominick Gentile (V) 44.60m

Girls team scores

Vero Beach 168, Harmony 137, Viera 117, Fort Pierce Central 70, Osceola 60, St. Cloud 40, Martin County 34, Treasure Coast 32, Melbourne 32, Centennial 5

Girls event results

4x800 relay: Harmony (Shelby Fertic, Brynn Magner, Lailana Decker, Rebekah Wiles) 10:10.66; 100 meter hurdles: Juliet Russell (VB) 16.34; 100 meter dash: Shannon Levy (O) 12.09; 1,600 meter run: Isabella Narvaez (V) 5:28.19; 4x100 relay: Osceola (Quanaya Jenkins, Shannon Levy, Aaliyah Strachen, Zanaya Bright) 48.68; 400 meter dash: Richelle Williams (FPC) 58.52; 300 meter hurdles: Viviandra Phinizee (VB) 45.60; 800 meter run: Gina Fuca (MC) 2:25.76; 200 meter dash: Viviandra Phinizee (VB) 26.25; 3,200 meter run: Brooke Gerrits (V) 11:57.28; 4x400 relay: Osceola (Zanaya Bright, Tatiana George, Aaliyah Strachen, Quanaya Jenkins) 4:08.12; High jump: Drea Thompson (H) 1.52m; Pole vault: Elizabeth Hernstrom (H) 3.25m; Long jump: Ciara Thomas (V) 5.18m; Triple jump: Brianna Carter (VB) 11.37m; Shot put: Camryn Reid (VB) 10.88m; Discus: Nikayia Wilder (FPC) 33.03m; Javelin: Thora Gaston (H) 33.08m

This article originally appeared on Treasure Coast Newspapers: Vero Beach lacrosse teams move on, track and field teams win district