District 30 has some similarity to 29, as the change at the top has consolidated the last few years. The swap of Gulliver to 31 changed the dynamic some and Belen Jesuit is now the hunted in the district. Belen fought through a number of injuries to make it to the FHSAA Final Eight were they lost to SA after edging Western in the first round and winning comfortably versus Gulliver in Round 2. Head Coach Alan Bellando needed to go into his underclassmen quite a lot last year and a lot of the kids are ready to step up. They finished #18 in our Final Top 25 poll.
In the Belen preview you’ll notice the Jesuit Classic that the school is hosting on March 22nd-23rd. Gonzaga (DC), Dallas Jesuit, etc. are in town and if you can get there that’s two schools we don’t normally see in South Florida. National programs.
Chazz Woodson is now in his second year at the helm of Ransom Everglades, showing improvement down the stretch, and Jake Koch takes over at Columbus; they will be the two challengers this year. Joseph Conners moves to Miami Country Day from Martin County but that will not be a quick turnaround. St. Brendan rounds out the district. Unfortunately, it looks like LaSalle dropped off the varsity radar.
Belen Jesuit 15-8, lost in the FHSAA Final Eight
Head Coach Alan Bellando sent this info in to us:
2019 will be an interesting year for the Wolverines. We graduated 17 seniors and 90% of our goals scored, so it will be exciting to see who steps up this year. The success of our season will depend on the development of our young players. Thank goodness we have a decent pool of players as our JV has 35 and Middle School has 70.
This year we will be hosting the “2019 Jesuit Lacrosse Classic”. Several nationally ranked teams are coming to South Florida to battle it out and celebrate our Jesuit traditions. It will be a fantastic weekend (March 22/23) of lacrosse and we encourage our entire lacrosse community to watch a game. Attending are: Gonzaga College HS from DC, Jesuit Dallas from Texas, Fordham Prep from NY, Canisius HS from NY, & Jesuit HS from Tampa.
Our other big weekends are a Tour of the Keys and a West Coast Weekend. We head south to play Coral Shores and then spend the next few days in Key West before playing Key West HS. It is always a great experience for our students and their families. Later in the year we head to Naples to encounter Barron Collier as well as the Ventiquattro clan who have taken over at Bishop Verot. Tony V has taken over the program and was able to lock down one of the best coaches ever in long time Carthage Comet coach, his father Kirk, to assist him this year.
Ransom Everglades 6-8, lost in the district final
Head Coach Chazz Woodson writes in with this preview:
What are your expectations this season for the team?
We graduated 11 out of last year’s 20-man roster. We only have 6 seniors this year, one who hasn’t played since middle school. So we will be young. We expect to improve a lot as the season goes on and our young guys get some varsity experience under their belts. For the first time since I’ve been here, we will also have two goalies fighting for a spot.
Who are the returning players who will make a difference this season?
Samson Beinstock is a third-year midfielder who is looking for a breakout season as a senior midfielder. Matias Calle, who has played both midfield and attack, is another third-year player who we expect to carry a lot of the offensive load. Both guys can play both sides of the ball. Jojo Bolduc, one of the team’s emotional leaders is a physical but skilled defender who is capable of playing LSM or close defense. Jake Schwartz, the silent leader of the team, is another third-year defender whose greatest attribute is his consistency.
Ransom Everglades Tennis, March 2018What players do you expect to step up this year that didn’t get much playing time last year?
Junior, Robbie Moret, a football player and phenomenal athlete, was a lock down short stick defender last year. This year he will be asked to play more of a two-way role. Goaltending, which has been a staple for us over the years, will be a key decision. Junior David Civantos and Sophomore Elliott Sable split time on JV last year and will both compete for the varsity spot this year. Junior, Aaron Winer, will also be asked to contribute more this year on both sides of the ball in the midfield.
What are the games you are really looking forward to this season?
As usual, the rivalry game between Ransom and Gulliver will always be an emotional game. Similarly, district games against Columbus and Belen will be tough, but fun. We are looking to continue a win streak against Columbus and pick up our first win against Belen in 3 or 4 years. All three of those contests this year are at home.
Columbus 10-7, lost in the district semifinal
New Head Coach Jake Koch provided his insights:
What are your expectations this season for the team?
Even in my first year I have high expectations our team. We have a legitimate shot to win the district as well as be highly competitive in region play. I also expect our group to get better and better throughout the season which is why I believe we can make some serious noise in regionals. We ended fall ball on a high note as we beat, and were highly competitive against some of the states best teams. I expect this trend to continue as the season progresses.
Who are the returning players who will make a difference this season?
Goalie: Max Gomez, Defense: Andy Bianco, Midfield: Carlos Roca, Diego Ucros, Attack: Kyle Alexander, Patrick Valerius.
What players do you expect to step up this year that didn’t get much playing time last year?
Goalie: Max Gomez (returning player but first year starter as he saw minimal action last season). Defense: Luther Johnson V (coming off a runner up 8A football state championship run), Elliot Erickson (son of former Hurricane quarterback Craig Erickson)
What are the games you are really looking forward to this season?
Belen Jesuit, St. Thomas Aquinas, Gulliver Prep, Stoneman Douglas.
Miami Country Day 6-13, lost in the district semifinal
New Head Coach Joseph Conners wrote this for us:
What are your expectations this season for the team?
Overall we have a pretty young team with several key returning players. As our season progresses, our team will too and at the end of the season the 2019 Miami Country Day lacrosse team will be completely different from last years 6-13 season. As a lacrosse program in south florida, we are on a huge uprise and soon our name will be a prominent household name in the lacrosse community.
Who are the returning players who will make a difference this season?
Key returning players this year include seniors Sean Fuller, Corso Luciano, Marlon Robins, and David Burger. In his fifth year playing in our varsity program, Sean Fuller adds experience and leadership to our very young squad. Fuller will be la ethal threat on both offense and defense. Corso Luciano has big shoes to fill as he is the middle man of our strong but new defensive unit. Being one of the better face-off men in the county, Marlon Robins plays both sides of the field and isn’t afraid to shoot on will. With three years of varsity lacrosse under his belt, senior goalie David Burger will be a huge aset on and off the field for our team. Burger is arguably one of the better goalies in our region and whenever a team has an experienced goalie they are usually in a good position.
What players do you expect to step up this year that didn’t get much playing time last year?
As a young team, we have many great players who have yet hit their peak on the field due to their lack of playing time in the past. Players that we expect to step up this year include sophomore Romain Vinois, junior Stevie Port, senior Jake Fishman, and senior Richie Lovelace. Romain Vinois, is a young middie with great size and huge potential. Vinois will add great leadership in the future and is hoping to have great high school lacrosse career. Junior Stevie Port, has increased his level of play throughout the years and will be taking many FOGO runs this year. Jake Fishman has been a part of our program for years but has yet to hit his peak. With his senior year coming around, Fishman will be an elite scorer this year and will be a key part of our attack core. Richie Lovelace is a second year defender who will add immense depth to our defensive line.
What are the games you are really looking forward to this season?
We’re looking towards our first game against the palmetto panthers.
St. Brendan 11-6, did not make district playoff
We have not yet received their questionnaire, we’ll update it when we receive it.
LaSalle 5-5, did not make district playoff
Our other big weekends are a Tour of the Keys and a West Coast Weekend. We head south to play Coral Shores and then spend the next few days in Key West before playing Key West HS. It is always a great experience for our students and their families. Later in the year we head to Naples to encounter Barron Collier as well as the Ventiquattro clan who have taken over at Bishop Verot. Tony V has taken over the program and was able to lock down one of the best coaches ever in long time Carthage Comet coach, his father Kirk, to assist him this year.
Ransom Everglades 6-8, lost in the district final
Head Coach Chazz Woodson writes in with this preview:
What are your expectations this season for the team?
We graduated 11 out of last year’s 20-man roster. We only have 6 seniors this year, one who hasn’t played since middle school. So we will be young. We expect to improve a lot as the season goes on and our young guys get some varsity experience under their belts. For the first time since I’ve been here, we will also have two goalies fighting for a spot.
Who are the returning players who will make a difference this season?
Samson Beinstock is a third-year midfielder who is looking for a breakout season as a senior midfielder. Matias Calle, who has played both midfield and attack, is another third-year player who we expect to carry a lot of the offensive load. Both guys can play both sides of the ball. Jojo Bolduc, one of the team’s emotional leaders is a physical but skilled defender who is capable of playing LSM or close defense. Jake Schwartz, the silent leader of the team, is another third-year defender whose greatest attribute is his consistency.
Who are the returning players who will make a difference this season?
Goalie: Max Gomez, Defense: Andy Bianco, Midfield: Carlos Roca, Diego Ucros, Attack: Kyle Alexander, Patrick Valerius.
What players do you expect to step up this year that didn’t get much playing time last year?
Goalie: Max Gomez (returning player but first year starter as he saw minimal action last season). Defense: Luther Johnson V (coming off a runner up 8A football state championship run), Elliot Erickson (son of former Hurricane quarterback Craig Erickson)
What are the games you are really looking forward to this season?
Belen Jesuit, St. Thomas Aquinas, Gulliver Prep, Stoneman Douglas.
Miami Country Day 6-13, lost in the district semifinal
New Head Coach Joseph Conners wrote this for us:
What are your expectations this season for the team?
Overall we have a pretty young team with several key returning players. As our season progresses, our team will too and at the end of the season the 2019 Miami Country Day lacrosse team will be completely different from last years 6-13 season. As a lacrosse program in south florida, we are on a huge uprise and soon our name will be a prominent household name in the lacrosse community.
Who are the returning players who will make a difference this season?
Key returning players this year include seniors Sean Fuller, Corso Luciano, Marlon Robins, and David Burger. In his fifth year playing in our varsity program, Sean Fuller adds experience and leadership to our very young squad. Fuller will be la ethal threat on both offense and defense. Corso Luciano has big shoes to fill as he is the middle man of our strong but new defensive unit. Being one of the better face-off men in the county, Marlon Robins plays both sides of the field and isn’t afraid to shoot on will. With three years of varsity lacrosse under his belt, senior goalie David Burger will be a huge aset on and off the field for our team. Burger is arguably one of the better goalies in our region and whenever a team has an experienced goalie they are usually in a good position.
What players do you expect to step up this year that didn’t get much playing time last year?
As a young team, we have many great players who have yet hit their peak on the field due to their lack of playing time in the past. Players that we expect to step up this year include sophomore Romain Vinois, junior Stevie Port, senior Jake Fishman, and senior Richie Lovelace. Romain Vinois, is a young middie with great size and huge potential. Vinois will add great leadership in the future and is hoping to have great high school lacrosse career. Junior Stevie Port, has increased his level of play throughout the years and will be taking many FOGO runs this year. Jake Fishman has been a part of our program for years but has yet to hit his peak. With his senior year coming around, Fishman will be an elite scorer this year and will be a key part of our attack core. Richie Lovelace is a second year defender who will add immense depth to our defensive line.
What are the games you are really looking forward to this season?
We’re looking towards our first game against the palmetto panthers.
St. Brendan 11-6, did not make district playoff
We have not yet received their questionnaire, we’ll update it when we receive it.
LaSalle 5-5, did not make district playoff
