On a chilly night at the Citrus Bowl, defending State Champion Vero Beach HS girls opened its 2016 campaign with its 145th straight win over Florida opponents. They hosted Lake Brantley and came away with a 15-1 victory. Vero Beach had a balanced attack with Maddie Ellis and Claire Connelly scoring 3 goals each. Ellis also had 4 draw controls for the Indians. Gabby Sposato is credited with the game winner, taking a pretty feed from Gracie Martin and burying the left-hander in the top shelf at the 15:55 mark of the first half. Lake Brantley goalie Kelsey Johnson kept the Patriots in the contest with 12 saves as Vero was up 6-1 at the intermission. Lake Brantley managed just 3 shots on goal but Dale Lower fed Olivia Carter for a gorgeous goal with 4:38 left in the first half. The Vero ride proved a problem for Lake Brantley forcing 21 turn overs resulting in Taylor Nuttall and Bridget Funk combining for 8 ground balls. Vero goalie Lexie Patton was really never tested as she made 2 saves. The Vero offense assisted on 8 of its 15 goals with Martin deftly distributing on 3 occasions and Lauren London finding the open player also for 3 assists.