PREP LACROSSE NEARS HALFWAY POINT OF SEASON

The Key West Conchs boys lacrosse team hit the road for a pair of games in St. Augustine last week, playing St. Augustine High on March 3 and Menendez High the following day. Key West lost both games, bringing them to 0-7 on the season. With a little more than half the season ahead of them, the Conchs still have plenty of time to smooth things out and find their winning ways again.

Coral Shores improved to 2-3 last week after a Feb. 28 win against LaSalle. The Hurricanes outscored the Royal Lions 16-3, with 5 goals coming from Nick Petrusha. Sully McDonough added 3; Andrew Kumar, Luas Carballo and Dominic Gonzalez each netted 2; and Alex Sebben and Matthew Patterson each scored 1 in the win. Chuck Jacobsen was good for 10 ground balls and was 12-15 on faceoffs. Reece Jahn and Brock Bynum combined for 9 saves in goal.

In girls lacrosse, Key West and Coral Shores faced off on Feb. 28 in Key West, giving both teams a chance to play in-county. The game was intense, but at the final whistle there were no hard feelings.

“While we may be Keys rivals, we are also each other's allies as the only two public schools in our district and being in the Keys. We enjoy playing Coral Shores,” said Conchs coach Marisa Giacopuzzi.

The Conchs won the game 15-6 with scores from Maria Chaney (5), Ella Baxter (3), Ada Van Loon (2), Bella Marchiano (2), Sophia Felini (2) and Katie Collins (1). Coral Shores did its homework prior to game time, putting extra pressure on Key West’s go-to scorer, Marchiano, who was held to an unusual 2 goals. The extra pressure on Marchiano opened up scoring opportunities for the rest of Key West’s talented roster to get the ball in the net.

Giacopuzzi had nothing but praise for the ’Canes, particularly Coral Shores goalkeeper Emily Murphy.

“Their goalie was on fire, denying shots right after another. I tallied around 19 saves,” she said.

Key West is off to an impressive 6-1 start after defeating Coral Shores, Ransom and Westminster last week. Their only blemish was a 15-6 loss to American Heritage midweek. The Conchs will get a break in action until March 14 when they play Archbishop McCarthy at home.

After their loss to Key West, the Lady ’Canes dropped one more game last week, falling to Archbishop McCarthy at home. The losses bring Coral Shores to a 3-3 record at just about the halfway point of the regular season.

Key West, Coral Shores at .500

Marathon is holding on to a 4-0 record after wins against Posnack and Miami Country Day last week. The Fins faced Posnak on March 2, pounding out 10 hits in 5 innings of play. Ryan Yablon fanned 8 batters over 4 innings and Bryan Broche closed out the game, striking out 2 in the final inning. Yablon went on the offensive as well, racking up 3 hits in the game. Tommy Norris added 2 hits and Gabe Leal, Gavin Leal, Mason Thornton, Dylan Globe and Tiago Rivero each added 1 to their stats in the matchup.

The Fins won 14-4 in a mercy rule victory, giving them momentum in their home game the following night against Country Day. They won that one 8-0. Marathon ace Dylan Ziels went 7 full innings for the Fins, throwing a 1-hitter while striking out 20 with no walks in the shutout. The Dolphins racked up 11 hits in the game, led by three from Mason Thornton. Gabe Leal, Yablon and Norris each had 2, and Gavin Leal and Dylan Globe had 1 hit each.

The Hurricanes evened out their record to 2-2 with a pair of wins last week, starting with a Feb. 27 home victory over ABF Hialeah. Dylan Bloom, Andrew Putetti and Ian Anderson had 2 hits each while Donovan Thiery and Campbell Lavoie each had 1. Lavoie drove in 5 runs in the 16-7 win. Tate Brumbalow went 5 innings on the mound for the ’Canes, striking out 7, and Riley O’Berry closed out the final 2 innings for Coral Shores.

On March 1, the ’Canes battled Somerset Silver Palms on the road to a 10-8 victory. Lavoie and O’Berry had 2 hits each and Thiery, Putetti, Ezekiel Myers and Steel Mientkiewicz added hits for Coral Shores. Bloom and Thiery teamed up on the pitcher’s mound, striking out 12 in total and securing the win.

Key West lost a pair of games to West Broward this week. On March 3, the Conchs met the Bobcats at Rex Weech Field. Despite hits from Anthony Lariz, Matthew Greenberg, Anden Rady and Wyatt Kuhn and 2 from Jack Haggard, Key West lost 8-5. The following night, Caden Pichardo had a double and a single while Greenberg, Rady, Kuhn, and Haggard logged 1 hit each. The Bobcat bats came alive, though, and 11 hits from West Broward would be too much for the Conchs to overcome. The final score was 14-6, giving Key West a 2-2 record coming into a set of games against 6A Bartow High School on Friday and Saturday, March 10 and 11 at home.

By: Tracy and Sean McDonald

The Lady Conchs poured on the runs against South Dade High School in a doubleheader on March 5, including a home run from the bat of Miesha Hernandez in game one. Chloe Gilday threw a no-hitter in the shutout, striking out 10 in just 4 innings of play in their 15-0 mercy rule win over the Buccaneers.

In game two, Hernandez and Nevaeh Arnold paired up in the circle for the Conchs, allowing just 2 hits and striking out 10 in the victory. Game two ended in a 17-2 win for Key West. The lopsided victories were made possible by solid hitting in the two-game series. Lady Conchs earning hits in addition to Hernandez were Isabella Franco, Dharma Murray, Vera Rodger and Madelyn Perusse with 2 hits each over the span of both games. Maicey Malgrat, Shylo Sanchez, Alexa Condella, Ty Cervantes and Lindsey Koppal all earned hits as well. The wins place Key West at 3-0 heading into their next game on Friday, March 10 at home against Santa Fe.