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ALL-AREA GIRLS LACROSSE TEAM All-Area First Team Meredith Baker Marissa Braden Lexi Moirano Olivia Blakeman Caitlyn Miller Gracee Hendrix Lucy Sexton Maddy Blakeman Hope Cotten Katy Pridemore Brianna Blum Allison Modica Olivia Long Allison Windsor PLAYER OF THE YEAR MACKENZIE SMITH MEREDITH BAKER Vero Beach junior attacker Stats: 16 goals, 8 assists, 16 draw controls, 7 groundball controls, 3 interceptions MADDY BLAKEMAN St. Edward’s senior midfielder Stats: 71 goals, 17 assists OLIVIA BLAKEMAN St. Edward’s sophomore midfielder Stats: 50 goals, 20 assists BRIANNA BLUM Vero Beach junior defender Stats: 8 goals, 2 assists, 6 draw controls, 16 groundball controls, 6 interceptions MARISSA BRADEN Martin County senior midfielder Stats: 65 goals, 16 assists HOPE COTTEN Jensen Beach sophomore midfielder Stats: 63 goals, 13 assists, 36 interceptions, 74 groundball controls, 46 forced turnovers, 17 draw controls GRACEE HENDRIX Vero Beach senior defensive midfielder Stats: 9 goals, 7 assists, 20 draw controls, 18 groundball controls, 5 interceptions OLIVIA LONG Vero Beach senior defender Stats: 4 goals, 6 assists, 70 draw controls, 35 groundball controls, 1 interception All-Area Spring Sports Schedule SUNDAY Girls Tennis MONDAY Boys Tennis TUESDAY Girls Track WEDNESDAY Boys Track THURSDAY Girls Lacrosse FRIDAY Boys Lacrosse SATURDAY Softball SUNDAY Baseball See previous all-area teams on prepzone.TCPalm.com CAITLYN MILLER Vero Beach senior goalkeeper Stats: 52 percent save percentage ALLISON MODICA Vero Beach junior midfielder Stats: 28 goals, 8 assists, 13 draw controls, 6 groundball controls, 5 interceptions LEXI MOIRANO Vero Beach junior attacker Stats: 37 goals, 12 assists, 10 groundball controls, 2 interceptions KATY PRIDEMORE Vero Beach sophomore midfielder Stats: 67 goals, 40 assists, 22 draw controls, 29 groundball controls LUCY SEXTON Vero Beach senior midfielder Stats: 41 goals, 20 assists, 17 draw controls, 18 groundball controls ALLISON WINDSOR Martin County senior attacker Stats: 29 goals, 44 assists, while playing on broken ankle ANGIE BENSON Martin County freshman goalkeeper CHRISTIANA BUTZ St. Edward’s sophomore attacker BRENNA CONWAY John Carrol soph. attacker SAVANNAH COTTEN Jensen Beach senior attacker LARA DRONDOSKI St. Edward’s senior defender RACHEL DUMAS Pine School senior midfielder MORGAN FALKENHAGEN St. Edward’s sophomore midfielder MEGAN KROH Vero Beach senior defender ASHLEY MACINTYRE Vero Beach freshman midfielder ANGELINE NISA Jensen Beach senior defender/midfielder HANNAH PALAU Vero Beach freshman attacker ANMOL PATEL St. Edward’s senior defender CAROLINE SMITH Martin County sophomore midfielder ELIZABETH UPTON Pine School senior midfielder Honorable Mention First Team continued ALEX BOERNER/TREASURE COAST NEWSPAPERS Mackenzie Smith of Vero Beach High School is the 2012 Scripps Treasure Coast Newspapers Girls Lacrosse Player of the Year. By Laurel Pfahler [email protected] 772-978-2282 VERO BEACH — When the game was on the line, the Vero Beach High School girls lacrosse team put the ball in Mackenzie Smith’s possession. Rarely, did Smith not con- vert. The senior attacker/mid- fielder developed into the Fighting Indians’ go-to player this year and guided them to a seventh straight state title and a 22-2 finish with four wins over out-of-state opponents. Smith, the team’s points leader with 66 goals and 64 assists, is the Scripps Treasure Coast Newspapers All-Area Girls Lacrosse Player of the Year. “It’s all attitude,” Vero Beach coach Shannon Dean said. “I have coached Mackenzie many years and I’ve watched her evolve as a player, and this was the final chapter in her high school career, to be that dominant player for Vero Beach High School. “That’s what she wanted, and whatever she sets her sights on, she gets it.” Smith, who is signed to play at Vanderbilt, began to set herself apart at the end of last season. Her best game came in an 12-11 win over St. Stephen’s & St. Agnes (D.C.) on March 30, when Smith scored a game-high five goals, includ- ing the game-winner with 2:48 left. The win came right af- ter McDonogh (Md.) end- ed the Indians’ 69-game win streak. “We lost some big players on the offensive end with Court- ney (Swan), Erin (Schroeder) and Sam (MacCurdy), so I wanted to be the player to step up in situations where need- ed and to be a senior leader,” Smith said. “I knew one of us had to take that role, and I wanted to be an impact player.” Smith’s résumé is packed full with honors. She is a 2012 U.S. Lacrosse First Team All-American and Academic All-American, was a U.S. Lacrosse Top (High School) Performer for April 4 and May 2, the ESPN Rise Southeast Region Player of the Week for May 8 and earned first team All-District, All-Region and All-League. The St. Stephen’s & St. Agnes game stands out as the high- light of Smith’s career, but she ended it on a high note, too. Vero Beach had to fend off a quick start from Orlando- Bishop Moore in the state championship game, but Smith scored three of the Indians’ first four goals and sparked a run to put the Fighting Indians ahead for good in what turned into a 22-6 rout. Smith said scoring goals became “like second nature” to her after an increased focus in practice this year. She said the experience of play- ing with some of the top play- ers in the country helped her “drastically improve” since her freshman year. “I have so much experience from playing with these girls and the girls I was with the past three years, with players like Courtney, Jenn (Leffew) and Krista (Grabher),” Smith said. “I was constantly forced to be better, and I just tried to put my own spin on what they did. “I’ve learned tons of lessons on and off the field, and I couldn’t have asked for a bet- ter team to play for.” The closer Mackenzie Smith was the go-to player on another Indians’ state championship team Shannon Dean Team: Vero Beach Years with team: 10th season This season: Led the Fighting Indians to a seventh straight state final win and a 22-2 finish, including victories over four out-of-state opponents. Vero Beach has won 93 straight games against in-state opponents. Quotable: “This year tested another angle of my coaching ability as far as having a mix of players from freshmen up to seniors. It was very challenging to get them to mesh together toward that common goal, but it just made me a better coach. As coaches, we are also students of the game, and I’m constantly learning through my players new things as a coach and this season was something I will take with me. It was especially gratifying in that aspect that it was something I wasn’t used to and I had to overcome.” Coach of the Year Mackenzie Smith Vero Beach senior midfielder/attacker Stats: 66 goals, 64 assists, 22 draw controls, 24 groundball controls; a four-year player who helped Vero Beach to its seventh straight state final win this season; a first-team All-District, All-Region and All-League selection and a 2012 U.S. Lacrosse All-American and Academic All-American Coach Shannon Dean: “You look for that go-to player and she definitely identified herself as the one we wanted with the ball in her hands at the end of the game or as a game-changer. She developed into that role at the end of last year, and she was definitely our go-to player. She has that makeup that puts her in the elite level. She’s cemented her name into the elite class of Vero Beach High School players.” Player of the Year The Team The 2012 All-Area Girls Lacrosse Team was compiled by Laurel Pfahler. 6C » Thursday, June 7, 2012 » SCRIPPS TREASURE COAST NEWSPAPERS » TC
