Ponte Vedra girls lacrosse leans on flexibility, balance for 2023 FHSAA state semifinals

In her final season with Ponte Vedra girls lacrosse, Anna Taraboletti was ready to banish the questions.

Was this year's team truly ready to return to the final four?

It took weeks, maybe months. Soon, the answer was clear.

"For a while, we didn't really realize what it would take to get there," the senior attacker said. "But after going through the tough games, we understood who we'd end up playing in the future, and we've worked toward getting to that point."

With resilience, flexibility and solidity on defense, the Sharks enter the Florida High School Athletic Association state semifinals with confidence when they play Orlando Lake Highland Prep at 7:30 p.m. Friday at Paradise Coast Sports Complex in Naples.

The winner plays for the title at 7:30 p.m. Saturday against Delray Beach American Heritage or Bradenton St. Stephen's.

For head coach Dan Toole, Ponte Vedra's keys to victory are simple: commitment, focus and preparation, combined with the quick thinking to

"[This year's improvement] is our ability to adjust, to be able to take our game plan, implement the game plan," Toole said. "Then when the game starts, if it's not working or if we didn't anticipate things, our ability to adjust with the lacrosse IQ that these girls have is really impressive."

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DEFENSE DOES THE JOB

The foundation for that flexibility, Toole said, rests on a dedicated defense in front of Radford-signed goaltender Ava LaManna.

"I don't think people gave our team defense as much credit as they deserve," he said. "I think in the last three to four games, if you focus on the defense, it's impressive how well we play, how athletic we are, how well they clear the ball."

On the scoreboard, it's paying off. Playing a schedule ranked by MaxPreps as second-toughest in Class 1A behind only American Heritage, Ponte Vedra has limited 13 of its 18 opponents and each of its last five to single-digit scoring.

"We're collectively all hustling to the ball, sharing the ball and working as a unit on defense," defensive captain Jenna Lewin said.

For senior Chloe Goode, the defensive cohesion has been building throughout the year since the opening weeks.

"Our defense works a lot better together," she said. "The sliding and the hedges are a lot better and a lot more in sync."

ADJUSTING ON THE FLY

The season didn't always flow so smoothly for the Sharks. The team battled through numerous injuries, and had to bounce back from a stretch of two losses in three games in February against Delray Beach American Heritage and Vero Beach.

"We had to kind of figure out our identity and figure out what our strengths were and our weaknesses," Toole said.

But through it all, they've shown the ability to adjust to opponents' plans. If something isn't working, they're ready to switch to Plan B, Plan C or whatever it takes.

"I feel like we've also adjusted working against a zone, and making plays for teams that play zone against us," attacker Ruby Lynch said.

It's shown in a flurry of one-goal wins during the past two months: 9-8 over Episcopal, 11-10 over St. Thomas Aquinas, 10-9 over St. Augustine. Most recently, those adjustments paid off in last week's regional against Episcopal, when the Sharks trailed in the second half before unleashing eight unanswered goals.

BUILDING A WINNING BALANCE

The rise of the defense adds one more dimension to an already-solid Sharks lineup. The attack is loaded with future college talent, including Lynch (Jacksonville University), Lily Mosser (South Florida) and Taraboletti (Vanderbilt). Midfielder Emma Toole has also signed with Anderson.

"It gave us a lot of balance now," Dan Toole said. "Offensively, defensively, with experience and an All-American in the goal, it really set the table well for us to be where we are."

Friday and Saturday represent one more chance for seniors like Taraboletti. She was a 21-goal scorer on the 2021 team that also reached the final four, but lost 18-8 to Lake Highland Prep.

"We're at the point where everything matters," she said. "I know our team's going to go out and give it our all, because we don't have another game promised."

So far, the commitment, focus and preparation are right where Toole wants them. Two more wins, and Ponte Vedra — state boys champion in 2019 — can become Northeast Florida's first school to win both boys and girls FHSAA lacrosse titles.

"We talked about it in fall ball, we want to be playing our best lacrosse at the end of April and the beginning of May," Toole said. "And I feel that we are right now."

This article originally appeared on Florida Times-Union: High school girls lacrosse 2023: Ponte Vedra Sharks in final four