Stickskills showcase

WEST BOYNTON BEACH - Rollins College women's lacrosse coach Dennis Short said it is only a matter of time before colleges consider South Florida as their No. 1 destination for recruits.

"I predict that Florida will dominate the lacrosse scene in five years," said Short, who was on hand recruiting for his Winter Park team last month at the inaugural Florida Draw Fall Lacrosse Tournament at West Boynton Park. The event included high school players from Coral Springs, Fort Lauderdale, West Palm Beach, Orlando and Tampa.

"There is as much talent down here as there is anywhere in the country," Short said. "There are that many kids at the younger ages coming into lacrosse in Florida right now, and having the state sanction the sport will be a big help."

The South Florida Ladies Lacrosse team, made up mostly of Park Vista High School athletes, won the tournament with a 4-0 record and defeated the Emerald Lacrosse Club, made up mostly of Pine Crest student-athletes, 18-6 in the championship game as Park Vista senior Brittini Peck scored eight goals and added two assists. Kelsey Grenz, Peck and Jessica Aguanno were the team's leading scorers during the weekend.

Jamie Reeg, a Park Vista junior, caused four turnovers, and had nine ground balls to go along with her two goals and six assists. Park Vista sophomore Demi Gainey recorded five ground balls to lead the South Florida Ladies Lacrosse Club defense. Emerald Lacrosse Club's Sterling Champion and Carly Zharinger each had two goals a piece in a losing effort.

"We are just trying to get lacrosse out there as more of a mainstream sport ... by bringing all of the best teams in Florida together and just have a day of it," said tournament director Kathleen Reeg, president of South Florida Ladies Lacrosse.

Her daughter, Jamie, is one of the top players on the Park Vista team.

"During the high school season we really can't do this, so we decided to hold this before soccer starts so we could get all of the soccer players out. They are usually crossover players for lacrosse."

South Florida Ladies Lacrosse consists of eight teams with about 16 to 20 girls on each team. The program started three years ago and has grown from 25 players to more than 100, ranging from elementary to high school age. It offers summer and fall leagues, winter camps and free youth clinics.

The program has sent teams to compete at the elite showcase tournaments in Maryland, Illinois and New Jersey to allow colleges to see the talent that has emerged in Florida.

"I would like to go to a Division I college and play, " said Jamie Reeg, 16. "When I moved down here, I saw that they didn't really have any experience here. I thought my middle school team [in New Jersey] could have beaten them. It was frustrating. Our coach [Brett Vanalstyne] was really good and we got a lot better."

The three Broward County lacrosse clubs that competed in the tournament included the Emerald Lacrosse Club (players primarily from Pine Crest), Extreme All Stars (players primarily from Douglas and Coral Springs) and Fort Lauderdale Lacrosse (players primarily from St. Thomas).

The Palm Beach County team was South Florida Ladies Lacrosse (with players primarily from Park Vista). TCHS (players primarily from Tampa Catholic) traveled from Tampa, while the Bears (players primarily from Winter Springs), Patriots (players primarily from Lake Brantley) and Wildcats (players primarily from Winter Park) all made the trip from Orlando.

"I would not doubt that Florida becomes a power in the sport," said Park Vista coach Brett Vanalstyne, who also coaches the high school division in the South Florida Ladies Lacrosse program. "It is such an advantage to be able to play year round because of the weather, unlike the north. It should really benefit Florida as a state and especially since the FHSAA just sanctioned it.

"One of the most difficult things would be to convince the players that lacrosse is actually a legitimate sport and it is not just some sport that nobody plays."

Vanalstyne, who won a state lacrosse title with Wellington in 2005 before the FHSAA sanctioned the sport as part of its series, said he started the program at Park Vista with the basics.