- May 14, 2024
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The first time the Lakewood Ranch High boys lacrosse team (14-5) played Venice High (11-6) in 2024, back on April 4, the Mustangs lost 7-6 on the road.
Mustangs leading scorer Lucas Anthony, a senior and one of the top offensive threats in Florida, was held to one goal and one assist. The team put just 15 total shots on Venice senior goaltender Alex Ptaszek, a sign that Venice was able to control the ball. It was a disappointing effort, Head Coach Joe Nelson said.
But in the weeks since, Nelson said, his team has grown — not only in its understanding of the game but also in its understanding of itself.
"These guys are progressing," Nelson said. "We are finally gelling into an offense that works for our personnel. You have to play your best lacrosse at the end of the season. We still have not hit our peak."
When Lakewood Ranch and Venice held a rematch April 26, it was in the Florida High School Athletic Association Class 2A regional quarterfinals. This time, Lakewood Ranch shook off a slow start to take control, peppering Ptaszek with shots and ultimately winning 14-8.
Anthony made up for his quiet performance in the first matchup with eight goals in the second. It gave him 63 goals for the season, which as of April 27 tied him for the 20th-most in Florida. It was a dominant performance buoyed by the play of his teammates — from his fellow attackers down to senior goalie Dylan Brown — which allowed Anthony the time and space to unleash his rocket of a shot.
In front of a raucous crowd at Premier Sports Campus, the Mustangs put together a complete team effort. Lakewood Ranch now advances to the Class 2A regional semifinals; the Mustangs will play host to either Newsome High (13-4) or Manatee High (10-6) on May 1 at 7 p.m. A win in that game would propel the Mustangs into the regional finals at 7 p.m. May 4.
This is the first time Lakewood Ranch has advanced to the regional semifinal stage of the postseason since the school's lacrosse program was created in 2017-2018. It comes in Nelson's first year with the program after moving to the area from Minnesota, where he coached lacrosse at Concordia University, St. Paul, among other ventures.
Nelson said his first order of business upon meeting with the Mustangs was establishing "pillars" for the team to carry with them. Those pillars are ways Nelson wants the players to conduct themselves, as well as goals for them to reach and being good teammates. Nelson said the team conducts "chalk talks" after each game to both go over the X's and O's and to give the players a chance to praise one another for things they did to help the team be its best.
"At the end of the day, I want these guys to remember high school lacrosse," Nelson said. "I want them to have best friends (from the program). I want them to remember coming out and working hard and earning something. It's not about the wins and losses. If the culture is great, they will remember their experiences."
No doubt, the Mustangs will remember this season. Against Venice, the team played with a heaping of swagger, with midfielders and defenders routinely knocking down Indians players with physical play and attackers letting out roars after each goal. Even though the program has never been this deep in the postseason before, the Mustangs play like they know they belong.
For Anthony, who has willed the team to wins at times in previous seasons, the 2024 season has given him some help. Younger players like sophomores Braden Johansen (40 goals), Mickey Cohen (39 goals) and Liam Fernandez (37 goals) have taken the pressure off Anthony to do everything on offense all the time. Anthony said in March that the team's spike in know-how and development was evident from the start of the season. He called it the best team he's been a part of, and the rest of the season has proven him right.
Their coach knows how important every member of the team has been to its success.
"Without six guys on the offensive side, Lucas isn't scoring goals," Nelson said. "Every single person is a threat. (Against Venice) it happened to fall into Lucas' hands, but everyone can move the ball. We are working as an entire unit. It's getting our best players to critical scoring areas so they can put the ball in the net."
However and whenever the team's season ends, Anthony and the rest of the seniors are leaving Lakewood Ranch on an upswing. They hope it's a few more games away.
Play like they did against Venice, and Lakewood Ranch has a chance to keep the run going.
